Write up in Emirates In-house magazine
Emirates Airline Foundation brings cheer to the less fortunate in Asia
The Emirates Airline Foundation has been bringing smiles to disadvantaged children, youths, elderly and hospital patients in various parts of Asia, including Indonesia.
Indonesia
Children and youths in neighbouring Indonesia were similarly delighted with a donation of 100 blankets and 200 activity books.
The colourful and comfortable blankets were donated to the Asrama Putra Santo Tarsisius, a boarding house located in Batu Kuching, Tanjung Pinang on the Island of Bintan, Indonesia. Built by a French priest, Friar Henri Jourdain, to provide accommodation for economically disadvantaged students aged 13 to 18 years old who studied in schools in Tanjung Pinang, the boarding house relies on boarding fees, donations from benefactors and frugal expense management to run itself, as the local parish is not able to contribute financially to support the running of Asrama.
Meals are typically a modest affair, comprising rice, vegetables and fish. Chicken is served once a week in place of fish, while recreational activities are usually a trip to the nearby Trikora Beach on a Sunday afternoon.
The fun and educational activity books went to the children of Santa Ignatius Lolyola Elementary School in Rempang, south of Indonesia’s Batam Island. A school set up by the Catholic Diocese for the children of low-income families in the area, the school is managed by nuns and professional school teachers. Living conditions at the school’s dormitory and facilities are modest – their source of water is from an open well, while electricity from a diesel generator operates for a limited period at night. Cooking is done using firewood collected from the surroundings.
