2013: A Blessed Year

Dear GL friends and supporters,

Without a doubt,  2013 has been a truly blessed year for us at Givelight. As has been the case in all the years since our inception. This was due to God’s continuous  mercy on us,  our unwavering commitment for the cause and of course, your continued generosity.

The year started with a huge success!! On January 1st, 2013 I set my foot on the beautiful land of Casablanca, which was donated by a generous family. It was such an amazing feeling to stand there at the open lush and green space with people who were previously unknown to me. I was embarking on a magnificent milestone; continuing the journey of giving in ways I never thought possible. My heart expanded with a renewed sense of hope, recovering from the crashing waves of the tsunami, and now chasing a new dream among the grains of sand in Africa.

A few months later back in US, we received a generous offer from Wafaa Sabil, an Architect based in San Francisco and  a dear friend who’s originally from Morocco. She offered to be the pro-bono Architect for our home. And we were thrilled to hear such great news. 

She later introduced me to Seth Wachtel, her Director who’s the Head of the Architecture Department at the University of San Francisco.

Seth then presented the idea to his class this Fall and to our delight and surprise, 18 students became interested in working on the project.

Click here to view more pictures for Morocco Project and Timeline

After the generosity and wonders of Africa we come to Asia with the fantastic news from Sri Lanka. In March of 2013, we opened the doors of our new and beautiful space in Atulugama a few miles from Colombo: Givelight Home.

The project was completed in allotted time and the quality of the construction, wood furnitures and the overall design took our standards to a new height. The children and staff moved in at the end of the month and Sharham Marleen, our Project Director whose family donated the land went for the grand opening. The event was graced by the presence of public officials as well as various members of local community including religious leaders from all faiths. Shahram was able to spend quality time and get to know the kids on a personal level. To read more about the latest progress in Sri Lanka please click here.

In April 2013, we held an event in Chicago with a theme of “A Night in Morocco” and it was a resounding success. The event was sold out and was attended by almost 700 people. One family was so touched by our story that they made a very generous donation of $75k on the same day. It was amazing to see the warm reception and response from the Chicago community.  To read the whole article about Chicago event, here’s our blog from the event.

Then came the month of May, and another spectacular GL event in Santa Clara Convention Center. The Mayor of Santa Clara, Jamie Matthews welcomed close to 700 guests.  We had a local scholar Imam Tahir sharing the significance of helping orphans. One of the highlights of the evening was children fashion show from countries where Givelight operates. Overall it was a memorable and blessed evening which brought the community together to support a beautiful cause. Here’s the complete blog from our sold out event.

Moving back to Asia, we opened our Cambodia Home on the first day of blessed month of Ramadan and welcomed 40 children into their new home. A generous family donated 2 acres of land surrounded by rubber plantations for Givelight home. Read the letter written by Mariya, the kind hearted soul who shares our passion for the cause, half way across the world.

On November 2nd 2013 we held our 3rd Annual Walkathon. Another successful event attended by 450+ people from all ages and ethnic background.  We received support from many local business including Dr Yahya Radwan, a long time supporter of Givelight, Wholefoods, Peets, and many others. Click here to read more and view pictures from the walkathon.

And finally to end the year with style, the Givelight ladies threw a Ball with The Great Gatsby/1920 as the theme.  The event was a smashing success and was also sold out. The venue and food were sponsored by Postelio and Metro Pizza allowing our children to benefit 100% from the proceeds.  From this event we earned more volunteers, more loyal supporters and more importantly, everyone felt a personal connection to the cause.  

We would like to wish you all a beautiful time with family & friends during this holiday season. As you do so, please remember those who have been deprived from having the most precious thing in this world, their parents. With that in mind, let us continue to feed their body and mind, nurture their dreams and secure their future with love and compassion.

Here’s the outlook for the first half of 2014:

• Houston – Private Gathering at River Oaks, Jan 11th
• Soul to Sole Movie Night, Peace Terrace Academy,  Feb 1st
• “Illuminate a Life” with Rohina Malik- Laguna Playhouse, Feb 18th
• Game Night @ San Jose, Feb 22nd
• Game Night @ Microsoft Theatre, San Jose, March 7th
• Global Bistro – Sunnyvale, March 22nd
• Professional Women Retreat, The Ritz Carlton, April 5th
• Walkathon in NYC, New York, April 19th
• Global Bistro, Chicago, May 17th
• 4th Annual Women’s Gala,May 31st

With hard work, determination, your continued support and prayers, we shall have another spectacular year in 2014, God willing. We end by expressing our deepest gratitude first and foremost to our Almighty Creator for blessing us with this beautiful work. We thank each and everyone of you who have chosen to make Givelight a part of your life.

May you be blessed richly for your generosity.

Have a blessed new year !!

Dian and the GL family

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