Xplore UAE Raises AED 90,000 For Charity

The third edition of “Xplore UAE’, an annual off-road driving charity event by ENOC and Arabian Automobiles Company, raised AED 90,000 for selected charities in the UAE.

Last year, the event raised AED 85,000 in donations, which benefited the Rashid Paediatric Centre.

More than 600 participants took part in ‘Xplore UAE III’, which took place last Friday. The charity drive, which is open to the public, started with breakfast at Golden Tulip Khatt Springs in Ras Al Khaimah and ended with an action-packed night of entertainment at Al Hamra Fort Hotel.

‘Xplore UAE III’, was also supported by Red Bull, Channel 4 FM, RAK Tourism and Tri-Star Transport.
 

Lloyds TSB Middle East Raises AED 46,414 For Dubai Autism Center

Lloyds TSB Middle East, part of one of the world’s largest banking groups, selected Dubai Autism Center (DAC) as its charity of the year in 2010. The Bank has raised a total of AED 46,414 for the Charity through a variety of fund raising activities.

As part of the Bank’s corporate social responsibility policy, Lloyds TSB Middle East actively encourages members of staff and customers to engage in fund raising activities for charity. Specifically for DAC this has included a walkathon, a cultural celebration day, the selling of IT equipment, various bake sales and the collection of left over foreign currency from staff.

Funds raised will go towards the running expenses of the center, new furniture, the finishing of the new building, essential training programs for the teachers and the specialists and equipment for vocational treatment as well as funding an awareness campaign.

In order to promote awareness and education about autism, DAC ran informative sessions for staff at Lloyds TSB Middle East during 2010.

Richard Musty, Managing Director said: “As an international company it is our duty to support the wider local community. The Dubai Autism Center is an innovative nonprofit organization which supports families affected by a disorder that most people still know very little about and we are proud to have supported them in 2010. ”

Mohammed Al Emadi, Director General & Board Member, from Dubai Autism Centre said: “In this difficult economic climate, we are truly grateful to receive the support of Lloyds TSB Middle East. There are now around 45 children at the Dubai Autism Center. The money raised will be used for a wide range of services that will provide a better understanding of autism as well as specialized facilities to help children with autism and those who care for them.”
 

High Tea And Jazz Raises AED 200,000 For Seafarers

On Saturday 5th February, the lawns of the British Embassy in Dubai saw the 4th and best yet, annual Angel Appeal “High Tea and Jazz”. As guests of HE Guy Warrington, his wife Karen and The Mission to Seafarers Dubai gathered to have a wonderful time whilst supporting a noble cause. A lovely afternoon was had by over 450 glamorously attired and ladies and gentlemen who enjoyed a superb afternoon tea, including victoria sponge cakes and scones with jam and clotted cream and raised a record AED 200,000 to support The Angel Appeal.

The Mission for Seafarers’ Angel Appeal supports the M/V Flying Angel, a customised vessel that goes out to ships anchored off the east coast of the United Arab Emirates taking much needed communication facilities to thousands of seafarers.

The Flying Angel operates seven days a week during daylight hours, offering email and telephone facilities, a welfare officer, book and DVD libraries and a place to chat, relax and unwind. Since April 2007, when she was launched, Flying Angel has welcomed aboard over 70,000 seafarers who have made over 105,000 phone calls touching the lives of over half a million seafarers, their families and their loved ones. She has quite literally been transforming lives.

Reverend Stephen Miller, of the Mission to Seafarers, Dubai, said: “The high tea and jazz event has become a flagship fund raising event and promotes awareness about the role seafarers play in our lives and the work of the Flying Angel. The money raised is vital in supporting the seafarers upon whom we all depend.”

Guests in the garden were entertained by saxophonist, William Gibbs, an exciting musician new to Dubai. William very kindly donated his time and talents playing an impressive 3 sets which were greatly enjoyed by all.

The auction/raffle was also the most successful to date and raised in excess of AED 90,000 for the charity. Sponsors for the prizes included Emirates Airline, Dubai Airports, Dubai Autodrome, Atlantis, Kempinski, Fairmont, Monarch, Bab al Shams, Raffles, Westin, Hilton Fujairah, Rococo, Jumeirah, Sue Tyson, Chrissie Jenkins, Montgomerie, Motivate and Le Merdien Al Aqah.
 

Innovative Community Boating Event Raises Funds For The Environment

Last month, thousands of spectators lined up in Festival Marina at the Dubai Creek as more than 30 local companies and schools participated in the third annual ‘Whatever Floats Your Boat’ competition – a unique environmental event for charity where teams race rafts they have made entirely out of recycled materials. The race was organised by the InterContinental Hotels Group and Dubai Festival City in association with Mourjan Marinas IGY.

The afternoon event was held at Festival Marina on Friday 26th November 2010, with activities provided by the Festival Centre’s resident band “Take 3” who entertained the audience and competitors from the floating stage.

The charity function raised an amazing AED 40 000, which will all be donated to the Emirates Wildlife Society in association with World Wide Fund for Nature (EWS-WWF). The EWS-WWF will use the proceeds to support the ongoing conservation of a critically endangered species of turtle native to the UAE. In recognition of the event and the tremendous efforts made by the participating teams, one of the lucky mammals will be sponsored and named “Whatever Floats Your Boat”.

Katrin Müller, Marketing Manager of Mourjan Marinas IGY said:

“The benefits of this innovative environmental event are twofold. Not only are we delighted to continue our support of the EWS-WWF and the tremendous work they do in helping to preserve our local fauna, but we are also proud to spread a strong message of recycling throughout the Emirates, and to reinforce the massive difference it makes to our communities and our planet.”

In the Corporate Division, The InterContinental Hotel Group was the fastest team across the marina with their craft ‘The Goonies’. The Best Boat Award went to Masafi and the Best Costume Award was taken by Gulftainer racing in “The Flinstones”.

The fastest boat in the School Division was awarded to the Dubai Gem School racing in the ‘Water Dragon’, and the Best Boat Award went to the Al Bedaya School. The Dubai Gem School collected a second award for Best Costume with another vessel, “Return of the Astronauts”.

Event organisers are already encouraging entries for next year’s competition to start recycling now – to make a difference to their local environments and to ensure a strong entry for 2011.

For further information about the Whatever Floats Your Boat event and Mourjan Marinas IGY’s activities, you can visit the newly designed website www.mourjanmarinas.com. The website provides user friendly access for those looking to learn more about one of the world’s leading luxury marina companies.
 

du Raises Over AED 140,000 For Disadvantaged Orphans And Pakistan Victims

In support of the less fortunate, du recently provided assistance to afflicted men, women and children across the world. A cheque for over AED 140,000 – which was raised both through du’s mobile content initiative during Ramadan and via a contribution by du’s employees – was handed over to the UAE Red Crescent by Luma Jasim, Vice President, Corporate Communications, Commercial, du, and will go towards providing assistance to disadvantaged orphans inside and outside the UAE as well the victims of the devastating floods in Pakistan.

“We are pleased to be supporting the UAE Red Crescent in providing assistance to orphans both here in our community and around the world through our unique Ahmed Bukhatir mobile content offer, and we are proud to say that our personal staff contribution will be going towards helping the victims of the tragic floods in Pakistan. These are both truly worthwhile causes, and we hope that this donation will make a real difference to the lives of those in need,” commented Hala Badri, EVP, Brand and Communications, du.

du’s staff contribution will go towards supporting the Pakistan flood victims by helping provide shelter, supplies and medical support to those in need. Furthermore, du donated the proceeds from its exclusive Ahmed Bukhatir mobile content offer during Ramadan to the UAE Red Crescent campaign to help buy Eid clothing for the needy, including orphans inside and outside the UAE.

During Ramadan, du signed an exclusive partnership with acclaimed UAE-National Nasheed singer Ahmed Bukhatir to provide du mobile customers with a variety of exclusive Islamic content during the holy month. The content included downloads from Ahmed’s seventh album, ‘Moments with Allah’, along with a variety of ringtones, wallpapers, Arabic and English Dua’as, Anasheed and Quran recitals.

du has a long-term relationship with the UAE Red Crescent Authority, which plays an important role in charitable and humanitarian work locally and internationally in order to meet the needs of the weak and afflicted.
 

Wild Wadis Swim Burj Al Arab Raises Over AED200,000 In Aid Of MSF

Wild Wadi Waterpark’s 9th annual Swim Burj Al Arab was a huge success as over 550 people swam around Burj Al Arab this morning and raised more than Dh200,000 for the charity Médecins Sans Frontières.

The 1km swim around Burj Al Arab, organised by Wild Wadi Waterpark, the Red Crescent Society and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), raises money for the medical charity that offers much needed aid around the world.

This year’s winner, Velimir Stjepanovic from Serbia, completed the swim in 7 minutes and 25 seconds.

Dubai Womens College Raises Donations For Children In Cambodia

Around 20 students from Dubai Women’s College (DWC) recently organized at the college campus a fundraising event entitled “Dirham a Day” for the disabled children in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The funds raised during the event amounted to 4000dhs.

DWC Students ran “Dirham a Day” collection, asking all students and staff to donate just one dirham each. The funds were used to pay for a number of activities including an outing, which the children look forward to once a year.

Dr. Howard Reed, Director of DWC said the habit of sharing and giving is well established at DWC. Students learn that even small amounts of money can make a big difference in the lives of many people.

Donna Behl, DWC Chair of Bachelor Year 1 Department, who presented the cheque at the Center, said “As we toured the Damnok Toek Center, the smiles on the faces of the children were very heartwarming. The charitable gesture from our DWC students made a huge difference to this very poor Center. I was impressed with the cleanliness of the Center and the caring staff.” Donna added that the Center was very basic with no frills or extras and they are looking for another place which would have a bigger outdoor area. “However, the children are happy and well fed, they have a bed to sleep in and we know the money we have donated will be put to great use. The children who have such severe disabilities and loss of limbs really appreciate support from us. We hope to continue with further fundraising for these lovely kids in the new academic year which starts on 13th September 2010,” she pointed out.

DWC Students heard the stories of the Damnok Toek Center for disabled children in Cambodia, learnt about their hardships and realized how fortunate they have been growing up in a protected and safe environment in the UAE. The Damnok Center is a residential care home for around 20 children with intellectual or physical disabilities and who have been rescued from dreadful circumstances. Some of the children have been victims of human trafficking, sold by their families out of desperation, and rescued by the Goutte d’eau organization. Others have been rescued from the rubbish dumps in Phnom Penh and brought to this wonderful centre which provides a caring family environment for the children. The children are taken by bus each day for schooling according to their special learning need, then return to the centre in the afternoon for play, meals and sleeping.
 

Dubai Ladies Club Raises AED 60,000 For Charity

The second edition of the annual ‘Donate Your Bag’ Charity Sale proved to be a huge success with all the pre-loved designer bags and accessories SOLD OUT only one hour after opening the doors to the event. Dubai Ladies Club, a member of Dubai Women Establishment, a raised AED 60,000 from the sale of over 100 gently-used designer bags and accessories from a variety of luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton, Alexander McQueen, Givenchy, Gucci, Fendi, Dior, Chanel, Burberry and many others. The funds raised will be dedicated to Mohammed bin Rashid Charitable Humanitarian Foundation.

Muna bin Kalli, Executive Director of Dubai Ladies Club said, “We have managed to achieve remarkable success for our Charity campaign, thanks to the support of our corporate partners and most of all because of the participation of ladies from the community. It gives me great pleasure to see the great cross-community effort that has made this event a tremendous achievement. Ladies from across the UAE came forward to donate their gently-used designer bags and accessories for the final Charity Sale which was well attended by other women from the community who purchased these donated items to benefit the Mohammed bin Rashid Charitable Humanitarian Foundation. This confirms once again that women in the United Arab Emirates are keen to contribute to charitable endeavours to spread the spirit of solidarity among society."

On Saturday, hundreds of shoppers and visitors flocked to Dubai Ladies Club for a chance to purchase their favourite designer bags and accessories at only a fraction of their original prices. Organised as part of a host of Ramadan activities at Dubai Ladies Club, the ‘Donate Your Bag’ Charity Sale was the conclusion to an annual charity campaign that was launched earlier this year.

Dubai Ladies Club is keen to continue to launch programs and initiatives aimed at uniting various community groups, benefiting those in need, and spreading the spirit of solidarity in these economically tough times.

About Donate Your Bag & Accessories Charity Campaign

Launched in 2009 by Dubai Ladies Club in collaboration with Reem and Hind Beljafla of DAS Collection; the Club had invited ladies to donate their gently used designer bags and accessories – such as sunglasses, jewellery and belts for a special Charity Sale where all donations and funds raised would be dedicated to Mohammed bin Rashid Charitable Humanitarian Foundation.

Dubai Ladies Club collected over 300 bags and accessories over the course of the campaign from which 100 were selected to be displayed during the exhibition from a variety of luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Fendi, Dior, Chanel and many others.

Moreover, Louis Vuitton generously donated a BRAND NEW Alma Amarante bag to become part of the collection.
All donated were thoroughly checked for authenticity through a series of stringent tests courtesy of Toujours Chic, a UAE based boutique & website selling authentic gently-used designer handbags and accessories. A certificate guaranteeing 100% authenticity accompanied with every bag and accessory to assure all buyers that they are not knock offs.

In the build to the big Charity Sale event, Arabian Centre also hosted a special showcasing of the most unique and distinctive items from the ‘Donate Your Bag & Accessories’ Charity Collection from Monday, 16 August until Thursday, 26 August, 2010. This special exhibition will offered Fashionistas the opportunity to preview the collection prior to the sale.
 

Mall Of The Emirates Raises Style Stakes With The New Fashion Dome

Mall of the Emirates, UAE’s favourite shopping destination, will give yet another reason to its visitors to step out in style with the opening of its much anticipated luxury wing, the Fashion Dome on September 1st 2010.

Adding an impressive list of 42 high profile brands to the mall’s existing 477 retailers, the landmark lifestyle destination will further enhance its exceptional experience and provide a wider choice in luxury fashion to its customers.

Fuad Mansoor Sharaf, Vice President, Mall of the Emirates, said: “Our mall offers its customers the ultimate shopping experience and has emerged as a well-established destination of choice. With the addition of these hand picked fashion retailers to our portfolio, we have broadened our appeal and promise to offer a truly VIP experience.”

Spread over a gross leasable area of 10,500 square metres, Mall of the Emirates’ Fashion Dome will be a one stop destination for the fashionistas of the region offering high fashion names such as Christian Louboutin, Cartier, Canali, Galliano, Versace, Bottega Veneta, Mulberry, Diane von Furstenberg and the largest D&G boutique in the region.

Some of the existing premium retailers such as Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior and Gucci who are already present at the mall, will expand to bigger premises within the new Fashion Dome.

The Fashion Dome which is located in the south area of the mall enjoys the same architectural characteristics as the existing mall and is home to the mall’s second magnificent glass dome.

The ground floor of the new Fashion Dome is dedicated to food and beverage, with seven cafes and restaurants including the renowned More Café, French cuisine restaurant Fauchon, PF Chang’s and Tribes, a South African restaurant, which will be opening its first outlet in the UAE. Other restaurant destinations inside the new Fashion Dome will also include Asha’s, famous for its Indian curries and biryanis, and Middle East-specialty restaurant Al Halabi. Popular Italian restaurant Biella, meanwhile, is relocating to the new Fashion Dome from its original Mall of the Emirates position.

The first and second floors of the Fashion Dome offer a mix of luxury brands and high end fashion. The central area of the Fashion Dome features a three tier, hand carved marble fountain with four half-horse/half-fish figures positioned around the centre of the pool.

There is a direct access to the new Fashion Dome with drop-off points at all levels and a valet parking facility on the ground and first level.
 

Licensing Agency Raises AED12m By Auctioning 92 Distinguished Number Plates

The 68th Distinguished Number Plate Auction recently held by Licensing Agency, Roads & Transport Authority (RTA) at the Theatre Hall of RTA Head Office saw a higher public turnout compared to previous auctions, and yielded gross returns as high as 12 million dirham following the selling of 92 distinguished vehicle licensing plates. The Auction attracted participation of 120 bidders despite the current global economic meltdown and the fact that many of the targeted citizens and residents are currently spending their summer vacations abroad.

Commenting on the results of the Auction, the CEO of RTA Licensing Agency Ahmed Hashim Bahrozyan said that the Agency offered in the last Auction several number plates highlighted by the two-digit numbers (G 58 and H 91) and the three-digit numbers (J 333 and I 786). These numbers were instrumental in escalating the competition among bidders considering their iconic references to the cultures of some UAE residents, he noted.

“The Auction was preceded by a marketing & promotional drive run by Vehicles Licensing Department in conjunction with RTA Marketing & Corporate Communication Department that included a press release, adverts in Arabic, English and other languages spoken by several UAE residents published in the daily local papers, internal promotional e-mail campaigns to the employees of government departments, distribution of leaflets in malls and car-parks, posting ads in the front of RTA web portal and other electronic means,” elaborated Bahrozyan.

The Auction was associated with a mini blood donation campaign run by Vehicles Licensing Department in cooperation with Blood Donation Center of the Dubai Hospital with the aim of reflecting RTA corporate responsibilities towards various sectors of the community, including patients and injured persons admitted to hospitals.

Worth-mentioning that a Thai delegation visited Licensing Agency on the eve of the Auction to benefit from RTA expertise in organizing distinguished number plate auctions, and attended the Auction proceedings to gain a practical exposure of the expertise gained.