The 5th Annual Youth Day of Caring (YDOC)

By: Raweya Abdulwali

April 23rd, 2005 was sure to be an ominous day for five volunteers from MAC Youth Give. The day was marked by the chilly weather and rain. By the will of Allah (SWT), everything was meant to be.

The day commenced at 9am officially at the Hellenic Community Centre, where all the volunteers, from various divisions of Ottawa, gathered to contribute their time and skills to the 5th Annual Youth Day of Caring held by United Way Ottawa. The project aimed to facilitate community service to the young populace of Ottawa. The volunteers were then divided into their respective groups and driven to the particular locations where they were to volunteer their services.

The MAC Youth Give group was given the opportunity to volunteer at a disabilities residence in Barrhaven. The residence is home or a temporary retreat to persons suffering from a wide array of disabilities. The staff works meticulously and attentively to provide adequate care required by each patient.

Our primary work was to clean the yard, however due to the rain that work could not be done. In lieu of the yard work, cleaning a residence, the pantry, a storage area, and a staircase in the basement was recommended. The group, which consisted of two brothers and three sisters, split up in two to tackle two of the responsibilities each.

We all worked diligently, however if I may write so, I’d say the sisters won this round! Although, much acknowledgement goes out to the brothers, who did manage to finish their work prematurely and, hence, started cleaning an additional area. Doesn’t that make them the winners? No, because I stated so!

What would otherwise seem insignificant to many, we soon discovered that just a little cleaning made an enormous difference in the staff at the residence. The staff was overwhelmingly appreciative of our efforts.

Having done our work untimely, we did manage to play a little trivia while having lunch! Great questions! By the way, the seven groups of people who will be shaded by Allah (SWT) on the Day of Judgment are the just rulers, persons whose youths are spent in the worship of Allah (SWT), men whose hearts are attached to the mosques, two persons who love each other for the sake of Allah (SWT), persons who eschew adultery when they are called towards it, persons who remember Allah (SWT) in seclusion with tear-filled eyes, and, the one that trumped us, persons who practice charity secretly.

We departed the residence at approximately 2:15 in the afternoon towards the Hellenic Community Centre, where we met with our fellow volunteers to mark the end of the day.

It was a tremendously rewarding day for all of us. We banked on many rewards from Allah (SWT) for very little exertions on our part. From having the intentions to help to being there to just sitting on the bus on our way to the residence. InshaAllah, our group will expand for the coming year.