Volunteerism |17 March 2022
A Group With A Cause: ‘Our focus is on children and children only’
Volunteering in the time of a pandemic requires sacrifice and patience. It does bring comfort to others but above all, the ones volunteering get more satisfaction in accomplishing these acts. Recently we have seen an increase in crimes and social degradation calling for more community involvement.
Ile Perseverance was created artificially during the 2000s. In 2013 work on the island begun and by 2020, the island housed some 10,000 families which represent more than 15% of the population of Seychelles.
The migration of the population from various districts for sure did bring its fair amount of issues and today we speaking with the members of a new group A Group With A Cause (AGWAC) from Ile Perseverance to see what are their plans to help the community grow in harmony. They also plan to look after children of other communities.
Seychelles NATION: Please tell us more about your group
Maria Thomas: The group was founded by me, Maria, with the purpose of helping the children and organise community programmes for the children of Ile Perseverance. It turned out that I will not be able to do this by myself and I reached out to others to come and help me for a good cause. People don't want to do anything for free and it is hard to find people who willingly want to volunteer.
Seychelles NATION: Why did you start such a group, aims, and objectives?
Maria Thomas: Originally the group was targeting the children of Ile perseverance but then we started receiving phone calls to help children from other districts and we don't have the hearts to say no. We want to help out where we can. And that was when the board of executive members agreed that we will be a group based in Ile Perseverance but for all the children who need our help in Seychelles. The group is here for the children. We don't care about their backgrounds, their religion, and the political views of their parents. Our focus is on children and children only.
Seychelles NATION: Who are the members of the executive committee and why did they join the group?
Maria Thomas: We are an organisation of five executive members – chairperson, vice-chairperson, executive treasurer, executive secretary, and an executive member.
We also have the activity leaders which you will meet later. They also form part of the organisation.
Marcia Camille, the executive secretary: I’m the executive secretary of AGWAC. My first intention was to just donate to the group whatever I could. Somehow I felt there’s more I could do for those children and that’s when I approached Maria, the founder, telling her that if ever she needs volunteers I’ll be happy to help. And that’s how I happened to be the executive secretary of the organisation today.
Christopher Thomas, the vice-chairperson: I’m the father of three daughters and one son. I decided to join a group as I believe this group will benefit the vulnerable kids and put a smile on their faces.
As I also reside in Perseverance, I would be happy to see the young children walk far away from drugs and focus on activities that will keep them healthy and develop the talents that could benefit them in their adult life.
Bahirih Valentin, the executive treasurer: I'm the executive treasurer for the organisation. I joined the group to help children and parents of Perseverance. As a parent, I see the daily struggles that some other parents face just to make ends meet. Just to see a smile on their faces and knowing that I have helped someone will be an achievement for me.
Jean-Paul d’Offay, the executive member: My name is Jean-Paul d’Offay, and I am a resident of North East Point. I am an executive member of the committee. I decided to join the AGWAC so that I can help bring a change in the lives of children in the Perseverance district and across Mahé. I have been brought up in a family that has always taught me that one has to have an open heart and help others who are desperate and in need.
I believe that by helping others, you are helping yourself and the thought of helping someone, just brings a smile and joy for me.
Seychelles NATION: Which area of Perseverance are you looking at?
Marcia: The children who are not getting fed enough to receive the necessary nutrition required for adequate growth. It may sound absurd but it’s true and it does exist in Perseverance, the reason why many kids don’t go to school or can’t even perform well in school.
Christopher: Perseverance is one district, so I will take care of it in its totality.
Jean-Paul: We want to look at Perseverance as a district as a whole. As I said no one should be left behind.
Maria: we are now not just focusing on Ile Perseverance but the whole of Seychelles. Whoever knocks on our doors we will help!
Seychelles NATION: What are the activities you are doing and planning to do?
Maria: To help the needy and help those who need help we plan to do a lot of fundraising activities. We have the community part which includes different activity clubs for the children. Although the group is for all children of Seychelles, the community activities are for children from Ile Perseverance only. This is because we are not ready for other procedures that will come with taking children from other districts. For example, every child participating in the group lives nearby and they can either walk back home by themselves or parents can walk to come and pick up their child. We have no facility to pick and drop other children outside of lle Perseverance. This is why only children from Ile Perseverance can participate.
The activity clubs include music/sing, poem/short stories, calisthenics, football, dancing, volleyball, arts and craft, young farmers, sewing, and darts. All these activity clubs have activity leaders who are actually volunteering because they want to help the children too and I am so grateful to them. Because we are all busy, we all have our homes yet we are all making time for the children of the community. I am convinced they will help the kids find their talents as we meet weekly.
We have great plans and programmes from AGWAC and all for the benefit of the children.
Seychelles NATION: Is the group working with the DA or MNA?
Maria: No. AGWAC is not affiliated with any political party. Not affiliated to any religion. Not affiliated to any private businesses. We are a non-government organisation. We do not want to be affiliated with any of that because we don't want any child to be left behind because of these reasons.
Seychelles NATION: How do you want to see Perseverance evolving?
Maria: I want children of Ile Perseverance to shine and be examples to other children of other districts.
Marcia: I’d say the list is long. But for me, it’s mostly for the children, I hope that each child is being given a chance to have a proper childhood regardless of their status, their colour, who their parent is, or whatsoever. We live in a judgmental society, where everything seems like a problem, these children didn’t choose the circumstances they are in and I strongly believe they deserve a chance to see things differently in a positive way. At AGWAC there is no discrimination, we help/assist ANY child and not only in Perseverance but in other districts too.
Christopher: I believe Perseverance will be a district that the whole nation will be happy to visit as it will have plenty of activities and positive elements to show the other district how to live in unity.
Jean-Paul: Well I believe that with this initiative we will be able to bring about a change in Perseverance. Help the children who are in need. Help them to grow and become better citizens tomorrow, who can contribute to the development of our economy. We have to ensure that no child is left behind, as it is the children of today who will be the bread earners and developers of our society in the next 20 years.
Seychelles NATION: There have been many negative comments on Perseverance itself as a whole – drug addicts, prostitution, noise etc. How will your group tackle that?
Bahirih: Yes. Perseverance has been highlighted with a lot of negative comments. But drugs addicts, prostitution, noise are not only in Perseverance, other districts are facing these issues as well.
These problems will be difficult to tackle in one go, but this is why the organisation has been set up so that we can engage our children in different activities, showcase their abilities, they can have better use of their time, and relieve some stress off their parents. Who knows maybe we will have some famous stars from Perseverance in the future.
Christopher: That is why I believe a group with a cause has been founded, to remove all the negativity in the mind of young children as tomorrow they will turn into adults and will better educate their children.
Maria: It will help them, maybe not straight away but we have hope that it will help them get away from all the bad influences. I would like it if the parents help us tackle these bad situations and help us to help their kids. Or even better it will be great if the children themselves could make an impact in Ile Perseverance on their comrades. The group is for this and many reasons. It won't happen overnight but at least we are starting somewhere. With proper guidance and help from society itself, we will surmount all these issues. It’s not easy but it is not impossible.
Marcia: AGWAC is emphasising mostly on children, and when we talk about children we cannot paint pictures or even label them, we have to talk about how things will look in the long run, we have activities planned for them like sports, cooking, environmental work, etc. so whatever the child is interested in they can participate and these are things that will hopefully not drag them in any of the above matters.
Jean-Paul: Yes, I have heard so many negative comments on Perseverance, but I am someone who doesn’t let negativity affect my work. If I want to do something I will go for it, there will bound to be challenges along the way, but as a committee, we will work together and surmount them.
Seychelles NATION: What is your call to the community?
Marcia: We invite other organisations or individuals that would like to make a change in a child's life to step in.
Jean-Paul: AGWAC is a group that is non-political. We have an aim and we will work towards achieving it. We call on people who would like to join us to please come forward and together we shall be able to make a difference.
Chairperson: I will like to call on people who can help us. So far to be honest it is mostly the people who are struggling as well who are helping as individuals. Those who are well-off and can help are not interested. After calls and emails and Facebook posts, there is only one businessman who kept his words and had a meeting with us to see how he can assist us and we are waiting for a response. The emails we are sending, the calls we are making. The text we are texting are landing on deaf ears. No one really cares unless there is something for them, which is very sad because helping a child is already a great achievement. We are asking for monetary donations or food, clothes, or any type of donation. It is ok if you can't donate a lot but a bag of rice is helping a kid have dinner. The little you can do or give is ok. I will like to take the opportunity to thank those caring individuals who have assisted till now. We really appreciate it. Do not stop there.
I will also call out to the people of Seychelles, if you know of a child who needs help in your area, do not hesitate to contact us. We will help however we can. We are not here to judge anyone.
Right now we need the activity equipment like guitars, child-friendly sewing machines, volleyball, and football, a speaker to dance, paint and brushes for art, kabos to plant, and more. If you can help with any of these we will really appreciate it. Some of our activities are on hold because lack of equipment. Help us make a difference in a child's life today.
Important to note that the group assists children only and will not entertain the needs of any adults from 18 years old, even if they come through the child. We have our ways and policies in place to find the information we need to know about each child who is requesting help.
We can be reached on 2847750 or email ilepersecomgroup@yahoo.com