Previous Functions

Let Gaza Live! 2009

Image courtesy of Mohammed Omer, winner of Reporters without Borders freedom prize 2008: www.rafahtoday.org We held an evening of culture in support of Gaza on Friday 9th October 2009 where all proceeds were donated to the Red Crescent Society for the Gaza Strip and the Arab Women’s Association Fund for Gaza. The event was held at the Royal Geographical Society at 1 Kensington Gore, London SW7 2AR.

The event was a great success as we raised a net amount of approximately £9,500. We would like to give special thanks to Mrs Reem Kelani who wholeheartedly donated her time and talent to produce the programme for the benefit of the AWA. We would further like to thank Mr Christopher Somes-Charlton for his concerted contribution towards the production of the show.

Our sincere thanks also go to Ms Victoria Brittain who volunteered to be Master of Ceremony for the evening. The event was presented so professionally, thanks to you Victoria.

We must also thank Mr Corin Redgrave and Mrs Kika Markham for agreeing to participate in the show as our special guests.

We offer special thanks to each of the performers listed below as they also donated their time and talent for our benefit; this is greatly appreciated not only by the AWA but by every child and every family in Gaza benefiting from their kindness and generosity.

Reem Kelani – Songs from Palestine
Corin Redgrave & Kika Markham – Ghassan Kanafani’s letter from Gaza
Victoria Brittain - Compére
Shelagh Weir – Textiles, Costumes & Embroidery of the Gaza area
Joanna Blythman – Food & Palestine
Garth Hewitt – The Broken Heart of Gaza
Leon Rosselsson – Song of the Olive Tree
Camilla Saunders – “unbinding” – Piano for Gaza
Bill & Alfie Horrocks – In memory of Iman from Gaza
Basma Ghalayini – Report from Gaza by Dr Mona El-Farra, Siege & Survival

We further thank each of the following for contributing greatly towards the success of the evening.

Martial Kurtz of the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign PSC
Denise Prior of the Royal Geographical Society RGS
Christoper Somes-Charlton – Production Coordination
Catherine Higgins – Hospitality
Emily Wright – Stage Management
Omar Nasser – Control Room
Laila Younes – Front of House &Volunteer Liaison
Steve Quinton – Technical Support
Saeed Taji Farouky – Technical assistance
Sunbal Ahmad – Usher
Nejood Jafaar – Usher
Nadene Farage – Usher

We express our sincere gratitude to all those who donated generously towards the costs of evening.

And finally we take this opportunity to thank Mrs Reem Kelani one last time for organising and producing the programme. Without her, none of the above would have been possible. On behalf of every child and every family in Gaza benefiting from the proceeds of this event we thank Reem for her generosity and good work.

Iftar Ramadan 2009

Our Iftar Ramadan 2009 was held on Sunday the 13th of September at Noura Restaurant at 16 Hobart Place, Belgravia, London SW1. Amongst our guests were H E Mrs Hamida Mrabet Labidi the Tunisian Ambassador and Mr Kamal Labidi, H E Professor Emanuel Hasassian the Palestinian General Delegate to the United Kingdom &: Mrs Samira Hasassian &: H E Mr Afif Safieh the Roving Ambassador for Special Mission &: Mrs Crystal Safieh. The event was a great success as all guests seemed to have enjoyed their evening and the AWA raised approximately £12,000 (gross). The net proceeds will be sent to each of Jerusalem, Gaza and the camps in Lebanon. We are indeed grateful to all those who attended the Iftar and/or contributed towards the event. Furthermore, we record our special thanks to the management team at Noura Restaurant, in particular Mr Shaheen Al-Khoury who offered us an excellent customer service and delicious food. Attached are some pictures of the evening for your browsing.

Summer Lunch 2009

Our lunch of the 15th of June 2009 which was by kind invitation of H E Mr Khaled Al- Duwaisan the ambassador of the state of Kuwait and Mrs Dalal Al Duwaisan at their residence, was a great success.We take this opportunity to thank our host and hostess for their generosity and support. The food was delicious and the décor was beautiful, but, yet this has always been Mrs Al-Duwaisan’s style. We thank every one of you who attended the event and helped us to make a success out of it. Your support is much appreciated. Here are few pictures taken the day of the event.