A celebration in every classroom: Festivities for the end of Ramadam at Still I Rise schools

May 19, 2021 ・ Still I Rise

A celebration in every classroom: Festivities for the end of Ramadam at Still I Rise schools

Last week in our schools we joined in celebrations for Eid-Al-Filtr, the "feast of breaking the fast" marking the end of Ramadan. It is a special day for Muslims and is spent with family, praying and enjoying traditional dishes after a month of fasting.

At Still I Rise, we wanted to celebrate with our students to feel united even at a distance. In Greece, Syria and Kenya, we planned days of activities, games and traditional foods.

A very special day in Kenya

At Still I Rise, we wanted to celebrate with our students to feel united even at a distance. In Greece, Syria and Kenya, we planned days of activities, games and traditional foods.

"Eid was the first Saturday of celebrations at the International School of Nairobi after the end of lockdown," said Giovanni Volpe, PM in Kenya. “Students flocked to our school's classrooms to dance, play sports, have fun and watch movies. The exciting thing this Saturday was a catering service that delivered delicious Swahili dishes."

"For me, it's a really special day," says Abdulwali, one of our students in Kenya. “We visit relatives, get presents from our parents and buy new clothes. We try to be kind to each other and if someone doesn't have food we share what we have with those who need it most. This is one of the best days of the year, and in a few months there's another holiday, which is like Halloween: we go knock on people's doors and say "Eid Mubarak" ("happy holiday") and they give us sweets and popcorn."

For Fatuma and Kevin, two of our students at the Nairobi school, it's an important holiday too: "We eat pizza, chips, chicken and rice," they say. "Then we go play in the park, have fun, take pictures and go to our friends' house. A lot of times, their mothers make popcorn for us!"

Art workshops in Greece

In Samos, Greece, we had an art workshop for a day instead of English class and had the students create images to celebrate Eid, and we made beautiful lamps together to decorate our classrooms. Then, we surprised everyone with a cake at the end of class.

“As we often do, we wanted to support the families of our students who are living in difficult situations in a vulnerable setting,” explains Jessica De Mattos, Program Officer in Samos. "In addition to the games at school, we gave food packages to the students so the celebration can continue together with their families."

Games and banquets in Syria

In Ma'an, our center in northwestern Syria, celebrations started with a gift for staff and teachers. Two of our students' mothers brought flowers for everyone as a sign of their appreciation and support: "Thank you for having made a second home for our children and given them happiness that they hadn't had in a long time," they said to us.

The rest of the day was spent with games, banquets, and all kinds of activities; the kids played with balloons, hula-hoops, darts and challenged each other in competitions with full cups of water and spoons."

In the activities Still I Rise organizes with its students, special attention is always paid for traditions and multiculturalism. We try to show our girls and boys, in deed and words, that diversity and dialogue should not scare us but should be seen as a chance to enrich each other, which we hope creates more open and tolerant communities.

Eid Mubarak!

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