CharityChallenge

Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association UK

Charity Challenge2010www.mkacc.org

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association (“AMYA”) is the youth section of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community UK. Underpinned by its motto ‘Love For All, Hatred For None’ AMYA is a unique and dynamic organisation not simply content serving just the needs of its own members, but also passionate about serving British society as a whole.

The Association has over 80 local branches in the UK, from as far north as Glasgow to down south in Cornwall, with over 6,000 members aged between seven and forty years old. The Association’s Central Executive Committee is headquartered in London with representation from all over the UK and is led by the National President.

Its principal objective is the moral and spiritual training of its youth through a mixture of religious and secular activities. AMYA is dedicated to ensuring its members develop and excel in qualities such as piety, righteousness, honesty and fair dealing so they may better contribute to the society in which they live.

Though a Muslim organisation, the activities of AMYA are not limited to the Muslim community. It serves the needs of all members of society irrespective of colour, race, religion or creed and promotes interfaith dialogue and co-operation in order to promote peace and harmony in society at large.

The activities of AMYA range from serving the needs of its members through religious and recreational events to involvement in the wider community through social enterprises and charitable events.

Working with CharitiesAMYA has a longstanding reputation of working

with British charities including Save the Children, Great Ormond Street Hospital

and Humanity First. This work includes assisting charities with fundraising

and organising some of their charity events.

In recognition of its work, AMYA has from time to time received various awards. In 2002 it was awarded the Princes Royal Certificate by Her Royal Highness

Princess Anne for its support to Save the Children.

Whilst expressions of such gratitude are greatly appreciated, they are not the

objective of AMYA. The principal goal and motivation is simply to seek the pleasure of God

through serving mankind.

Homeless FeedingRegular homeless feeding sessions are carried out throughout the UK. The AMYA works with various homeless charities and shelter organisations to provide food and support for the homeless. This activity reaches its heights during the Muslim month of Ramadhan when members

About the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association

intensify their efforts to help the needy and destitute as required by the teachings of Islam.

At Christmas, AMYA works with several Christian organisations to serve the basic needs of the homeless with Soup Kitchens held in a number of locations across the UK. Apart from serving the needs of those less fortunate this activity also strengthens interfaith relationships.

Blood DonationsAMYA has been working with the National Blood Service for several years and is now a regular donor provider throughout its branches in the UK. Blood donation sessions are held at various mosques belonging to the Ahmadiyya Community. These sessions are open to all. Apart from increasing blood donations, this has the added benefit of assisting integration in local communities by allowing members to meet and build friendships.

Charity WalksWhat started off as a 26–mile marathon walk in 1985, raising a few thousand pounds for worthwhile causes, has now evolved into a showpiece event for the Association known as the ‘Charity Challenge’, where close to 1,000 people participate in raising upwards of £100,000 for a number of local and national charities.

In recent years the venue for the Charity Challenge has rotated each year thereby allowing different regions the honour of hosting the event. The chosen region, with the help of the Central Executive Committee, is responsible for organising the Charity Challenge which includes planning the route, liaising with external organisations such as the police and the council, site security, providing accommodation for participants and preparing food for close to 1,000 people. This adds an extra dimension and unique flavour to the Charity Challenge with each region competing to ensure the latest Charity Challenge is better than the previous one.

The Charity Challenge is also unique in the sense that it is entirely organised and managed by the youth, who are unpaid volunteers, with every penny raised going directly to the allocated charities for that year.

SportsSports events such as football, cricket and badminton tournaments are organised by AMYA regularly on a national, regional and local basis. For national sports tournaments, the location is rotated annually with different regions given the responsibility to organise the event—as a result— regions compete against each other for the

national crown in that particular sport. Apart from the physical competitiveness of these events, members get the opportunity to develop bonds of brotherhood with other members from all around the UK.

Interfaith DialogueAMYA is well known for promoting interfaith dialogue and works with government agencies, local councils, voluntary organisations and other public sector organisations to promote peace, tolerance and harmony in society.

AMYA tries to do this in a number of ways including: holding ‘Peace Conferences’ where members of different religions exchange views on promoting mutual respect; working on social projects to tackle problems facing youth such as bullying and drugs; and organising visits and open days to the Ahmadiyya Community’s mosques to encourage social cohesion.

Islam AwarenessAMYA is actively engaged in promoting the peaceful message and true teachings of Islam - especially in light of the current misunderstandings regarding the faith. AMYA firmly believes that tolerance of other people’s views, interaction and open discussion on areas of perceived differences are vital to understand the true teachings of Islam.

Accordingly, AMYA is involved in providing a number of Islamic training courses designed for schools, colleges, universities and organisations such as the army and police and also inviting these bodies to mosque open days, public lectures and question and answer sessions.

Annual ConventionThis is the AMYA’s flagship event of the year where its members congregate in their thousands for a three-day convention in Tilford, Surrey. A mini-village is created on the site with the erection of tents housing thousands of people. Members participate in religious education and sporting competitions which adds an extra element of healthy competition and banter between members. This event sees the culmination of a whole year’s work for the various regional and local branches of the Association with awards given to its most outstanding achievers. AMYA also invites external bodies to present exhibitions such as falconry and clay pigeon shooting and also welcomes presentations from the armed forces and the police. More importantly, this event enables members to renew and foster new relationships in the spirit of brotherhood.

“What started off as a 26–mile marathon walk in 1985, rais-ing a few thousand pounds for worthwhile causes, has now evolved into a showpiece event for the Association where close to 1,000 people participate raising upwards of £100,000 for a number of local and national charities.”

About the Charities

2010 Charity ChallengeFirst organised in 1985, this year represents the 25th anniversary of AMYA’s Charity Challenge. In this time, it has raised in excess of £1 million for charitable causes.

Last year’s Charity Challenge was held in May, in the city of Bradford, and consisted of a 10km run or walk and was attended by over 800 young Ahmadi Muslims. AMYA raised a total of £112,800 for the supported charities.

This year, the Charity Challenge will be held in the historic and picturesque town of Windsor and its neighbouring towns and will again be a 10km run or walk. The key aim is to ensure that the event is bigger and better than before and that the 25th anniversary is marked in some style.

The charities to be supported this year include the eight charities from last year, as well as the Royal National Institute of Blind People and the Royal British Legion.

2009 Charity ChallengeHeld in May 2009, the event consisted of a 10km walk or run in the city of Bradford. More than 800 young British Muslims attended and many more helped to raise £112,800 for the following charities:

• Great Ormond Street Hospital — £15,000• Macmillan Cancer Support — £11,000• Save the Children — £15,000• The Royal Hospital for Neuro Disability — £11,000• Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research — £11,000• Humanity First — £26,800• Barnardo’s — £11,000• NSPCC — £11,000• Alzheimer’s Society — £1,000

“This was a fantastic achievement and proud moment for our youth association,” said Tommy Kallon, President of the AMYA UK.

“We are determined to do even better this year when the Charity Challenge is held in Slough, Middlesex.”

Humanity First (“HF”) is an international relief and development agency that works with the world's poorest and most vulnerable people. HF is registered in 29 countries across 6 continents. Recently HF has responded to disasters in Haiti, Indonesia, Burkina Faso and Gaza. Last year HF was able to assist over 1.5 million people. HF relies on an army of volunteers and AMYA has been terrific in providing both funds and volunteers to help deliver projects in the field such as medical aid in disasters, building water pumps in poor arid areas and even IT training where necessary.

Thank you to everyone planning to take part in the AMYA Charity Challenge 2010. AMYA have been supporting Save the Children through the Annual Charity Challenge, since 2006 and so far have helped to raise over £60,000 for Save the Children’s work. We are absolutely delighted to be

Tanya Steele

Director of Supporter Relations and

Fundraising

Tommy Kallon, President, AMYA UK

one of the charities involved with this event again this year and would like to say a huge thank you to AMYA for your continued support. Save the Children are dedicated to saving children’s lives and fundraising initiatives such as the AMYA Charity Challenge enable us to continue with our vital work. Somewhere in the world a child dies every three seconds — mostly from diseases we know how to treat. Every £1 raised can make a big difference to these vulnerable children. I would like to wish all the runners taking part the best of luck, the invaluable support of people like you allows Save the Children to continue with our mission to help children, thank you all!

About the Charities

Last year Barnardo’s received £11,000 from the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association. Sarah Bowron, Operations Manager from Barnardo’s said: “This was the first year of support and the donation received will make a big difference to some of the most vulnerable children in our communities. This shows that the members of AMYA really do believe in children and do make a difference. For example, in 2009, over 3,000 homeless young people were helped through our services.”

Macmillan provides medical, emotional, financial and practical support to people affected by cancer.

AMYA has chosen Macmillan as a charity partner for the last five years and we are proud to be a beneficiary for the 25th year of the Charity Challenge. Macmillan is delighted that this year, in addition to raising money, AMYA is supporting us further by providing volunteers and undertaking collections across the UK. This is a vital part of how we spread awareness of the Charity and will make a difference to the lives of people affected by cancer.

Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity exists to support Great Ormond Street Hospital so that it can remain at the forefront of international paediatric medicine. AMYA

has been a long term supporter of Great Ormond Street Hospital, and the tremendous efforts to raise essential funds for the children and their families at the hospital has been relentless and an inspiration to us all. The funds raised have been used for redevelopment of hospitals, equipment for patients especially for children and young babies, research in discovering and developing treatments for complex medical conditions and parent family and support.

The NSPCC's vision of society is that all children should be loved, valued and able to fulfil their potential.

AMYA has been an incredible support to the NSPCC through providing vital funds for our direct services helping vulnerable children and their families and by volunteering at fundraising events. The NSPCC is looking forward to forging a closer relationship with AMYA and sharing learning on forthcoming events like the SE Hack.

Katherine Potter, Community Fundraising Manager

Claire Ferguson, Regional Fundraiser (Surrey)

About the Charities

August 2009, around 30 volunteers from AMYA helped the RHN hold a charity collection at a Chelsea football match at Stamford Bridge, raising a total of £700. All funds raised by events or collections go straight to meeting our patients’ needs in a variety of ways. An example of this could be our Recreation and Leisure Services, which require funding in order to be able to continue offering our residents the opportunity to enjoy activities and outings that they may have enjoyed or chosen prior to living or staying in the hospital. The hospital offers around 150 other activities and it is vital that this social and physical stimulation continues as it forms a fundamental part of rehabilitation. The support of the AMYA volunteers was invaluable. In total, AMYA has raised £40,500 for the RHN.

your continued support both with fantastic fundraising and time given by marshalling at the London Bikeathon. It's a relationship that is very important to all of us here at Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research and we want to continue to build the relationship between the charity and the Association.

Cathy Gilman, Chief Executive

Uta Hope

Director of Development – Fundraising

The Royal Hospital for Neuro–disability provides care, treatment, assessment and therapy for around 240 residents and patients suffering from profound neurological disabilities. AMYA helped with three door–drops in 2009 to help promote and raise our awareness. In

Our life-saving research is focussed on finding causes, improving diagnosis and treatments, and running groundbreaking clinical trials for all blood cancer patients. I'd like to say a big thank to everyone at the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association for

to support the work of The Royal British Legion. For 89 years, the Legion have worked to provide financial, social and emotional support to all those who have served in the British Armed Forces, past and present, and their dependents. We are the Guardians of Remembrance—we inform people of all ages about the importance of remembering those from the British Armed Forces who have made the ultimate sacrifice, and those who fought and are still fighting for the freedom we enjoy. Our work for those under the age of 35 has increased 30% in the last 2 years—entirely due to current conflicts, and particularly because of our work in Afghanistan. We are a completely independent organisation, with no Government funding—all our work is possible because of the support of individuals and companies. Thank you for anything you can contribute.

Russell Thompson, Director of

National Events and Fundraising

We are thrilled to be chosen to benefit from AMYA’s Charity Challenge. RNIB is the UK’s leading charity offering information, support and advice to over two million people with sight loss. Our pioneering work Lesley-Anne Alexander

Chief Executive

helps anyone with a sight problem with imaginative and practical solutions to everyday challenges. We couldn’t continue that work without the faithful support of people and organisations who do so much to raise funds for us. We look forward to building a long standing relationship with the youth association going forward.

The Royal British Legion are thrilled that the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association are going to such efforts