Dubai Ladies Club hosts 3-day charity bazaar for friends of cancer patients

Under the Royal Patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Women Establishment, wife of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, UAE. Dubai Ladies Club, a member of Dubai Women Establishment, opened a special Charity Bazaar, organised by Friends of Cancer Patients (FOCP) in collaboration with the UAE Red Crescent. The Bazaar will run until Wednesday, 29th February, 2012 and will be open to ladies and gentlemen from 10am until 9pm daily; entry is complimentary to all guests.

The exhibition was inaugurated by Ms. Mona Al Marri, Chairperson of DWE Board, H.E. Ms. Ameera Bin Karam, FOCP President and Founding Member and Mona Bin Kalli, Executive Director of Dubai Ladies Club. The opening was also attended by VIP guests and members Dubai Ladies Club and Dubai Women Establishment.

This year's participating vendors are well known charities from Lebanon, who are showcasing a unique handmade products. All of them were established and endorsed by elite members of the Lebanese Female Community and play a huge role in empowering and supporting women, widows, children and families by making them productive members of society through teaching them arts and crafts to support themselves. Each charity will contribute 20 percent of the bazaar sales to support FOCP.

On this occasion, Ms. Mona Al Marri, Vice President of Dubai Women Establishment, reiterated Her Highness Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum's devotion towards supporting a culture of philanthropy based on faith, solidarity and cooperation among all segments of society. She added that Her Highness Sheikha Manal's undertaking of this special cause is borne from her firm belief that all forms of humanitarian work are of the highest importance as they form the building blocks of a developing and thriving community; and that Her Highness has become integral to the cause of empowering UAE women and strengthening their position regionally and internationally.

H.E. Amira Bin Karam, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, and a founding member of Friends of Cancer Patients added, "We are grateful for the immense support given by Her Highness Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum towards spreading awareness about this dreaded disease in general as well as with the activities of the Friends of Cancer Patients, in particular. We are also pleased to introduce a wonderful group of women-run Charities all the way from Lebanon. Armed with the support and guidance of Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Wife of His Royal Highness the Ruler of Sharjah and Honorary President of the Friends of Cancer Patients society (FOCP), we hope to develop this Charity Bazaar and a regular part of our annual Events Calendar and thus achieve more than a humanitarian objective in more than one Arab country at the same time."

Truly visionary in her support of women's causes and the environment, Her Highness Sheikha Manal is actively engaged in many important arts & charitable causes in the region. Last October she sponsored a charity auction hosted by Ralph Lauren to support the "The Pink Caravan" initiative to finance a FOCP Mobile MRI Van which will provide women in the UAE with free mammogram and biopsy services. Moreover, Sheikha Manal is also the Honorary Ambassador for the "The Pink Caravan" initiative in supporting breast cancer patients in recognition of her efforts and dedication in supporting women's issues – be it healthcare, child care or in the arts – and also for the attention that she pays to the various activities aimed at the advancement of women locally, regionally and internationally

The bazaar was also attended by a medical team from Al Zahra Hospital, who organized complementary health and wellbeing check-ups which also included advice on early breast cancer detection. A spokesman for the hospital commented that their keenness to participate at such events, as well as providing ongoing support for FOCP, originates from their corporate mission and vision to offer only the best quality health care to the UAE community through its services in both Sharjah and Dubai.

Friends of Cancer Patients Society (FOCP) is a charitable, volunteer-based foundation operating as a specialized entity under the umbrella of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs in Sharjah. FOCP was established during 1999 in accordance with the directives and under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher Bint Mohammed AI-Qasimi, President of the Supreme Council for Family Affairs, and wife of the Ruler of Sharjah & Federal Supreme Council Member His Royal Highness Dr. Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al-Qasimi. The aim of this institution to implement change in the UAE community through progressive thinking, education and awareness about cancer.