At 4-years-old Bismah, a highly talented child, began to develop serious health problems and deteriorated to the point that she could no longer walk or play like other children. After admission to the hospital she was diagnosed with a very rare autoimmune connective tissue disease, juvenile dermatomyositis, in which only 1 to 4 cases occur per million children. As a connective tissue disease, if left untreated it can cause significant disability and high-risk mortality. Patients must undergo rigorous medical care under close supervision to stabilise their condition and support their recovery.

Coincidently, in addition to this rare disease she was also diagnosed with type 1 diabetes mellitus which too had developed complications and required vital treatment and care. The medical team at Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital put together an extensive treatment plan for Bismah and Al Jalila Foundation provided the financial support the family needed to save their daughter’s life.

The family has expressed their gratitude: “We cannot say thank you enough for the support Al Jalila Foundation has been to our daughter. She has transformed from when she arrived at the hospital unable to stand and she then came back home running.”

Bismah is responding to the treatment well and is a happy care-free child.

Among many of the challenges faced this year, education and distance learning has been one of the hardest. Hundreds of thousands of students in the UAE embarked on online learning for the first time, many of whom were children of determination who require a little extra care and support. This meant parents around the country desperately needed better tools and understanding to continue to support their children through these unprecedented times.

In line with the Ta’alouf program values to empower parents and teachers of children of determination, Al Jalila Foundation hosted a live webinar presented by Autism Specialist Teacher and Certified Trainer Shaikha Salem AlKaabi from Zayed Higher Organization for People of Determination. The webinar focused on exploring the most important strategies to help children with autism spectrum disorder adapt to their environment, including preparing a structured schedule and a productive routine for them while studying at home.

The webinar was attended by more than 350 parents from 17 countries all eager to do their best to support their children through home schooling.

Shaikha AlKaabi was encouraged by the participation and said: “These wonderful parents gained tangible benefits from the online workshop and can now use their skills to prepare activities so their children continue to flourish during these difficult times.”

Pink Ribbon Crafters is a group of passionate volunteers and artisans who create handmade items from knitted toys, candles to jewellery sold in exchange for donations to support breast cancer research and patient treatment in the UAE. 100% of proceeds are donated to Al Jalila Foundation in partnership Brest Friends.

The volunteers, many of whom are breast cancer survivors, work tirelessly throughout #PINKtober to sell their goods online, setting up stalls at various venues, giving awareness talks and promoting their online fundraising campaign on YallaGive. In 2019 alone the Pink Ribbon Crafters raised AED 180,000 to fund patient treatment and invest in vital medical research to find a cure.

Lina El-Sharif, Co-Founder of Pink Ribbon Crafters and a 2-time breast cancer survivor, is passionate about helping fellow breast cancer patients on their road to recovery “The community created by this project is beyond magical. We have over 70 volunteers aged between 14 to 80 years old sharing one purpose: to help women battling breast cancer.”

Follow @PinkRibbonCrafters on social media to find out more about their #PINKtober activities and where you can buy pink handmade goods to give hope to breast cancer patients.

When Melany (39) discovered she had breast cancer, like many others, she was completely overwhelmed by the diagnosis. As she sought the appropriate medical treatment she discovered she was pregnant and despite the disease she was overjoyed to welcome a new baby.

Even as a strong young woman, the treatment plan would not be straight forward as she was now considered a ‘high risk pregnancy’ and her first priority was to protect her baby. In addition to their growing family she had no idea how they would be able to afford the full treatment plan.

Through faithfully researching ways to make it all possible the family found the support they so desperately needed from Al Jalila Foundation and Melany was admitted to Dubai Hospital in mid July where she was able to undergo lifesaving surgery to remove the cancerous tumor. During that same hospital visit, Melany delivered a healthy baby boy through a caesarean section to ensure the newborn’s safety.

Melany’s husband, Eduard, expressed, “On behalf of my whole family I offer much gratitude to Al Jalila Foundation for helping my wife and our baby. The team showed us great compassion and never hesitated to help us in our time of need. We felt comforted by a great family here in UAE. Truly you are a great Foundation with a big heart.”

Melany continues on the road to recovery with her supportive husband and strong baby boy.

11-year-old Raghav Krishna and 8-year-old Madhav Krishna are two inspirational brothers living in Dubai who have a passion to make a difference in the lives of children of determination so they too can live life to the fullest and reach their full potential.

These extraordinary siblings are champions in mental math calculations and prize winners at national and international competition levels and are eager to help others by using their mental calculation skills.

Although 2020 brought many challenges with social distancing these young boys found the ideal platform to use their talents to fulfill their ambition. They set up a YallaGive campaign to raise funds for Al Jalila Foundation’s Ta’alouf (“harmony” in Arabic) program that empowers children of determination by equipping teachers and parents with the necessary skills to enable them to flourish.

Through the online fundraising campaign potential donors can simply set up a virtual meeting with the siblings to pose mathematical questions and the brothers will perform instant calculations. The donors are encouraged to contribute to the charity initiative based on the brothers’ performance.

Their campaign has been so successful that in less than 2 months the brothers have almost reached their fundraising goal of AED 25,000.

To support these little philanthropists, click here.

At birth, baby Antheia was diagnosed with a cleft lip but regardless of the abnormality, her parents were grateful that their daughter was otherwise in good health and did not require any medication.

The doctor who handled the delivery had recommended that baby Antheia receive surgery at the age of 3 months but her parents were overwhelmed both by the cost of the surgery and the restrictions in place that prevented operations of this nature due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

By the age of 6-months the unrepaired cleft lip was causing major health issues for Antheia as food and saliva would drip down, and the competence of the lip muscle was compromised also affecting the nose. An operation was urgently needed so baby Antheia could continue to develop into a healthy young girl.

Having tried every avenue to gain access to the surgery the parents finally wrote to Al Jalila Foundation with their request and were overjoyed when it was confirmed her operation was scheduled at Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital.

Now, 2 months after the operation, baby Antheia is recovering very well; she has a healthy appetite and cheerful disposition that shows off her great big smile.

Sheikh Zayed, the Founding Father of the UAE, was a strong advocate for women and believed that “the woman is half of the society” and should be empowered, respected and developed to contribute equally to the country’s success.

Every year, Al Jalila Foundation joins the nation in celebrating Emirati Women’s Day recognising the accomplishments of women and honouring them for their contributions to the development and advancement of the nation. This year’s theme was “women are the support of the nation”.

Supporting this vision and continually striving to be leader in medical innovation, Al Jalila Foundation invests in the next generation of doctors by offering medical scholarships to Emirati students and research grants to UAE-based scientists. Since 2013, Al Jalila Foundation has supported 44 Emirati women with medical scholarships and awarded 7 pioneering Emirati female scientists with prestigious research and fellowship grants, with an investment of over AED 9 million.

Her Excellency Dr Raja Easa Al Gurg, Chairperson of the Board of Directors, said: “We are thrilled to see so many Emirati women seizing the opportunity to take on leading roles in science and medicine. On this Emirati Women’s Day, we celebrate women’s contributions to the advancement of the UAE and know that by empowering our women, we empower our nation.”