Bengaluru: Lending a helping hand to anyone who asks for it, Sulaiman and his wife Tarranum have been serving the needy for the last 10 years. Their NGO, Syeda Samra Sulaiman Welfare Charitable Foundation, rehabilitates children from the street, helps widowed and abandoned women and distributes learning material for children in different schools of the city.
“Most of us live in our comfort zones and don't care about the pain and suffering outside our four walls. I decided that I will help the needy any which way I can," says Sulaiman, who along with his wife has been on a journey to make the world a better place.
“We have been running this trust for the last 10 years and we help people from all age groups. One of our programmes is to help women, who have been abandoned by their husbands,” says Tarannum. They also put orphans and homeless children in different care homes across the city and take care of their daily needs.
“We support people through various ways. We have donated sewing machines to a number of women to help them achieve financial independence,” says Sulaiman.
Apart from funding foundation’s activities from their pockets, the couple also organise music events regularly to raise funds. “We need donations as rehabilitating people is not an easy job and requires money. It does not end with giving the needy the basic amenities. We need to stay the course for the long term. We have to look after their education and provide them opportunities to be self-reliant,” he says.
They rehabilitate destitute children from the streets, stopping them from being trafficked. “We go to orphanages and centres run by NGOs across the city and distribute books, stationery, lunch boxes and other school material for these children," Sulaiman says.
The foundation has funded eye operations and catered to other health needs of the poor. “We have funded five eye surgeries. We conduct free thyroid and general health checkups at old age homes and other centres run by NGOs," Sulaiman said.
The foundation has distributed 25 sewing machines, 100 auto drivers’ uniforms, 200 computers for schoolchildren and books in five schools.
Though many NGOs look at rehabilitating the needy children only in their initial years, the Samra Sulaiman Welfare and Charitable Foundation has long-term plans and feels their mission is accomplished only when the children they put in the care homes grow up into responsible adults and settle down after getting married. “We have planned 20 marriages and these are the children that we have seen them grow. It gives us a sense of accomplishment once we get them married as many such women do dream of a happily ever after," Sulaiman said.
