Manama: Acts of charity should not be limited to places of worship and should be extended to all areas where kindness improves lives, a Bahraini official said.
“Charity acts and good deeds should not be confined to worship places and should cover humanitarian aspects because they help people look forward to wider horizons and nurture greater hopes,” Information and Parliament Affairs Minister Eisa Bin Abdul Rahman Al Hammadi said as he inaugurated the “Letters of Hope” exhibition by Bahraini artist Dayana Al Shaikh, a cancer fighter.
The exhibition sheds light on her personal experience in fighting cancer with faith through a collection of Arabic calligraphy paintings.
The proceeds from the sale of paintings will go to the Bahrain-based Child’s Wish Society to support more than 500 children suffering from chronic ailments and other people with special needs.
“Health cases are crucially significant and people with cancer deserve full support. We are proud to have a caring society in Bahrain and acts of charity cover a wide range of fields,” the minister said. “But we should not ... [become complacent] and we should continue to support humanitarian acts and we should involve the largest number of people and institutions,” he said.
Al Hammadi added that the great turnout at the exhibition indicated a high level of awareness in Bahraini society
“The exhibition is a message addressed to all private and public entities as well as to individuals to contribute to charitable causes and to support philanthropic and humanitarian work in line with the teachings of our religion,” he said. “Dayana has succeeded in blending art with the message and in linking her work with determination, fortitude and hope. She has added a spiritual dimension and used very expressive words and was able to blend art, philanthropic work and humanitarian deeds in her paintings,” Bahrain News Agency (BNA) quoted him as saying.
Dayana said that she was pleased with the tremendous support from all those who visited the exhibition, particularly the information minister, the diplomats, the media and other artists.
Turkish Ambassador Hatun Demirer and US Ambassador William V. Roebuck were among the diplomats who attended and voiced admiration for the exhibition and support for the cancer fund-raising drive.
Dayana said she was overwhelmed by the high level of care and compassion.
“I have witnessed something truly special about human dedication and compassion and I pray that people will always come together to support noble causes,” she said.
For Randy McCord, an American teacher, the initiative that gives art a greater dimension than just paintings deserved to be applauded.
“I salute the courage of Dayana in her fight and I pay tribute to her dedication to helping young hearts and minds as they face up to the challenge of cancer, armed with hope and determination,” he said.
