By: Hasan A. Rabbani
The Citizen’s Foundation (TCF) is a notable Pakistani charity organization dedicated to developing schools in rural towns and villages of Pakistan. TCF was founded in 1995 by 6 friends who agreed that education is crucial to a happy life and should be accessible to everyone.
Since then, TCF has funded the production of over 1,900 schools and provided education to over 286,000 children through fundraising in various cities/chapters, including Vancouver. This month, TCF Vancouver held its amazing annual 2024 fundraising gala, where they provided many fun and engaging activities for both adults and children alike, as well as a live performance from famous Pakistani singer, Najam Sheraz.
There were many different activities for the entire audience, from the kids to the seniors.
There was an extravagant selection of appetizers and a buffet-style dinner with tons of different options.
In the fun area for kids, they were presented with freshly baked cheese pizza, a juice box and a bag of chips. The children also watched a movie and had a magician blow their minds with his magic tricks. The adults, on the other hand, had a raffle with gift baskets full of delicious foods. Everyone had fun with the wonderful activities TCF had planned.
Although one of TCF’s main goals was to keep its audience entertained and engaged, its ultimate focus was to reach its goal of fundraising $96,000 (~500 students) to support children in dire need of education. To help aid in the mission to reach their goal, they told several, authentic stories about children who grew up without any educational facility. They told stories about women and little girls who were pushed away from education as a result of absurd levels of
conservatism along with many more on-the-ground experiences. Not only were the adults helping with fundraising though, as many of the kids from the fun area participated in a performance of two different songs. After the fundraising segment was over and dinner had been served, TCF announced that not only had they achieved their goal, but had exceeded it by over $10,000, a tremendous success for the Vancouver chapter.
Coming off of a high note, TCF welcomed this year’s special guest, Najam Sheraz.
Sheraz is a viral Pakistani pop singer from the 90s. Born in 1969, Sheraz first pursued a civil engineering degree from the University of Engineering and Technology in Lahore. He then transitioned to music and had hits like “Tera Bina”. After multiple hits songs and albums, he transitioned to making Naat, many of which he sang at the gala. He had the children come on the
stage with him and perform with him. With an ecstatic crowd and a sensational atmosphere, it’s safe to say it was a fun night for all of the attendees.
All in all, TCF Vancouver’s gala would be considered by most a success, as they were able to reach and exceed their fundraising goal by over $10,000. They kept their older audience engaged and entertained through their multiple activities and had many different games and pastimes for the children, as well as having a completely separate performance by Najam Sheraz for all guests alike. Overall, there was no reason for any of the attendees or personnel to be disappointed with the result of the Annual 2024 TCF Vancouver Fundraising Gala.
