Projek Perpustakaan Darul Hikmah, Gopeng

The front yard of the orphanage.

When I first came to Darul Hikmah,Gopeng,Perak last Saturday, the first thing comes to my mind was - what a great potential! I was there with IRM volunteers, Ryzah and Niezam to conduct assessment visit for IRM Orphanage Library Project.

Why I said so?

One thing for sure, I was quite moved by what the orphanage manager,Hj Jamal Din had told me that day.

"Kami kalau boleh nak jadikan perpustakaan ini bukan sahaja beri faedah pada anak-anak di sini tetapi juga untuk anak-anak kampung di sini."

I was jumping in joy inside my heart when I heard this.

The other thing I am happy about is, the 'fertile' ground they have for the library.It is a big empty room of 40 feet x 20 feet square - comfy enough to setup a library. In term of size, I think they can easily beat Perpustakaan Daerah Pendang for that matter (Jangan marah ya orang Pendang!).


The fertile ground

Oh, before I go further, allow me to tell you a little bit about the orphanage.

Darul Hikmah is located in Kg.Sg Itek,Gopeng,Perak and it was built way back in 1991 by Hajjah Embun Bt. Mohd Ali and her late husband Haji Din bin Kimi who are both retired head teachers with their pension savings.Currently it has 30 boys and 1 young girl with age range from 7 to 17 years old.


The orphans

The current manager is Hj Jamal Din, the youngest son of the family. I was introduced to Darul Hikmah by Puan Masmah, representing a group of Tunku Kurshiah College (TKC) old girls who wants to help building a library for Darul Hikmah as a tribute to their school friend, Hajah Saadah Din who are now fighting against cancer . She is also happened to be the board member of the orphanage and the elder sister of Hj Jamal.

For us at Islamic Relief Malaysia, we are truly honoured to fulfill their wish for the sake of the boys and also for the benefit of the children in the village.

Looking at the space for the library, there are lots of things need to be done and of course it will determine the cost.I have prepared the detailed budget and the fund needed to be raised is RM30,050.

The funds raised will cover cost for buying books, library rack, floor mats, tables and chairs.In addition, we also need to redo the wiring, install lightings and air-conditioning units in the room.

Anyway, I shall update you on the details of the resources needed to set up the library at Darul Hikmah in the next entry.

At the moment, Puan Masmah and her batch has already raised around RM5,000. Obviously, they are not alone in this effort.I reassure her, that let us do it together to raise the funds.

I am sure if everybody chips in, the amount needed will be raised in no time.

If you want to chip in to help, you can do so immediately by donating online HERE.

Just let me know via email (iskandar@irm.org.my) that you have donate. If you prefer to donate cash or cheque you can do so by bank-in the fund to our account below :

MBB Acc. No: 5621 4270 8704
CIMB Acc. No: 1259 0000 804 058

(ISLAMIC RELIEF MALAYSIA BERHAD)

Cheque is to be issued to "ISLAMIC RELIEF MALAYSIA BERHAD".Please write at the back of the cheque: Projek Perpustakaan Darul Hikmah (Darul Hikmah Orphanage Library Project)

Again for cash or cheque donation I really appreciate if you can notify me via email or fax the bank-slip to 03-8948 6334.

Photos by Ryzah