Instilling hope: Two-day event brings joy to quake-hit kids

The event included several playful activities and a trip to Cinepax.

ISLAMABAD:

Seven-year-old Mishi is finally hopeful that she will become a fashion designer when she grows up.

She was only an infant when she lost one of her legs during the 2005 earthquake. Her mother had lost all hopes for her future.

“I have only seen amputees as beggars asking for mercy. I was really concerned about my child’s future,” she said.

However, having received artificial limbs from Children’s Amputees Rehabilitation Programme (CARP), she is now able to go to school by herself. “I want to be a fashion designer when I grow up,” said the girl with a shy smile.

CARP, along with Green Volunteers, held a two-day event for amputees who have been receiving medical care to provide them with an opportunity to reintegrate them into mainstream society.

The event featured back-to-back activities with 12 children aged between seven and 13 who had come from the quake-hit Bagh area in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

On the first day, children were taken to Cinepax to watch Madagascar-III and treated with happy meals from McDonalds. Besides, they were given a lecture on oral hygiene and goody bags containing toothbrushes and toothpastes.

On the second day, the children gathered at F-9 Park and enjoyed a magic puppet show which was followed by a playful water fight and a drawing competition.

Despite the incessant heat, children could be seen having a good time as they made a bee line for face paintings and proudly put up their drawings for all to see during the drawing competition.

The highlight of the event was the short acting class followed by a mime performance that left visitors in fits. “I thought we were just coming here for the lectures. I had a lot of fun and made new friends,” said 12-year-old Imran.

CARP Communication Manager Neelum Nasir said that the event aimed to rehabilitate these children psychologically to overcome the trauma they underwent at a very young age.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 21^st, 2012.