The Art of Giving

What have you done to your children's old toys buried in a junky clutter in some corner of your house? Most of us would probably throw away the old toys, donate them or stockpile them in our storeroom for ever and ever.

Then there is Mustafa Jamal, a member of Bangladesh Ex-Cadet forum who came up with the idea of distributing toys, following a structured and organised way, to children who need them the most.

When he discussed his idea with fellow ex-cadets, everyone readily agreed to it. Thus Toys-R-URs,(TRY) a community based initiative, began in July this year. Since its beginning, the initiative has received spontaneous participation, tremendous appreciation and needless to say, boxes and boxes full of toys.

“While we focus on providing the basic needs to underprivileged children, we often overlook the significance of a sound mental health and having a playful childhood,” says Tariqul Haque, one of the key members of the TRY team. “The toy that you or your child does not need anymore could be the most precious possession of another child.”

“People from every walk of life - starting from students, teachers, doctors to our national cricket team, models, singers, social activists – have come forward with a toy or more,” says Haque.

In fact, people who did not have an old toy did not hesitate to buy a brand new plaything for these children and be a part of this wonderful endeavour.

The TRY team collects used toys through different channels – corporate campaign, school campaign or individual participation.  After collecting the toys they sorted out, cleaned, repaired and distributed among 2000 children from seven schools and two hospitals . The best part of this project is that the team doesn't need much money, except the cost of transporting the toys to the receivers.

“TRY organized its biggest toy collection event till date – Toys-R-URs Grand Finale September 13, 2015. The toys collected in the event  will be distributed among underprivileged children in 8 more schools in different locations of Bangladesh before the Eid,” Haque explains. “We also went to Dhaka Shishu Hospital and the children ward of Dhaka Medical College with this basket full of happiness. The joy on the children's face will surely light up anyone's day.”

Because of the response from everyone, they are planning to conduct this project every year from May to September.

In a world where happiness is more or less a rare object, you can actually experience this extraordinary feeling in exchange of one of your toys that you won't need anymore. 

We understand the emotional attachment that you have with your children's toys as every parent would want to hold on to them and the memories that they possess. But letting go of some memories to create new ones is also necessary, especially when the cause is as priceless as this one. 

If you find it difficult to decide what to give and what to keep, let your children decide the toys that they are done playing with. Not only are you making them a part of this joy of sharing, and valuing their opinions, you have also made them a reason for some other child's happiness.