LATEST NEWS and Events

This page is designed to link users, quickly and easily to new information about the Friends of the Disabled Association (FDA). Visit this page periodically to learn about latest news and current events from the FDA. Items on this page are posted for a period of 1 calendar year.

Special Talents Show at UNESCO Palace

 Beirut, Lebanon

Special Talents Show organized by Friends of the Disabled Association

Took place on the 16^th of February 2010, UNESCO Palace

Click here for press coverage

Carmel Saint Joseph school students will visit us

in Idad center in Meshref on the 22^nd of January

and throw us a new year

   party celebration!

    Give and Take we say in Idad!

  Idad Dance Group will

   promptly return the visit and present a theatrical performance,  

                entitled  

  'There Is No Place Like Home'      in Carmel Saint Joseph School by

                                                     the end of February 2010!

Piano Recital      

Idad Center will welcome during the month of January 2010 two piano artists from 'Resonance' Institute, Beirut.

Classical music will flow in the air at IDAD center as students and teachers relax on the sounds of notes.

Idad students are ready               

for anything, from the

polyphonic period to the

harmonious dissonance

      of modern music.

We thank all the people

      from 'Resonance'

      Institute who are

collaborating with us for

the second time to make

           this happen!   

20^th RAMADAN BAZAAR

Pick your Ramadan Basket now!

Opening will be at 11:00 am on Wednesday, August 12, 2009 at Galleria Hotel (ex-Marriott) in Ramlet Al-Bayda area.

Our Ramadan Bazaar will continue for three days from 9:00 am tiilll 7:30 pm.

Come and pick your "Ramadan Basket", and enjoy visiting the great variety of exhibitions and the products of our vocational training workshops in woodwork, sewing, leather, glass painting, Abayat, and many other products, including our delicious pastries!

بازار رمضان العشرين

جمعية أصدقاء المعاقين

يسر لحنة الأهالي في جمعية أصدقاء المعوقين أن تدعوكم للمشاركة في بازار رمضان العشرين لهذا العام. سيتم إفتتاحه في الحادية عشرة من صباح نهار الإربعاء الواقع فيه 12 آب 2009 في فندق غاليريا (ماريوت سابقا) الرملة البيضاء.

 يستمر البازار لمدة 3 أيام بحيث يستقبل الرواد إبتداءا من التاسعة صباحا وحتى السابعة والنصف مساءاً.

 ندعوكم للتمتع بزيارة الأقسام والأجنحة المتعددة لتشاهدوا منتجعات ورشنا العاملة في مجالات النجارة والأشغال الجلدية ومختلف انواع الأقمشة والأثواب والعبايات والزجاج الملون والبياضات وملابس الصلاة وغير ذلك من أشغال تلاميذ مدرسة إعداد،و لا تنسوا سلتنا الرمضانية الشهيرة!

Friends of the Disabled Association Annual Dinner at Pangea Beach resort,
on Wednesday 22 July, 2009


Click to Enlarge

FRIENDS OF THE DISABLED ASSOCIATION

holds its ANNUAL DINNER at PANGEA BEACH RESORT

The Annual Dinner for the Friends of the Disabled Association this year was very special: the theme chosen for the Dinner was the Seventies because it was in the late seventies that FDA was conceivedSpecial because this year, the IDAD DANCE GROUP entertained the guests with dances that highlighted their outstanding talents

 In the presence of HE the Minister of Social Affairs, Dr. Mario Aoun, and a group of the Ministry's consultants, ex-Minister Dr. Adnan Mroueh, the vice-Governors of Central Bank, and many other prominent figures and friends of the Association, every one enjoyed the merry and dynamic atmosphere of the dinner at the Pangea Beach resort, on the Jiyyeh coast, on Wednesday 22 July 2009.

The evening started with a welcome word by Mrs. Rita Merhej, Director of the Idad Center, followed by a speech by Dr. Moussa Charafeddine, President of the Association, who stressed that "what we call special needs are but existential necessities to assume the right for education, health and social care, employment and dignified independent living".

A recognition award was delivered to member of the Association's Board of Trustees, Mr. Rami Mustafa Nasser, for his devotion and outstanding contributions for the Association.

Entertainment included , in addition to the dances performed by the special needs students of the Idad Dance Group, a selection of 70's music and songs by "Tony and the Band", as well as a Tombola with valuable presents and gifts.

The Dinner ended with an auction sale on a PersianTabrizi Carpet ("Omar Khayyam"), donated to the Association by the famous disability rights activist from Kuwait, Mrs. Munira Al Mutawwa'.

العودة إلى السبعينات

العشاء السنوي لجمعية أصدقاء المعاقين

العودة إلى السبعينات كان عنوان العشاء السنوي الساهر لجمعية أصدقاء المعاقين في إحتفال فني حاشد على شاطيء منتجع البانجيا في الجيه وبحضور اعضاء جمعية أصدقاء المعاقين واصدقائهم ومناصريهم يتقدمهم معالي وزير الشؤون الإجتماعية الدكتور ماريو عون وطاقمه الإستشاري ومعالي الدكتور عدنان مروه وسعادة نواب حاكم مصرف لبنان ومدراء تنفيذيين لعدد من المصارف وحشد من رجال الأعمال إضافة إلى أسرة الجمعية والأهالي ومجموعة من طلاب مدرسة إعداد والطاقم التربوي والعاملين في جمعية أصدقاء المعاقين.

إفتتح الحفل بالنشيد الوطني اللبناني وكلمة تقديم للسيدة ريتا مرهج مديرة مدرسة إعداد تلا ذلك لوحة رقص تعبيري لفرقة مدرسة إعداد الفنية ثم كلمة رئيس الجمعية الدكتور موسى شرف الدين الذي رحب بالمشاركين وتحدث عن حقوق الأشخاص ذوي الإعاقة ومما ورد في كلمته:

( فالأشخاص ذوي الإعاقة هم بالحقيقة مسكونون بالدونية  فلا هم قرروا عن سابق عزم وإصرار أن يتبوؤا منصب التعوق بصرا أو سمعا أو فكرا أو جسدا ولا طاقة لهم على رفض ما هم فيه وليس صحيحا أن هناك معايير ومواصفات وشروطا لابد من إستيفائها ليكون الإنسان مكتملا وطبيعيا. إنه لمن الطبيعي أن يكون الشخص معوقا, فكلنا بالنهاية معوقون ولا كمال إلا لله وحده وكلنا إذ ذاك متساوون.

فهم ليسوا كما يحلو للبعض أن يسميهم "ذوي إحتياجات خاصة" بل هم معجزون ومسلوبوا الإرادة ومنتهكوا الحقوق في الدعم والمساندة والمساعدة فحاجاتهم الخاصة ليست كماليات أو ترفا بل هي ضروريات حياتية لممارسة حقهم بالتربية وحقهم بالرعاية الإجتماعية وحقهم بالصحة وحقهم بالتنقل وحقهم بالعمل وحقهم بالسكن المستقل وحقهم بالمساهمة والعطاء. والإستحواذ على تلك المنظومة القيمية حق موروث كرسته الرسالات السماوية والعهود والمواثيق الدولية.)

 ثم جرى تكريم السيد رامي مصطفى ناصر عضو مجلس أمناء جمعية أصدقاء المعاقين وفاءا لعطاءاته ومساهماته.    

وتابعت بعد ذلك فرقة مدرسة إعداد تقديم لوحات راقصة مستوحاة من السبعينات تلا ذلك سلسلة أعمال فنية من أروع ما حفلت به فترة السبعينات من ألحان وأغنيات.

The SPECIAL TALENTS SHOW April 2009 Friends of the Disabled Association, the official affiliate of Very Special Arts (VSA) in the United States of America, organized on Thursday the 16th of April 2009 the Special Talents Show, at the UNESCO Palace in Beirut, under the patronage of the Minister of Culture, Mr. Tammam Salam. The Show grouped the most talented students with intellectual disabilities from 4 different non-governmental organizations in Lebanon, in dancing and acting. After the national Anthem and the welcome address, the Minister of Culture spoke about the importance of such an event and thanked the organizers for giving him the opportunity to be the patron of this artistic manifestation and wished good luck for all the participants. The Show began with a dance performed by the young girls from the Idad Dance Group of the Friends of the Disabled Association, to honor the memory of the late Rahbani Brothers, afterwhich a series of folkloric dances and short musical sketches followed, alternately presented by gifted students from Dar Al Aytam Al Islamiyah with its four different centers, the Lebanese Association for the Handicapped (in Sarafand) , the Sidon Orphan Welfare Society and the Friends of the Disabled Association. The audience was packed, in spite of the rainy weather outside, and everyone was dazzled by the outstanding performances and delighted to watch the students with special needs exhibiting on stage their amazing talents in dancing and acting. It is hoped that, in light of the great success of this event, more organizations will join for next year's Talents Show!

Friends of the Disabled Association holds its ANNUAL SPRING BRUNCH May 2009 Like every year, as soon as the daisies and daffodils start blossoming on the green hills of Mechref, Friends of the Disabled Association organized its annual spring Brunch at the Mechref Club, under the full sponsorship of the Mechref Administration and the careful guidance of its general manager, Mr. Fuad Salha, on Friday the 15th of May 2009. Around 300 ladies cheerfully joined this event around the pool at the Mechref Club, enjoying the delicious buffet and their narguilahs under the large umbrellas, among friends and relatives. The Brunch included a Tombola with several hundreds of presents, as well as a side-exhibit of the students' products from the workshops of vocational training at Idad Center. Thank you, dear friends of the disabled, for joining us on this happy event, and for supporting our cause by your gracious presence and generous contributions, and � see you all next spring!

Trip to Kuwait

Our trip to Kuwait was a great success and we will never forget the hospitality and generosity of our dear hosts, the Kuwaiti Association for the Guardians of the Disabled, who exerted tremendous effort and energy to make every single minute of this trip an unforgettable experience.

The trip included educational and entertainment activities, and �a visit to the Ministry of Information where we were received and greeted by the Minister himself in his private office!

The "IDAD Dance Group" was invited by the President of the Kuwaiti Association for the Guardians of the Disabled, Mrs. Rihab Bourassli, to participate in the Fourth Gulf Disability Week held in Kuwait between the 24th and 29th of April 2009. The IDAD Dance Group, a group of 15 students with intellectual disabilities and outstanding acting and dancing talents, presented three theatrical performances of the play entitled "The Tales of Sheherezade" on the 26th, 27th and 28th of April on the stage of the Social Rehabilitation Complex of Sulaibikhat. The first of these performances was held during the opening ceremony of the Fourth Gulf Disability Week in front of a highly distinguished audience, under the patronage of Sheikha Feryal, wife of the Kuwaiti Prime Minister, a devoted social activist for disability, and the President of the Arab Council for Disability, Sheikh Al Fareek Doeij Al Khalifah from Bahrain. The audience also included prominent Kuwaiti figures such as the Kuwaiti Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, the Kuwaiti Minister of Information, Mrs Sabeeka Al Jasser Al Khurafi, and Mrs Munira Al Mutawwa', to name just a few. Our students danced and acted on stage with confidence and expertise, and to express their admiration, Sheikha Feryal , the Minister of Social Affairs and Sheikh Al Khalifah from Bahrain all joined the Idad Dance Group on stage after the performance ended to congratulate each and every one.