Thank You Teacher Zira !

On January 11, 2008 emotions ran high as we bid farewell to Noor Hazira Binti Yaakob, our senior educator who helped to shape the education curriculum and creative activities at Rumah Aman.

Fondly known as Teacher Zira by the staff and children, she served for almost three years and would have in her own words “…continue to serve the children..” if her hand was not asked in marriage and if she had not have to follow her husband to Terengganu – a state in the East Coast of Peninsula Malaysia.

With tears freely flowing down her cheeks, teacher Zira asked for forgiveness from the children “dari hujung rambut ke hujung kaki” (from head to toe) if she had somehow mistreated them or scolded them or raised her voice in a manner which was unacceptable in the course of teaching and educating them.

In her farewell speech, she also thanked her fellow educators for their co-operation and hoped that they will continue to serve the children in the best of their ability for the pleasure of Allah. She also thanked them for sharing their knowledge and experience with her.

"The children have left a lasting impopresion on me and I will cherish the time I've spent at Rumah Aman," she said adding that she was very grateful that Rumah Aman gave her an opportunity to serve at a time when she was unemployed and was supporting three younger sisters.

Noor Hazira who hails from the northern state of Kedah, holds a Bachelor of Art and Design (Ceramics) from Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) Shah Alam, Selangor. She was an attachment teacher who taught at a primary public school before her contract expired in December 2004. She joined Rumah Aman in July 2005.

Founder of Rumah Aman, Abdul Rehman Dakri in his speech, recalled that Teacher Zira is the first official educator at Rumah Aman and thanked her for her unselfish contribution especially in educating the children to learn how to read, write and count besides instilling good manners in them.

He said Teacher Zira did not only confine her role as an educator but was always willing to help others when her help was needed and sometimes volunteered her services without being asked. She also stayed on after work holding night classes for the school going children and organised extra classes on weekends on her own accord to help those who were slow in their studies.

“You are a model teacher and I hope others will follow your footsteps,” he said, holding back his tears while adding that Rumah Aman was blessed to have Teacher Zira who helped look into the education aspects of the children.

Though we were sad of having to say goodbye to Teacher Zira but we were also happy for her. We wish her the best in her endeavours and may her marriage last a lifetime. May Allah bless her with many children and a serene and happy life.

Founder of Rumah Aman, Mehrunessa Dakri later presented Teacher Zira with a present from the Management of Rumah Aman, a certificate of appreciation from her fellow educators and a gift from the children to remember them by.

Teacher Zira,

Thank You from the bottom of our hearts. We will never forget you. We shall miss you dearly.

Fun Filled Sports Day

The children of Rumah Aman showed their prowess in sports with all of them highly motivated and competitive in securing the first place in all nine games competed.

The event which was held at about 8.30 am on December 26, 2007 exposed the children to teamwork, comradeship, strategy, loyalty and above all honesty in winning.

The children were divided into six teams of seven to eight athletes including adults comprising teachers, child minders, housekeeping and the management staff.

Two talents from a production house, Piperace Sdn Bhd. were also incorporated into two of the six teams as guest athletes since they were shooting Rumah Aman’s sports day as part of a programme for the national television station, TV1.

Mr. and Mrs. Astaf Taj Ahmad, volunteers of Rumah Aman were referees and coordinators for all games competed.

The Red Team led by Abdul Rehman Dakri was crowned
winner of the games after collecting 35 points in total.

All teams received a hamper each and the contents which mainly consists of food, drinks, biscuits were devoured by the children immediately after the event which ended about 12.00 noon.

Rumah Aman Prize Giving Day

It was a joyous occasion for the children and teachers of Rumah Aman on December 17, 2007 as it was testimony to the hard work put for the year.

This is the first prize giving day held by Rumah Aman since its inception in the year 2005.

Some of the children came up tops in their public school examinations and we hope all of them will keep up the good work and make their families at home proud.

The event started by a doa by Mohammad Redha Yassin, 8, and followed by a recital of verse 1 to 28 of Surah An-Nazi'at by Muhammad Asyraf Hakimi Zulabidin, 7, and a recital of verse 1 to 30 of Surah An-Naba’ by Razman Azrai Muhammad Halim, 6.

Mohamad Izaat Junaidi, 7, was placed 1^st. among the 30 children of Rumah Aman based on his excellent performance and consistency in studies throughout the year. He came out tops in his class of 34 students and 3^rd. among 257 students in Year 1 at Sekolah Kebangsaan Raja Muda (SKRM), in Seksyen 4 Shah Alam.

In the 8 year old category, Raziq Hafizi Mohd Tamin was placed 1^st., Muhammad Firdan Rahmat placed 2^nd. and Mohammad Norfadhil Shah bin Mokhtar was placed 3^rd. in their respective classes. They were awarded for good performance in their examinations at SKRM and also at Rumah Aman.

The most improved student for the year 2007 was Muhammad Rizal, 7, who had shown a lot of improvement in his attitude and behaviour and has also impressed the teachers over improvements in his studies.

In the 7 year old category, Amirul Amsyar Kamarulzaman was placed 2^nd. and Mohamad Nor Amirul Shah Mokhtar was placed 3^rd. in their respective classes at SKRM while Razman Azrai was selected as the excellent pupil in the pre-schooler category.

All winners were presented with a plaque and a board game each .

At the end of the event, the children had lots of fun singing a Malay song entitled Akrab Persahabatan and an English song entitled The Wheel on the Bus. The way the children rendered the Malay song made some staff really touched and then they became very amused when the children sang the funny English song.

Pix 1 : Student and teachers of Rumah Aman.

Pix 2 : Razman Azrai reciting seriously Surah An- Naba'

Pix 3 : Raziq Hafizi reading a newspaper article written in Jawi - the Malay traditional script.

Pix 4 : Mehrunessa with Amirul Amsyar, proudly holding his prize.

From Our Friends in London

Our friends in England held a charity event at Shahi Quila, the restaurant, in Blackburn. 300 guests attended the all-women dinner event, organised by Sofia Esa and Latifa Umar, which was held over 2 evenings from the 19th to the 20th of October 2007.

The fun-filled event which included a 4-course meal, a short DVD presentation about Rumah Aman, a fun quiz, a free raffle and an auction, was a great success and gave guests a good insight into Rumah Aman.

The organisers were very pleased to get great feedback from their guests. They wish to thank all the wonderful donors, sponsors and helpers, without whose help the event would not have been possible. Funds raised throughout the event amounted to £8,100.

To one and all, thank you for your continuous support. May Allah s.w.t bless you always.

Jazakallah.

Scholastic Excellence Awards for Our Boys

Yesterday (November 13) was a special day for all of us at Rumah Aman. A number of our boys received scholastic excellence awards during a ceremony held at Sekolah Kebangsaan Raja Muda where we have 11 boys in Year 1 and 5 boys in Year 2.

Muhammad Izzat Bin Junaidi was 1st in his class of 34 students and 3rd among the 257 students in Year 1. Izzat also won 1st place in the Sentence Construction Competition for Year 1.

Zahirulhaq Bin Amdan won the subject prize in Science for being the best student in that subject for Year 1. He also won 1st place in the Arts & Craft Competition for Year 1.

Mohamad Nor Amirul Shah Bin Mokhtar won 1st prize in the Choir Competition for Year 1. Amirul was 5th in his class 36 students.

Raziq Hafizi Bin Mohd Tamin and Mohd Firdan Bin Rahmat, who are in the same Year 2 class, were placed 2nd and 3rd respectively. Firdan also won the Arts & Craft Competition for Year 2.

Mohammad Nor Fadhil Shah Bin Mokhtar was 3th in his Year 2 class of 32 students.

Izzat and Amirul have been appointed Junior Prefects for the 2008 school year (see previous post).

Well done boys and keep up the good work.

Our Boys Appointed Junior Prefects

Mohamad Nor Amirul Shah Bin Mokhtar and Muhammad Izzat Bin Junaidi, two of our boys in Year 1 at Sekolah Kebangsaan Raja Muda (Raja Muda Primary School), have been appointed Junior Prefects for the 2008 school year.

The selection and appointment of Prefects by the school are based on:

1. Good conduct, efficiency and trustworthiness,
2. Adherence to the rules and regulation of the school,
3. Ability to execute assigned tasks with responsibility and dedication,
4. Exemplary academic achievement and personality.

Both boys achieved excellent academic results with Izzat scoring 98.4% and Amirul scoring 96% average marks for all subjects.

Congratulations Izzat and Amirul. We are so proud of you.

Amateur Radio Enthusiasts Celebrate Eid with Rumah Aman

There were lots of fun and laughter at Rumah Aman on 4^th November 2007 as the children, and adults, participated in various games and telematch organised by a group of Amateur Radio enthusiasts.

It was part of an Eid-ul-Fitri celebration hosted by the group who also brought along 24 boys and girls from Rumah Amal Limpahan Kasih, an orphanage from Puchong to join in the celebrations.

As usual, the children had the most fun and big smiles especially when they were well rewarded with various prizes after winning their games and telematches and entertained with a fun-filled magic show. They also sang along with a guest from Senegal who entertained them with songs. There was an array of delicious food, from mee rebus, roast lamb, murtabak to pizza and more.

Throughout the event Amateur Radio communications was also demonstrated to the children.

The celebration attracted over 100 members of Amateur Radio and their friends. It was an opportunity for them to learn more about Rumah Aman and its future plans.

Noah Foundation donated RM3,000.00 to Rumah Aman during the event.

Thank you Amateur Radio team and their friends for the food, prizes, toys, donations and most of all for their time in making the event a success. The children and staff of Rumah Aman enjoyed the event so much and hope you come and visit us again.