The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once said, “The person who manages things for the widow and the poor is like the one who strives hard in the way of Allah” (Bukhari). The gift of giving is an innate sense of morality given to humanity by the Almighty, it is through life that we learn how to hone in on that feeling and build it. No matter what religion, race or social status, certain qualities serve as the moral standard, it’s universal and one of the important aspects of Islam and the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). The willingness to give freely is a concept embedded in each and every single one of us from the day we are welcomed into this world, it’s up to our surrounding environment and community to hone in on that concept and nurture it.

We’ve all gone through a point in our lives where we find so many things in our households that are of no use to us, they just lay there staring at us or tucked away in a closet room or boxed up collecting dust. What might seem like unnecessary items to us can be useful to others. Garage sales are a phenomenon in Saudi Arabia, rarely do people sell their items for profit gain and rid themselves of these items, and it’s practically unheard of. Here comes in “Mawakeb Alajer”, a charitable organization under the wing of the Charity Committee for Taif Orphan Care.

Mawakeb Alajer is a social, economic and environmental initiative that aims to make use of second hand goods by selling them at relatively low prices through their second hand department store. It also is a center for collecting recyclable substances with an objective to protect the environment as it also encourages the concept of volunteer work. All profits made from the discarded items go to help low income families, orphans, university students who can’t afford tuition payments, widows, and much more. The initiative gave back so much in the past 10 years that it was presented to the King Khalid Foundation anonymously for the King Khalid Award, an honorary award to honor the achievements of individuals and distinguished citizens of the Kingdom who contribute in helping solve important issues through bold and smart ideas combatting social and economic challenges in Saudi society. Mawakeb Alajer won first place in the “partners for sustainable development” category by a vast 61 percent.

The idea was the brainchild of Abeer Abdulaziz Al-Nowaiser that came about 15 years ago starting from her home. Abeer explained the reasons behind starting up this charitable initiative, she spoke of how there was once a time in her city of Jeddah where many were of the same class, many were equal in social status and financial class yet times have changed and the social divide started to show and dominate. The generous trait in people was something that came naturally, everyone helped each other, no one even noticed the divide until it started to show in schools, universities and it became more clear that as time passed by there was a major need for change, people needed to give more and in larger quantities. Gone were the days where money would solve everything, friends and family would send their discarded items such as sofas, beds, books, chairs, clothing and what not (all in good conditions of course) to her home and it was basically an open garage sale for all who needed it.

“I never imagined that we’ve gotten so popular just by word of mouth, it shows that there is still good in the world and there are those who are in need for the kindness given. I started Mawakeb Alajer from my home; I thank my husband for tolerating and allowing it all to happen. My children grew up with Mawakeb Alajer and volunteered as much as they could. I had, and still do, a very strong support system which motivated the group in charge of the charity to search for a committee that would benefit most from this initiative; we love what we do and didn’t want to get involved with all the bureaucracies. We’ve been under the wing of the Charity Committee for Al-Taif Orphan Care for 10 years now and we’re able to concentrate more on the contributions we make in order to keep the flow going, helping those who need it most is a feeling that can’t be described. The mere knowledge that all profits go to those members of our society that make up of our brothers and sisters in need is a push to go ahead and do more to give more.”

A dedicated woman indeed, the way she spoke of her project with so much passion and care would make anyone speechless and reassures us that even in this materialistic world, there are still good people out there who dedicate their lives to give back, just as the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) wanted us to. This passion spread to her children who volunteer at the center as much as time would allow them to; the spokesperson of Mawakeb Alajer is none other than Abeer’s daughter, Sarah Alfadl, the front woman for all the media and social media exposure the initiative participates in.

Arab News spoke with Sarah and got a better look into what Mawakeb Alajer is and what it means to her.

In what way did growing up with Mawakeb Alajer help you?

Like you said, I did grow up with Mawakeb Alajer, and it became kind of a baby brother to me. It might seem funny, but it was part of our daily lives. My mom dedicated so much of her time and energy into it that it grew on us too, we love volunteering and personally I don’t just dedicate my time to Mawakeb Alajer, I participate in many charity organizations, that’s what growing up with MA helped with, I grew to love volunteer work and give back to a society I cherish so much.

Can you give readers a brief intro to how things work in Mawakeb Alajer and about your efforts in helping save the environment through recycling?

Our day starts off with the arrival of volunteers from all age groups, both male and female, who start receiving the items sent to our warehouse. We collect everything from furniture, books, clothes, wedding dresses, kitchenware, tableware, toys, baby necessities such as pampers and beds, desks and so much more. Volunteers sort out all the items and begin sending them to their designated areas. Our warehouse is basically a second hand department store where many visit and can shop around. I must note that the warehouse we are currently using doesn’t belong to Mawakeb Alajer, and we’re hoping that something bigger and larger will come by in order for us to help expand more and help in more ways than now. As for our recycling facility, we gather all recyclable objects from offices, homes, businesses and others and they are collected by a company we are affiliated with to collect all material. We see it as an important task to help our environment as best as we could, recycling is easy and we’re helping spread awareness on its importance.

You recently won first place in King Khalid Award in the “partners for sustainable development” category, how did your mother react to this news and how has this award impacted Mawakeb Alajer?

My mother was ecstatic and overjoyed, everyone was! Never would have she thought that something like this would even be mentioned to the King Khalid Foundation, it was simply something that she enjoyed doing as well as her partners and colleagues. Winning this award was such an honor, when King Salman presented me this award, he told me that he was very proud of our efforts and wanted us to continue forward with this initiative, this is something that doesn’t come by everyday. It was a great honor and I can’t describe how ecstatic I am to receive a great award from our beloved King Salman. Our hard work is paying off and we’ve been receiving so many calls to help with this project turned initiative, it’s very humbling to know that there are many who share our views and are willing to help us continue doing what we do and help strengthen the bonds between members of our community.

Where would you like to see Mawakeb Alajer in 5-10 years?

I really hope that we’ll become a department store like all other department stores, except that this one is special, it’s second hand goods to help everyone from every walk of life. Our wish is to move to a location in a mall for example where parking is available, storage is available, recruits and staff to sort out all the received items and sort them in their proper manner. It’s hopefully a dream that we will be able to fulfill within that time period, we’ve already surpassed all our expectations. First and foremost we give thanks to Allah the Almighty for giving us the strength to continue progressing in this project, I also have to thank each and every volunteer who took time from their everyday lives to help volunteer and of course all the people who gave away their goods for the benefit of others, we couldn’t have done it without them.

Mawakeb Alajer is a wonderful charity that started from a yard, it’s a project that grew because the people behind it believed in its important role giving back to society. The warehouse is located in Al-Arabi street behind Al-Badriyah Towers, Khaldiya, Jeddah. For more information,

feel free to visit the warehouse and browse around or contact them at +966 12 606 2430.

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