International Understanding Day Carnival 2012
Tuesday, 24 April 2012, 00:00
For most of us interactors, it has been a life-long dream to organize an event for an international cause and to help to make a difference towards the lives of the unfortunate ones who live in a different continent, especially in Africa. However, distance, money, age and time have been the barriers towards achieving this dream. Thus, it is indeed surreal for me, personally, to digest the fact that in merely ten days ago, the Interact Club of SMK Bandar Sri Damansara 1 had organized an International Understanding Day Carnival to raise funds for the people in West Africa after a month of preparations. We started out with a goal, which was to help, not knowingly on how much we were able to achieve or how the event would turn out but with the help from all of you who bought the tickets as well as your donations, we managed to raise a total amount of RM15,000. On whether it was a success or not, it's not up for me decide but one thing for sure, it was indeed a day to remember.
The main highlight of the day was definitely, the performances. The immensely talented bands, duos and solo acts did an exceptionally amazing job. The bands and DJ (An Honest Mistake, Heart A-Tack, Djezna's Stalker, Chuteless and DJ Mervin) got everyone pumped up and made the crowd go crazy with their electrifying sets. On the other hand, the astounding acoustic session from Syaza & Syaza, Leo Lee, Batrisyia & Shira, Aida & Nabila, Andre Lee, Nur Resya and The Pancakes blew away the audience with their breezy, stripped down performances. The Street Puppets dance crew and Cyclonez cheer team were definitely a hit with the crowd as they performed their excellent routines. The solo-acting performance by Melina Victor was hilarious, witty and set everyone in a good mood. The dance flashmob which they managed to put together in a few weeks caught everyone by surprise. We owe it to these great performers for entertaining the audience throughout the event. The fashion bazaar and vendors (Rockstar's Closet, Seduction Closet, La Bella Wardrobe, Ilya Malik, Hullubalu, Wan Nur Farahani, House of Ninee, Alet and An Honest Mistake) provided the visitors with a wide range of things to buy from clothes, to accessories, to notebooks and albums.
In addition to that, the event would not turn out as it was, without the help from these great individuals ; Pn Anis Asyikin (our teacher advisor) for being such a great support and help from the beginning, Patrica and Vivian from Patlin Communications for the publicity, Darren Teh (An Honest Mistake) for helping us with the equipment and preparations, Avril Chan for helping us with the Charity Garage Sale, Mr & Mrs Sivananthan (Gayathri's parents) for helping us with the collection of money and banking, Mr Tan Yu Chai and Mrs Julie Lim (Francine's parents) for their hospitality as most of the preparations were done at their house, Mr Irhamy (Amelia's dad) for going back and forth to help us with the delivery of the chairs and tables, Faridah and Kamarudzaman (Sabrina's parents) for helping us with the venue, Mr and Mrs Chin (Adrian's parents) for helping us with the cleaning up and making sure the hall is spotless after the event, Tan Shu Yi from World Vision for helping us with the rules and regulations, the lovely non-interactors (Chung Yih Hern, Tok Gee Thek, Ming Chow, Yee Hui Ern, Farah Iman, Bryan) for helping us with the preparation and cleaning up, Pn Tong and the school administration for the tables and chairs and last but not least, donations from Mr. Ravi (President of Bandar Sri Damansara), Mr. (President of rotary club selangor), Rotary Club of Damansara West, Ann(voluntary facepainter), 5 Cekal 2011 students,Tan Yu Chai and the students themselves (Amelia, Sabrina, Liya, Gayathri, Francine, Khadijah, Lyana, Pavithra S, Hui Ern and Roshan).
Reminiscing to where we were four months ago when the club was just founded, we were all inexperienced, clueless interactors with big dreams and high hopes. Thus, it is indeed liberating to see where are now. Although we are just an inch higher than we were, but at least, now, we have a slight better knowledge of certain things. I believe that through all of the chaos and stress from organizing this carnival, we, interactors have gotten much closer and have shared such great memories together. I can never forget all of the mini roadtrips, the freeze flashmob, the staybacks, the making of 1000 tribal bracelets, the decorations, the sleepovers, the sleepless nights and definitely, our never ending conversation at our Facebook group. I am indeed grateful and proud to have such wonderful brothers and sisters. And, together, we shall learn to be better as an Interactor, as an individual and as, a team.
Again, thank you very much to those who have contributed in any way, big or small, to make the International Understanding Day Carnival a possible thing for all of us. No words can truly describe how grateful we are for all the support. To those that came, we really do hope that you guys had a wonderful time and do pardon us for any glitches throughout the event. Till we meet again next time :)
Love,
Liya
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