Dubai: Most centenarians would often be sitting at home to pass their time, but not Saif Ali Al Mansouri — now aged 105 — who still goes around serving the community for free.
Al Mansouri started volunteering when he was 101 years old. Four years on, the elderly Emirati is still selflessly giving back without asking for anything in return.
On Monday, Al Mansouri was among 20 volunteers in Dubai honoured by the Community Development Authority (CDA) for volunteering their services in the community, on International Volunteering Day as mandated by the UN General Assembly.
Volunteers who were honoured have each given a maximum of almost 500 hours, more than 200 hours, and a maximum of 70 plus hours for the past year.
Al Mansouri is part of the group of elderly who participate in the programme Tawasul Al Ajyal (Arabic for ‘to bridge communication between generations’). They visit schools in Dubai to share their experiences and insights of pre-oil Dubai and what life was like in the emirate before it developed.
Al Mansouri has contributed more than 100 hours of his time this year — this despite his old age and his need of assistance when travelling.
“I want to serve my country. It has given me a lot. I am now, with whatever means I have, trying to give back to my country,” Al Mansouri said.
“We visit schools to educate them about UAE traditions and values. We take them back to how life was back then for them not to forget their roots.”
Al Mansouri retired in the 1970s after working as a guide in the pearl diving industry for many decades. He started diving for pearls at age seven and became a guide a few years later.
Al Mansouri recounted how he and his colleagues braved storms and had close encounters with sharks in their prime, but he never had any unfortunate events, or injuries.
Hana Bakkar Al Harthi, Director of the Social Social Cohesion Department at CDA, said Al Mansouri and the other volunteers are worth emulating.
“They are the ones who have the biggest hearts in Dubai because we all have time, we all have the legacy or the interest to do things but those are the ones who have taken one step further and give back to the community,” Al Harthi told Gulf News.
“I would be embarrassed to know that someone at Al Mansouri’s age still actively volunteers on a daily basis.”
Another volunteer, Aisha Al Hammadi, 53, broke records for having given the most number of volunteering hours at 472 hours in total for the past year. If calculated on a nine-hour work day, Aisha has volunteered for 52 working days all free of charge this year.
When asked why she does it, she had one answer: “Because I like it, simple. When I volunteer, I don’t feel the time pass, I don’t feel any strain or exhaustion on my part.”
Aisha usually volunteers to care for the elderly and in events involving children.
“I urge everyone to volunteer. This is better than staying at home and playing with your phone.”
Khalid Nawaz, 45, another volunteer honoured at the event, said volunteering is more rewarding because there’s no money involved.
“I know there’s no paycheque here but there’s more to life than just thinking about money.”
Hall of fame
Outstanding Volunteer: Aisha Al Hammadi
Effective Volunteers in the Elderly Category: Saif Al Mansouri, Khadija Mohammad Ali, Halima Al Shanbih, Shams Mohammad Al Shamsi, Mohammad Saleh Bidah
Active Volunteers: Mohammad Mohsin Ali, Wafa Abdul Razzak Ahmad Al Aqel, Mina Adel, Mohammad Nourdin Zwain, Khalid Nawab Dad, Sami Mohammad Mousad Mohammad, Wurood Muslih Mohammad Fadil, Jamila Hassan Ali Al Beloushi, Khalid Al Hosni, Ali Saeed Khamis Saeed Al Shamsi, Manal Saeed Khamis Saeed Al Shamsi, Sahir Babu, Obaid Khalid Abdullah Mohammad Al Falasi
Special Honouree: Mohammad Ahli
CDA’s Dubai Volunteering Programme
Volunteers have clocked in 60,081 hours, equivalent to financial savings of Dh4.7 million.
There are more than 5,000 registered volunteers and 105 registered companies.
How to volunteer
Download the Dubai Volunteers app and register.
