Behind the Scenes at The Forum's First Fundraiser

Hello everybody.  Aisha decided to go behind the scenes at our fundraiser and speak to some key people involved. Here is what she found out:

The New Beginnings Team at The Forum had their first ever fundraiser on 19th April 2013 and it most certainly was a festive celebration. 

When I asked Francesca and Heike why they decided to have this event, they said that they thought it was a good idea to celebrate mentoring and fundraise at the same time. They hoped this evening would help involve individuals who do not usually come to activities at The Forum. The main aim of the evening therefore was to help raise awareness about the financial and emotional difficulties faced by immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers.

The preparation for the evening was done by the MRCF staff and asylum seekers which was a bit stressful because they were not sure of so many things about the evening, but it was fun and enjoyable. 

Jamal, Omid, Milca and Zrinka handled the decorations for the evening. They looked very beautiful even though they were planned the same day. Jamal said his best moment was when he put a glass of wine on the table because it reminded him of home. 

Heike, Laura and Martina made the canapés, cakes and biscuits. The most exciting moment for Laura during the preparation was when James Russell agreed to come and exhibit at the fundraiser. This was also special for the other members of the team because of the interest James showed in our work. 

The jewellery, scarves and other items for sale at our ‘flea market’ were made by the jewellery workshop, sewing class and knitting group. 

The Evening started off with a violin duet by one of our mentees Raja and Elana from Live Music Now. We had very inspiring presentations from Francesca, Agnes, Onome and Mulugeta. Everyone unanimously agreed that this was the highlight of the evening. When I asked her impressions of the evening, Agnes said she really enjoyed meeting new people, making friends and all the lovely food.

Zrinka told the story of her journey that gave hope and encouragement to many asylum seekers. 

Mulugeta was the photographer for the evening and he took some lovely pictures. 

Just like Jamal, Milca and everyone, I loved the food and enjoyed the music which was calm and relaxing upstairs at James’ exhibition and lively downstairs. It was an opportunity for me to meet new people within the Forum and get to know their backgrounds, which inspired me.

The evening was vibrant, cheerful and relaxing as more and more people turned up. More than 60 people came and everyone was very satisfied with the whole evening. Although this kind of fundraiser was a tester, the whole evening was very successful and I’m sure The Project will do it again.