A 10-year-old Dubai student, Mireya Guliani, is making a difference by collecting pre-loved school supplies for a charity in India. She also conducts weekly online music lessons for underprivileged children.
At her Al Safa home, Mireya hosts a book reading drive, allowing young children aged 2 to 12 to borrow, lend, and donate books. Reflecting on her motivation, Mireya shared, “Previously, when I went for a holiday to India, I saw underprivileged children going to school with plastic bags or worn out cloth bags. They didn’t have great supplies. When I came back to Dubai I kept thinking as to how I could help them. This thought stayed with me even when I went to school.”
Realizing the potential of donating old supplies, Mireya decided to take action. “But I cannot do this alone. So, I decided to make a poster about it and then my mother helped me to share it on WhatsApp groups with community, friends and family,” said the Year 5 student of GEMS Jumeirah Primary School, Dubai.
Between January and April 2024, Mireya collected 10-15 school bags, 5-10 lunch boxes, approximately 10 water bottles, and some partly used notebooks.
“Every two days, we got donations and we kept collecting and storing those in our store room. I feel, if we can have ‘back to school shopping every year,’ then we should also have ‘kids helping kids every year’.”
During a visit to her grandparents in Gurgaon, India, in April, Mireya took all the collected supplies for donation. Although unable to deliver them personally due to farmer protests, she arranged for the items to be couriered to Harmony House, a charitable organization in India helping underprivileged children.
“I was somewhat disappointed that we could not personally deliver it there due to ongoing farmer protests on the roads, but we arranged for it to be couriered to Harmony House instead, which is a charitable organisation registered in India to help underprivileged children,” added the young expat.
Mireya aims to raise more awareness and continue her efforts. “The charity has confirmed to us that there are more than 1,000 children, with these numbers only increasing. These are the children of daily wage earners, who are provided free education and meals. Therefore, I want to continue the project on an annual basis,” she added.
Teaching Music Online
In addition to her charitable efforts, Mireya teaches piano and vocal skills to early learners aged 5 to 7 from the charity. She also reads books to them and discusses the stories afterward via Zoom.
“I come back early from school on Fridays, so my parents suggested I use this time productively,” she says.
Mireya is trained in music, holding a grade 6 in vocals, a grade 6 in piano, and a grade 1 in violin. “I want less fortunate children to gain music knowledge, express themselves, and be happier. A teacher on the opposite end uses a laptop and a small keyboard. Lessons start with vocal exercises. Afterward, I narrate nursery rhymes and even sing birthday songs if someone is celebrating their birthday there,” she added.
‘V Read and V Swap’
Mireya’s philanthropic spirit extends to a home library initiative called “V Read and V Swap” for Al Safa community kids every Saturday from 11 am to 1 pm.
“We would be happy if children from other communities across the UAE also come to swap books. I maintain a log of books swapped. I also accept donation of used books to add to the library,” she said.
