International Christmas Charity Bazaar ready to kick off this Sunday

By Shailendree Wickrama Adittiya

Seen by many as the event that kicks off the festive season in Colombo, the International Christmas Charity Bazaar (ICCP) will be held on 24 November at Galle Face Hotel from 12-4pm.

Held annually, the Bazaar features a number of stalls from organisations and charities from all over the world, and all proceeds from the event go to charity. According to Chairperson Fatema Jafferjee, the event has been held since 1982.

Committee Member Annika Fernando shared more details about the event, saying, “We have adopted four to six charities per year that the committee directly donates towards. We have one event per year, and the funds collected through that one event supports those charities throughout the year.”

According to her, this year’s event was organised in a very short period, as they didn’t think a Bazaar would be held in 2019. However, the charities supported by ICCB as well as the sponsors were successful in changing the committee’s mind.

“We planned it in less time than we usually do. We got an amazing venue sponsor, Galle Face Hotel, so we have three times the space. All concerns from last year have been addressed and I think we’ve got a really great show planned,” Fernando said.

“In addition to the lucky dips, raffles, and stalls,” Fernando said, “Galle Face Hotel is hosting a special brunch and we’ll have kids activities outside. So it’s going to be a fun day for the whole family.”

“And this is all in aid of charity. That’s what’s special about this event. Our participants don’t pay a fee to take part but all their proceeds have to go to local charities,” Fernando said, explaining that international participants have to donate to charities in their country.

“We have got security checks in place and more parking has been arranged by the hotel,” Fernando said, adding that it was to buy tickets in advance.

Participants from around the globe

One of the main reasons ICCB attracts a large crowd each year is because it brings items and dishes from around the globe under one roof. Countries that will be participating this year include Russia, United States of America, India, and France, while organisations and charities like Nest Sri Lanka, Ease Foundation, British Welfare Group, and North American Women’s Association will also have items for sale at the Bazaar.

From authentic cuisine to unique handicrafts, visitors can choose from over 20 stalls with items, from food to handicrafts, unique to different countries and thus not easily available in Colombo.

The stall run by the Pakistan Women’s Association, for instance, will have a range of authentic Pakistani dishes like biriyani, haleem, kheer, and kebabs, as well as other items like shawls, table runners, bags, cushion covers, pottery, ceramics, and jewellery. In addition to these, a variety of onyx items will also be available.

According to representatives, the Association has been in operation for 24 years and has been involved in the ICCB for the same time. According to them, the key features of ICCB are, “raising charity for a lot of organisations, items being sold for nominal prices, and access to items not commonly available in Colombo.”

“It has a very festive feeling. It’s nice that people from different countries come together and put together something as splendid as this. And it is fun working together,” they said.

The Zonta Club 3 of Colombo will also be managing a stall at ICCB and President Farida Alibhoy said they joined the event last year. The stall is for the Zonta Empowers Women (ZEW) project.

“We train ladies in the north and the east and have been working for the past three years in the Vavuniya Bogaswewa area,” Alibhoy said, adding that they have a vocational training centre with several sewing machines.

“We collaborate with Singer Sri Lanka so they send a trainer there. We teach batches of 15 ladies at a time to sew and they become self-sufficient. To extend their market a bit, we have been granted a stall at the ICCB,” she explained.

The items that will be available at the Zonta Club 3 stall at ICCB include cushion covers, gift bags, bottle bags, and cloth bags. “All proceeds of what is sold goes to the women. What we raise by way of the lucky dip and the raffle is used for the next project; so what we collected from the lucky dip and raffle last year was used for a new training centre in Nandimithra Gama,” Alibhoy said.

Visitors to the bazaar can also choose from an array of Christmas ornaments and cards at the stall run by International Expatriates Association of Colombo (IEA). According to President Elaine Bowers and Fundraising Coordinator Vicky Cole, the IEA stall is extremely festive and has a range of handmade items like embroidered linen and gift bags.

“We have a lot of items to hang on the Christmas tree, ranging from elephants to cover local interests to Christmas bells and Christmas pudding. They are all handmade and we make them throughout the year, meeting once a week,” Bowers said.

According to Bowers and Cole, IEA has been a part of the Bazaar for over three years. In addition to the above items, they will also have a lucky dip, to which the members have contributed, and will be making cookies as well.

“It’s a fantastic opportunity to raise more money for our charities. Each year, the Board of the IEA selects charities to support. This year, it has been victims of sexual and domestic abuse, children’s homes, and care for children with mental disabilities, so it’s a wide ranging group of charities that we support,” Cole said.

ICCB Committee: Anusha Sethwala, Marie Saleem, Annika Fernando, Sophie Wickramanayake, Priya Surtani, Catherine Obrenovic, and Roshni Hathiramani 

2019 event sponsors

Spa Ceylon is the title sponsor of ICCB for the fourth year and Galle Face Hotel is the venue sponsor. Anim8 has joined as the printing partner and has been involved with the Bazaar for five years. “We support the event because it supports a lot of charities that are very much in line with our own charity programs and the event is thus aligned with our charity values,” Anim8 Chairman Dinesh Rajawasam said.

Joining in as creative partner is Studio Nice One and Director Amy Quickfall said they have put together the look and feel of the event in terms of graphic design direction and art direction. “We have created the posters, tickets, and anything related to the brand identity of the event,” she said.

This is Studio Nice One’s first time partnering with ICCB, although Quickfall has worked with ICCB committee member Annika Fernando on a previous project. While saying that it is nice to have a personal involvement in the event, Quickfall also said, “It’s great to have a touch of Christmas. I’m from the UK so Christmas is a lot more prevalent there than it is here in Sri Lanka, so it’s nice to have something that marks the festive season.” She further commented that it was great to be a part of an event that raises money for charities.

“From our perspective, it’s good for us to be able to put our name out there in terms of getting more awareness about the company locally. We hope we are a part of the event next year too,” Quickfall added.

Other sponsors of the event are Elysian, with Qatar Airways joining in as a raffle sponsor and Wijeya Newspapers as the media partner.

Pix by Ruwan Walpola