Amal Al-Sibai

Saudi Gazette

 

JEDDAH — Jeddah desperately needed suitable neighborhood parks, children’s playgrounds, walking paths, and open green spaces.



It took a group of dedicated and imaginative Jeddah women to translate this need into a vision.



A team of prominent businessmen and women, professionals, entrepreneurs, and volunteers joined forces to create a non-profit organization, Friends of Jeddah Parks (FJP), to turn this vision into a reality.



The organization, under the umbrella of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, seeks to involve the public and private sector and obtain land from the municipality to develop community parks in our city’s neighborhoods. So far, they have built three popular public parks in Jeddah.



Recently, the municipality has started picking up speed and shouldering responsibility for improving neighborhood parks and public walking paths in the city.



One of the largest parks which FJP has developed, Amira Trabulsi Public Park in Southern Jeddah, which has become a safe haven for women in the community and a healthy outlet for the youth where they can play, exercise, and release their energy in a positive way.



The park has even become a place to nurture the mind and a platform for educational, environmental, and health awareness events. 



Since the park is mainly visited by young women, mothers, and their children, the leaders of FJP viewed this as the perfect ground for launching a breast cancer awareness campaign.



With the help of several administrations from the Ministry of Health, Dr. Khalid Idriss Hospital, and Zahra Breast Cancer Association, the park was turned into a pink park.



"The women who had come to the park for some fun and a picnic left the park with much more than a good day. They learned breast cancer risk factors, prevention, how to adopt a healthier lifestyle, and the importance of early detection," said Dr. Abeer Al-Ahmadi. 



Several hands-on workshops were held where trained health educators taught women how to perform the breast self-exam, which is recommended to be done every month. Hundreds of informative brochures were distributed for extra reading and several lectures were held over the course of the campaign.



"In a place like this which has such a large female turn out, it is a golden opportunity to provide these women in our society with the knowledge they need for a healthy life.



"FJP is forming partnerships with private and public organizations to get them participate in such health awareness campaigns as part of their corporate social responsibility initiatives.



"We can improve the health and education level of young women and children in our community through entertaining and informative campaigns,” said Ayman Filali, director of FJP.



"Women are an essential pillar of society and programs dedicated to women’s health will in turn serve to build a healthier and more stable society.



Earlier in the year, we held a diabetes awareness campaign that was well received and much needed by the community," said Filali.



"We are thrilled to notice a sharp and steady increase in the number of women who visit the park; they come here from all districts of Jeddah, looking for a place to relax, walk, be out in the sun, and spend time with their children.



"Amira Park is a women-and-children only park and has become a lively center for socializing, exercising, and learning for the women in Southern Jeddah.



‘Our Pink Park’ was one of many campaigns that we are planning in order to fulfill our mission; which is to uplift the lives of women in Jeddah,” said Sameera Mazjaji, the manager of Amira Trabulsi Public Park.