Written by Khadija Asad
Edited by Noor Ul Ain Adeel
Psst, did you hear? Registrations for NUST Community Service Club’s recruitment drive just opened! Oh, what’s NCSC you ask? It’s only the biggest and coolest society ever! We’re a bunch of leather-jacket-wearing, motorcycle-riding, rebels-with-a-cause on a perpetual mission to stir trouble change. Alright, the former might not be true, but the latter definitely is.
One of NUST’s oldest societies today, NCSC’s history goes all the way back to 2007; the year it was founded. Since then, we’ve grown colossally and contributed positively to the society at large. Not to toot our own horn, but seeing how NCSC has multiple MacJannet Prizes and HEC Social Integration Program Awards under its belt, I’d say we’ve been doing a pretty decent job so far. Don’t believe me? Just watch (or read on ahead) for a quick intro to some of NCSC’s biggest projects and events:
1. Blood Donation Drives:
If there’s one event that just screams NCSC, it’s our trademark Blood Donation Drives. Held once per semester, these BDDs are held in collaboration with organizations like Jamila Sultana Foundation and Sundas Foundation to help provide relief to thalassemia patients all over the country.
During BDD season, our dedicated council can be found scouring all of NUST, like bloodhounds on a scent trail, sniffing out potential donors and bringing them to donate – by hook or by crook (just kidding… or am I?). Throw in some good-hearted (for the most part) competition between all the schools, delicious food, overall good vibes and you have yourself a recipe for bloody (pun intended) success. Just at our last BDD, a grand total of a whopping 605 pints were collected as a result of the OCs blood (literally), sweat and tears!
2. Al-Qalam:
Seeing how education is the most powerful weapon for changing the world – and boy does it need changing now more than ever – everyone deserves equal access to it, irrespective of financial and social status. Thinking along these lines, NCSC launched the Al-Qalam Project back in 2015, with the aim of sponsoring underprivileged children by paying for their academic expenses. Under this project, monthly donation drives are carried out throughout campus and the money then distributed among enrolled students. Currently, over a 100 students are registered in the program. That’s over a 100 lives that now have a shot at a better life!
3. Fempower
One of NCSC’s most powerful projects to date, Fempower is all about empowering HER. The 2017 MacJannet Prize winner, this project aims to celebrate the resilience and sheer strength of the female spirit, which even after weathering violent storms, bounces back anew, stronger than ever, like a phoenix rising from ashes.
Under the dynamic leadership of some ah-mazingly talented women, Fempower sponsors the vocational training of underprivileged women and widows, giving them the means to achieve financial independence and build their own future, rather than remaining at the mercy of a ruthless society. Here’s to Fempower reaching new heights in the future!
4. Orphans kNOw More
NCSC currently has two orphanages in the OKM family, Aghosh Al-Khidmat and Apna Shelter Home. Weekend council trips to them can only be described as life changing experiences. Meeting the adorable kids, with their sunny smiles and contagious laughter, so ecstatic to have visitors and even more elated to see the goodies brought for them, it really does put stuff into perspective doesn’t it?
Once introductions have been made and everything’s settled – or as settled as can be, with these hyperactive youngsters bouncing about – commence the activities, both fun and educational. Thus begins a roller-coaster of emotions; excitement, intrigue, the occasional disappointment at losing a game, and much, much more. By the time you leave, your heart is full and brain pensive and you walk out of the orphanage a changed person.
With a glorious legacy behind us, we hope to grow even more in the future. Become a part of all that awesomeness and apply away, because together, we CAN make a difference!
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