Eid as a Practice of Leadership:
How We Turned Celebration into Community Power
For many of us, Eid is remembered as a moment of joy; a day shaped by new clothes, shared meals, and celebration with loved ones. But we also know that for many children from under resourced communities, Eid can quietly reinforce the experience of exclusion. This year, through our Eid Gift Project, we at the Society for Youth (SFY) asked a simple but demanding question: What would it look like to organize Eid in a way that centers dignity, care, and community led leadership?
On 11 March 2026, in partnership with the Beaconhouse School System, we organized an Eid celebration at Government Girls High School, Fatima Road, Mardan, reaching 28 students. For us, this was not just a distribution activity. It was a leadership practicum: an opportunity for our grassroots organizers to practice what inclusive, valuesdriven leadership looks like in real time.
What We Did: and Why We Did It This Way
Our preparation began weeks before Eid. We collectively planned logistics, raised funds, and thoughtfully selected gift items from Islamabad: prioritizing quality, usefulness, and appropriateness over symbolism. Beaconhouse volunteers joined us in packing and organizing the gifts, and our teams coordinated transport to Mardan with care and attention to detail.
But we were clear from the outset: the purpose of this project was not just to give. It was to be present. On the day of the event, our leaders and volunteers spent meaningful time with the students: playing games, laughing together, and creating an environment that felt celebratory rather than transactional.
We co organized interactive activities such as rope jumping, musical chairs, question and answer games, cultural games like cham cham, and mehndi sessions. Beaconhouse volunteers led basket and ball games, target archery, and rope pulling: encouraging teamwork and participation. Only after this shared time did we distribute Eid gifts, ensuring that joy and connection came first.
How We Practice Leadership Through Experience
At SFY, we believe leadership is cultivated through experience, reflection, and responsibility. The Eid Gift Project embodied this belief at every stage.
Our female community leaders took on catalytic roles: planning logistics, coordinating volunteers, fundraising, facilitating activities, and leading the project on the ground. Hina Ahmad Shah, supported by Anisa Bakhtiyar, Sara Ayaz, Malaika Ikram, and Nida Nawab, anchored the work with clarity and care. Together, we practiced leadership that was operational, relational, and ethical.
Through this process, we strengthened concrete skills: project planning, volunteer management, stakeholder engagement, event operations, financial coordination, and safeguarding. Just as importantly, we practiced empathy as a leadership discipline: noticing when a child needed space, adjusting activities in response to energy in the room, and organizing celebration around comfort and dignity.
This is what experiential learning looks like for us: learning by doing, and growing by serving.
How Our Work Reduces Power Disparities
We deliberately rooted this project in local leadership and participatory decisionmaking. Our organizers are residents of Mardan. They helped identify the school, understand the needs of the students, and navigate cultural and social dynamics with care. Rather than importing an external model of aid, we relied on local knowledge, relationships, and trust.
This matters because power disparities persist when communities are treated only as recipients. We work to shift that dynamic by positioning community members, especially young people, as planners, decisionmakers, and leaders. Through this project, we redistributed not just resources, but agency.
Our partnership with Beaconhouse further strengthened this ecosystem. Teachers and student volunteers experienced the realities of underserved communities firsthand, expanding the circle of care and accountability. For us, partnership is not symbolic; it is a way to pool resources, align values, and act together with intention.
Why This Work Matters to Us
For the students, the project offered joy, recognition, and inclusion during Eid. For us as organizers, it reaffirmed a deeper truth: when leadership is grounded in care, it multiplies.
Our vision at SFY is to decrease power disparities and achieve shared goals through grassroots action, participatory praxis, and indigenous leadership. The Eid Gift Project is one way we live that vision. By organizing celebration with dignity and precision, we strengthen the leadership capacities of our community and build a more compassionate society, one project at a time.
With Gratitude
We extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who made this possible. We are deeply grateful to our SFY volunteers, especially Hina Ahmad Shah, Anisa Bakhtiyar, Sara Ayaz, Malaika Ikram, and Nida Nawab, for their commitment and leadership.
We also thank the Beaconhouse School System and its volunteers: Ms. Angela, Ms. Saima, Hania Khurram Jr., Aira Khan Jr., Lisa Joseph Jr., and Hareem Shah Jr., for walking alongside us in this work.
Together, we are learning that Eid and leadership are not something we simply observe.
It is something we practice.
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About SFY
Society For Youth (SFY) is a non-profit organization committed to fostering sustainable community development through grassroots organizing, education, and empowering local leadership. SFY’s broad-based model emphasizes relationality and collective action, working to address complex social challenges and build resilient communities from within.
To learn more about our work, donate, or support our mission, please feel free to reach out to us via info@society4youth.org.