AUS community join hands to show appreciation for campus cleaning assistants this Ramadan

Ramadan is a month of giving and reflection and it is during this holy month that American University of Sharjah (AUS) community members join hands and organize initiatives that foster the spirit of the month. 

The Cleanco Ramadan Care Package Campaign is a popular annual campaign that allows AUS community members the opportunity to express their appreciation to the cleaning staff working on campus. One hundred and sixty care packages, which include hygiene kits that accommodate the different needs of male and female workers, were collected.

“This campaign has been very successful. We have noticed how well-received are the packages by the Cleanco staff, and how the university community loves to come together to show their appreciation for the cleaners’ hard work throughout the year,” said Ellen Dinning, Manager of the AUS Wellness Program, which organized the campaign.

The care packages were available at the AUS branch of the Sharjah Co-op located near the women’s residential halls, allowing students and all members of the AUS community easy access to purchase them and drop them at a designated collection point. 

“We had some amazing volunteers from the community who assisted us with the campaign, from establishing contact with the mini-mart where the packages are sold and assembled to speaking to people and marketing the campaign. They have also been very active in reaching out to the university community through messages, group chats and social media to help spread the word about our campaign,” said Dinning.

Somia Anwar, Visiting Professor in Management and one of the campaign volunteers, said: “Cleanco staff on campus do so much for us and this is our small way of showing our appreciation to them. We have been organizing similar campaigns for a few years now and the Cleanco staff appreciate it. The smiles on their faces on the day of distribution is a treat to us. I have personally spoken to some of them as well and they now look forward to receiving them every year. The spirit of Ramadan has always been great at AUS and in the UAE as a whole. This is a small initiative that has become a regular ritual with the community.”