(MENAFN- The Peninsula) By Amna Pervaiz Rao I The Peninsula
DOHA: Kholoud Abu Sharida, born with visual disability, made her voice heard in the society by nourishing her abilities in different fields.
Kholoud is currently working as Assistant Producer at Baraem TV station, which is a pre-school Arabic television channel. She is Vice-President of Qatar Social Cultural Center for the Blinds (QSCCB).
Kholoud is one of the three ambassadors of Accessible Qatar initiative, one of the Sasol's CSR initiatives, representing the blind community in Qatar.
Recently, Kholoud launched a series of awareness videos about the challenges that blind people face in their daily lives. This event was held by Sasol, the international integrated chemicals and energy company, in partnership with Unesco and Qatar National Library.
Commenting on the event, she said: 'The idea was inspired by the talk with Jack Saba, General Manager of Public Affairs at Sasol Qatar. We kept the videos based on daily life events, the problems visually disable people face.
Sasol provides her the support, opportunities and platforms to help her community in Qatar. Sasol has also sponsored the operetta of the Al Nour Institute for the Blind, sponsored ‘Blind Football' and also donated Braille printer to QSCCB to print Braille documents free of cost for the blind community in Qatar.
'Sasol has given me the opportunity to reach out to the individuals who are visually impaired in Qatar. Through different workshops, activities, I spread awareness about the importance of accessibility in the society, said Kholoud.
While growing up, Kholoud noted that four of the eleven children in her family are blind, but that her mother and late father have always been supportive of their development.
Talking to The Peninsula, Abu Sharida said that her mother gave attention on her since the beginning of her journey. 'She believed in all of us. Back at that time, she sent her daughters abroad to study which was a huge challenge for her. After my studies, I started to get my voice heard in society.
'I did my bachelor's degree from Qatar University and got my master's degree in translation studies from HBKU, she added. Her direct communication skills made her the person she is today.
Kholoud said: 'Having friends makes my life easy but I face difficulties in my daily life. The nature of my job requires continuous creativity, being a script writer I need to create stories on daily basis.
She writes for children aged between 3 to 6, which is another challenge for her as they are very easy and difficult at the same time. She has nephews and nieces who help her how to deal with children.
'My country, Qatar, has always helped me. When I was young, I was sent abroad for study. Qatar has helped me financially and supported me throughout my journey.
The first award she received was a bronze medal in fifth grade. Then she won ‘Best Poet' trophy in 2008. She also got two awards from Sasol one for screening of her short films and the other on her appointment as ambassador at ‘Accessible Qatar', an initiative of Sasol.
Recently she was awarded at HBKU with ‘most inspiring person' title.
'Having constant dreams and ambitions is the powerful key to my successful life plus all my experiences which made me the person I am today, Kholoud added.
Kholoud said she loves writing. She writes poetry, stories and personal sentiments as well. She also has a dream to take a doctoral degree in creative writing.
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