MAKKAH — Around this time every year young Makkah citizens, especially school students, join various charitable organizations as volunteers to serve pilgrims in different ways. While some serve coffee and Zamzam water to pilgrims inside the Grand Mosque, others help lost and frail pilgrims. These youngsters have proved their dedication and sincerity in serving pilgrims. Sheikh Mansour Al-Amer, director of the Makkah-based Pilgrims and Umrah Peformers Foundation, said all young people who volunteered with the foundation displayed admirable hardworking qualities and perseverance. “It is as if they were competing with each other to provide more services to the guests of Allah,” he said. Emad Al-Zuwaihiri, a volunteer, told Okaz/Saudi Gazette he feels honored that he has been given this golden opportunity to serve pilgrims. “I look at it as a duty, a holy one. I can't describe my happiness every time a pilgrim thanks me after I serve him.” Al-Zuwaihri considers himself a lucky person because he was born and raised in Makkah, where pilgrims from all over the world flock to perform Haj. Ibrahim Al-Thaqafi, who is still in high school, described what he does as a humanitarian act. “It's true that what we do is demanding physically and requires us to exert more and more effort, nevertheless all volunteers enjoy it thoroughly.” He said he feels proud when he sees a pilgrim raising his hands in the air and praying for him as a way of thanking him for his help.
