The Secretariat of the Saudi Volunteering Award granted the Advisor of the Vice-President of Umm Al-Qura University for Female Students Affairs and the Deputy Manger of the Arabic Language Research Center, Dr. Haifa' bint Uthman Fida, the award in the field of volunteering personalities, the Pioneer Branch.

She was declared the winner on the twenty seventh of November through the formal account of the volunteering award: Saudi_V_Award@. She will be honored with the rest of the winners in other fields during the annual ceremony that will be held in the middle of next January, 2019 A.C.

The Saudi Volunteering Award is regarded, according to its formal website, to be one of the initiatives introduced by the Association of Volunteer Work, which is the first organization that was specialized in volunteering in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia when it was initiated in 2008. This Association is dedicated to volunteering services, solutions, mechanisms and institutional standards, and the adoption of volunteer initiatives.

This award not only follows the methodology of traditional awards, but also pays attention to distinction and quality. It contributes in encouraging the community members to become involved in volunteering, in appreciating volunteers and social work pioneers, supporting innovation and distinction [in the field of volunteering], and promoting the abilities of volunteers and volunteering institutions.

For those interested in voluntary acts, Dr. Haifa' Fida won the award because of her efficiency, what she exerted of efforts while being a head, a manager or a member in many of the voluntary charitable institutions, and her success in managing pioneer projects, in addition to her academic administrative work as an Associate Professor of Rhetoric at the College of Arabic Language at Umm Al-Qura University and an advisor to the Vice-President for Female Students Affairs. Moreover, she is the first Saudi lady to be an elected member in a literary club in the Kingdom.

Dr. Haifa' Fida commented on winning the Saudi Volunteer Award in the field of volunteering personalities, Pioneer Branch, by saying, "Winning the Award comes in the context of personal success in the form of passing (conditions and criteria), and success in the form of surpassing (others). Allah (Exalted be He) honored me and those who were with me by being able to cooperate together to achieve our goals."

Dr. Haifa' Fida administered a group of voluntary programs that serve the community of Umm Al-Qura University. These programs are based on meeting the scientific and societal needs, and offering voluntary scientific and research counseling to the knowledge community, beginning by offering help in guiding female students in choosing their research topics and ending with advice on printing, publishing and linguistic review. Moreover, she is one of the founders of the Ata' Initiative (Research on Volunteering and Voluntary Research) which was launched last April by the Deanship of Scientific Research. It aims at preparing the research environment for voluntary research, attracting and developing research abilities, conducting researches in the field of volunteering, and achieving quality in research on volunteering. She also won the Award of Distinction in serving the University and the community.