From a Pile of Rubble to a Dance Center thru Crowdfunding

"We want to replace the piles of rubble, full of death, with a dance academy full of life." ~ Shaark Cb Crew

Shaark Cb Crew

(GAZA STRIP, Palestine) - We are a group of youths who live in various refugee camps in the Gaza Strip. We are united by art, peace and love. In 2003, we saw that the community needed peace and freedom. We decided to establish a dance team and historical art movement for the community of Gaza, and send peaceful images from Gaza to the entire world. We started performing and spreading the art of dance around the Strip.

Despite the political issues facing the community of Gaza, we made people open their eyes and minds to us and our art. We started teaching and running workshops for children in the Gaza Strip.

After the 2009 war, we found our rented dance studio bombed and demolished. But we decided not to give up on our dancing. We hoped to one day have our own dance studio.

In 2012, we set up an online fundraising page for people to donate and help us. With enormous help and support from people spreading our message, we finally made it, and raised enough to make our dream come true.

Our dream was to establish an academy to encourage children to join and sign up for classes and be encouraged to take a peaceful direction in their lives. We called it CB Crew Academy for Art. It is located in Nusirat refugee camp in the centre of the Gaza strip.

We have held two big dance competitions for all dancers in Gaza, which strongly promoted dancing in Gaza. We have also made a lot of changes, and we finally started teaching girls to dance.

After the 2014 war, we found that there are areas which were completely destroyed. Al-Shejeaya, which is located in the northwest of the Gaza strip, had disappeared off the map, with only rubble remaining. People who survived moved to other areas.

They had to restart their lives from scratch. Most rely on UNRWA for food, healthcare, and education, and it it is difficult for them to take care of themselves. But most of them had to rent apartments and start buying essentials (if they were able).

We are concerned about the children who live in the north, and their mental and physical states. We have found that they need significant rehabilitation and treatment.

We believe that they need to dance and learn to focus on art, peace, and love so they forget the awful memory of war. We also believe that establishing a dance academy for children there is the best solution.

Amjad Al-Ewady, a member of CB Crew, lives there with his family. He is well trained and experienced. Our goal is to establish another academy to cater for the children in North Gaza.

We want Gaza to dance and be happy instead of sad. We want to replace the piles of rubble, full of death, with a dance academy full of life.

Please help the future of these children and the future of the arts in Gaza.

Funds will be spent on the rent for two years, a dance floor, mirrors, mattresses, a small trampoline, fans, a sound system, speakers, water cooler, computer, printer, lockers, clothes, shoes CDs DVDs and books.

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