Firdous Ali

My work with Utsho began in 1996. After raising my own two children and devoting all my time to them, I felt a vacuum when my younger child graduated from college in 1996. Looking back at that time, I realized how privileged we were and how much we took for granted. At the same time, my younger sister Humaira, introduced me to this small organization called Utsho. I was taken by the mission of Utsho and became immediately involved with them. Over the years, my association with Utsho has enriched my life in many ways; I frequently think of Utsho as my “third child.”

It is amazing what we have been able to accomplish with meager local resources. However, after 15 years of support from many generous people, we realized that we have reached a critical juncture in our development where it would have been difficult to continue to care for more and more children without an influx of investment. With this knowledge, we began to look for a more meaningful and ongoing support base for Utsho. Part of this future growth involved finding a more spacious, permanent home for the growing number of children. We received a generous donation of land in Sreepur from Zeeshan and Zaheen Hasan. We all know how important it is to have a place to call home; and, with this land, we will be able to provide this security for the children of Utsho. Acquiring the land was just the first step. Next we needed to find funding to build a residential school.

In 2009, my husband, Dr. Toufiq Ali, went to Copenhagen, Denmark for a meeting with Dr. Haldor Topsoe. Dr. Topsoe, knowing Toufiq’s nationality, mentioned that his late wife had always wanted to do something for the street children of Bangladesh. He asked Toufiq to find a suitable organization that would benefit from his help. In February 2010, Toufiq went to Copenhagen again to meet with Dr. Topsoe and presented him with different proposals. Utsho’s vision for a school was one of these proposals.

The Utsho School project appealed to Dr. Topsoe and he wanted to hear more. We compiled a detailed proposal, including architectural drawings from Jalal Ahmad who donated his time pro bono. After reviewing the detailed plans, Dr. Topsoe decided to fund the school. For Utsho, this decision was a godsend, and we will always be grateful to Dr. Topsoe and his late wife for their generosity and kindness.

We also wish to thank Dr. Topsoe’s daughter Birgette and son-in-law Dr. Adam Oigaard for their sincerity, commitment to children and their willingness to engage with us during their recent visit to Utsho. And finally, none of this would have been possible without the help of Poul Erik Lorentzen, who worked with us tirelessly to achieve our dream of a safe haven for these children who deserve much better than the environment to which they were born. On every visit to Bangladesh, he helped us further shape our plans.

With the groundbreaking today, we are one step closer to our dream for a better future for these children. None of this would have been possible without Dr. Topsoe, the firm that bears his name, Poul Erik, and many others who have helped us along this journey.