Benefactors from My Country

The first volume of Benefactors from My Country, published by Kuwait’s Zakat House in its second edition in 2001, stands as an important historical and humanitarian record.

Documenting the Pioneers of Giving

The book chronicles the noble lives of twenty‑five figures who pioneered charitable work in Kuwait. The number was chosen symbolically to coincide with Kuwait’s National Day on February 25.

It highlights the early generation of Kuwaiti men who laid the foundations of charitable and voluntary work before the emergence of official institutions. Their efforts met the needs of Kuwaiti society in earlier times and extended to serve Arab and Islamic causes, becoming living models of solidarity, school building, relief work, and mosque construction.

Kuwait’s Map of Giving

The book reveals strategic themes that outline Kuwait’s charitable landscape, foremost among them education and enlightenment. These pioneers carried the burden of combating ignorance and establishing the country’s first educational infrastructure.

Their generosity and personal supervision were evident in founding schools such as Al‑Mubarakiya and Al‑Ahmadiya, with benefactors like Ibrahim Al‑Mudhaf, Sultan Al‑Kulaib, and Ali Al‑Rifai.

The mission extended to marginalized groups, as Shamlān bin Ali Al‑Saif did by establishing Al‑Saada School in 1924 to provide free education for orphans and poor children. Sheikh Abdulaziz Al‑Rashid also fought ignorance through journalism and challenged widespread superstitions of the time.

Social Solidarity

The book shows how these men confronted living and natural crises with unique social responsibility.

Benefactor Rashid Abdullah Al‑Farhan built forty houses to shelter the poor, while he and Shamlān Al‑Saif dedicated ships such as Shu’ai to bring fresh water from Shatt al‑Arab and provide free drinking water during Kuwait’s harsh summers.

Sheikh Saleh Al‑Ibrahim played a vital role in aiding victims of the devastating “Haddama” floods of 1934. Abdullah Abdul Latif Al‑Othman opened his diwaniya to relieve debtors, quietly paying widows’ debts and returning their mortgaged homes.

Global Humanitarian Reach

The book affirms that Kuwaiti generosity was not confined by geography. Sheikh Abdullah Al‑Nouri traveled to distant lands such as India, Indonesia, and Australia to establish schools and Islamic centers and support minorities.

Abdullah Al‑Othman extended his philanthropy to build mosques, hospitals, and endowment complexes in Syria, Lebanon, Africa, Asia, and America, while also supporting the Algerian resistance.

Abdulaziz Ali Al‑Mutawa founded committees to sponsor families of Palestinian martyrs and prisoners and supported medical institutions in Egypt.

Deep Roots of Humanitarian Work

The book provides tangible evidence that Kuwait’s humanitarian strategy did not emerge from modern economic prosperity but from deep historical roots. These men combined commercial success, religious devotion, and social responsibility.

They invested their wealth in building people before buildings, making their lives a rich source of inspiration and a model for shaping contemporary charitable and voluntary strategies.

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