By Rubina Singh

Philanthropy and commerce — can they truly be friends? Or are they doomed to be like train tracks running side by side but never really crossing paths?
Innovate is a word often used only for new ideas for business setups; however, its usage goes far beyond the initial idea, vision and mission and should naturally encompass a way of thinking and doing business, of fulfilling needs and solving problems.
In fact, to be truly innovative it should be a deeply engrained philosophy that is an inherent part of a company’s style of functioning, thinking and acting all through the organisation and then, in the true sense of the word, an innovative project would be deemed to be truly so.
Just as the word ‘innovate’ has become an over-used cliché, similar is the treatment meted out to the term ‘Corporate Social Responsibility’ (CSR). Everything that should be done as a matter of humanity and social justice is now acted upon by companies only because of enforced CSR obligations.
We live in a world where there is a growing trend for commercial projects to adopt social agendas, mostly out of an obligatory need to fulfil mandatory CSR obligations.
Yet there are some, although far and few between, who simply care about the general good while at the same time working a business in a professional way. And then, sprinkle on this a little ‘innovative’ thinking and you have a recipe for a successful event families can gainfully enjoy.
Such was the nature of the ‘New Arrivals Welcome Day’ jamboree that took place at the Rugby Club at the weekend.
A community event involving sports, games and stalls where organisations could display their services was organised by Legacy Sports and Events with the purpose of providing an opportunity to new arrivals and older residents of Qatar to meet in a social environment and learn about their new home took its first steps this weekend.
Legacy Sports and Events (LSE), a new sport training and event management company was founded earlier this year by David Moreland, a PGA professional and Carl Windley, a USTPA Tennis Professional. David and Carl have over 25 years of combined experience in sports coaching and management, with both of them residing in Qatar for the past 11 years.
As with other small budget start-ups, they, too, found themselves challenged with a small budget that did not stretch far enough to include extravagant marketing collateral and campaigns.
Hence came the idea of combining business interests with community welfare and with ingenuity they created a solution that would not only demonstrate their company’s abilities but also provide an opportunity for newcomers in Qatar to mingle and enjoy with old timers and discover various facilities available.
Community talks to co-founder Carl Windley to take a peek at the making of this event where corporate interests married social gain in an innovative way that might just start a trend.

Did your personal experience of settling when you were new to Qatar have anything to do with the idea of organising ‘The New Arrivals Welcome Day’?
I was very lucky as I had a friend here to help me settle. In those days the expat community was much smaller and everyone was very welcoming. On reflection, I would not have come if it was not for knowing someone due to the state of the world at the time. I was given the job on September 10th 2001. The next day the world changed forever! I knew someone that I was at school with lived in the Middle East. I searched for him on Friends Reunited (no Facebook at that time!!) and it said he was Head of P.E. at Doha College. I had been given a job as the Head Tennis Professional at Doha Club. It couldn’t have been more fortuitous. I was at school with him when I was 11 and he was 17. He then went away to university etc but later returned to my school as a teacher when I was in the 6th form (17/18yr old). I got to know him very well as we were both crazy about sports! Therefore, when he told me that things were fine and peaceful in Qatar I had no hesitation in coming. It also put my families mind at rest…. I think! It didn’t help that the day before I flew out here the US invaded Afghanistan!! I’m glad I didn’t change my mind!! Mark Leppard has since gone on to be the Principal of Doha College and I now have my own sports and events company which I co-founded with David Moreland!
During my eleven years in Qatar, I have seen the challenges faced by families, spouses etc in settling here and I like to help out and make people settle as easily as possible. I always say that you have to give Qatar a chance to grow on you but if after time you don’t like it, leave! It can really get you down if you are already unhappy here or miss home too much. I think that if there were more events where newcomers could interact with old timers, it would make it easier for people to love this place even more.

While the idea initially sprouted out of a genuine desire to help the community yet you also saw in it an opportunity to widen the circle of influence to include SMEs such as yours? Tell us more about that.
Small marketing budgets make connecting with the community a huge challenge for small businesses and community organisations. So, this seemed a good way of providing a platform for local businesses to get their message across while simultaneously raising awareness about various facilities which assist in making the first stage of settling down easier and the ‘new arrivals day’ developed from there.

Why do you think events like these are needed here?
It is not an easy place for marketing and getting information to the right people. The mediums of TV and Radio are very limited and magazines have only recently started becoming a little more informative but there is still a lot of information and well meaning initiatives out there that people don’t know about. We thought this would be a good way to give organisations in Qatar the opportunity to access a broader audience. At the same time, we wanted to create an opportunity for new comers to get to know local residents in an obligation free social setting.
Apart from that community events and get-togethers like these add zest to a community in a healthy, safe and multicultural environment which is very crucial for any geographical unit, particularly one that is growing and changing as fast as Qatar.

What was the inspiration behind setting up your company?
Legacy Sports and Events (LSE) was started with the vision of developing sports at grass roots, social and corporate levels throughout Qatar. The company’s main area of focus is Sports Academies. It aims to build relationships with educational facilities and establish junior academies offering a variety of professionally coached sports. Additionally, we host sports related events and provide assistance to national sports projects.
Through training academies, social and corporate leagues and events we aspire to contribute towards increasing the availability of sport in the community and strive to help Qatar achieve its sporting aspirations.
We endeavour to establish partnerships with local sports venues with the aim of helping to maximise the potential of their facilities, whilst also providing the community with an organised, professionally operated sports
network.
Keeping in mind Qatar’s ambitions in the field of sports, do you think more sport development companies are needed in Qatar?
Sport is currently at the forefront in Qatar; however, grass roots development is lacking and with the exception of a few dedicated organisations, only exists as a part of after- schools activities.
The majority of national focus is placed on elite students with the aim of generating athletes who can represent Qatar in the future. The aim of LSE is to encourage pupils to experience a wide range of sports at an introductory level and help them to build the necessary skills required to excel in their chosen discipline(s).
Furthermore, school holidays provide a great opportunity for training opportunities and with that thought we decided to launch summer camps hoping to provide a service that was not currently available to families. We were overwhelmed by the response we received and soon realised that we had discovered a gap in the market. We now hope to offer camps throughout the year at various venues in Qatar.


Creative ground: Parents and kids partake the fun at activities to promote creativity. Photos by Jayaram