Cozy Kids Project – Protecting Children from the Chill in Azad Kashmir

A Journey Through Snow and Silence

My name is Faiza Ali, and I live in the heart of Muzaffarabad. Every year when the first snowfall dusts the peaks above our valley, a quiet fear sets in. For us volunteers, it signals the beginning of the hardest months in Azad Kashmir — and the most critical time to act.

Last winter, I joined the Kashmir Welfare Foundation’s Cozy Kids Project. My mission was simple on paper: deliver warm clothing packs to remote children in Shounter Valley before the mountain roads sealed us off. In reality, it was a journey through snow, silence, and stories that would stay with me forever.

The Face of the Cold – Humaira’s Story

When we reached the final cluster of homes near Shounter Lake, the world looked frozen in time. Smoke barely escaped the chimneys. The snow was waist-deep. There I met Humaira, a 9-year-old girl with eyes brighter than the winter sky.

Her mother, Rukhsana Bibi, told me they’d been using plastic sheets as windows since last year’s storm tore through their roof. “When the wind comes,” she said, “we wrap Humaira in two sweaters — both too small — and pray the night passes quickly.”

That night I couldn’t sleep. I kept thinking of Humaira’s little hands, cracked from the cold, clutching the worn handle of a kettle as she waited for water to boil. For her, warmth wasn’t comfort; it was survival.

The Long Road to Shounter Valley

Getting to Shounter Valley is never easy. The route from Muzaffarabad to Kel and onward takes hours over narrow, icy roads that disappear beneath avalanches without warning. Yet every donation from the UK keeps our small convoy moving — one 4×4 loaded with boots, coats, and blankets at a time.

Our supplies came from the Cozy Kids Project, funded entirely by Sadaqah and winter donations from compassionate families across Britain. Each pack contained thermal clothing, gloves, socks, shoes, and a child-sized quilt.

As we distributed the first sets, the children’s laughter broke the stillness of the valley. I saw Humaira running — her new red coat flaring against the snow. For a brief moment, the cold didn’t matter.

Behind Every Pack Is a Prayer

Each winter pack costs £10, but what it carries is far greater: dignity, protection, and the reminder that someone miles away cares. For UK donors who add Gift Aid, that same £10 becomes £12.50, enough to clothe a second child with gloves and shoes.

When I told Humaira’s family that her pack came from a sister in Birmingham who had written “For a child who reminds me of my own” in her note, Rukhsana wiped her tears and said softly, “May Allah keep her warm forever.”

That is the soul of this project — one heart warming another.

Data That Demands Action

According to the AJ&K Bureau of Statistics (2024), nearly 38% of households in high-altitude areas of Neelum and Leepa struggle to afford adequate winter clothing. Child pneumonia remains one of the leading causes of seasonal hospital admissions in the region.

In villages above 8,000 feet, average January temperatures range between -8 °C and -13 °C, and snowfall often exceeds three metres. When roads close, families can go weeks without new supplies.

These numbers aren’t distant figures; they’re the very conditions Humaira faces daily.

How Your Donation Helps

A Volunteer’s Reflection

I’ve volunteered with the Kashmir Welfare Foundation for two years, but nothing changed me like that day in Shounter. When I handed Humaira her new boots, she whispered, “I can go to school now.”

Something inside me broke — and healed — at the same time.

That night as the convoy headed back, the headlights cut through a curtain of snow, and I realised the Cozy Kids Project isn’t about clothes. It’s about restoring childhoods stolen by the cold.

Why Give Now

Time is slipping away. By early December, most routes to upper Neelum are buried under snow, cutting access until March. The next few weeks decide who receives warmth and who waits through the frost.

Your donation today ensures our final convoys can reach Shounter Valley, Leepa, and Kel before they close. Please don’t wait until the snow has the last word.

If you’re a UK taxpayer, adding Gift Aid means the government adds 25% more to your donation at no extra cost. That extra support can be the gloves on a child’s hands or the quilt over their shoulders.

Building Hope Beyond Winter

Through initiatives like the Cozy Kids Project, the Kashmir Welfare Foundation isn’t just easing hardship — it’s laying foundations for sustainable change.
Tailors trained in our Empower Lives Campaign now produce much of the winter gear locally, turning donations into jobs.

Read more about Empower Lives Campaign →

The Final Miles

When I left Shounter, Humaira ran beside our jeep waving her new gloves in the air.
The sun caught the red of her coat, and for a second it looked like a flame of hope flickering against the white valley.

I thought of all the donors whose names I may never know but whose kindness reached this frozen edge of the world.

Winter will return — it always does — but so will we.
And as long as compassion travels these roads, no child should face the cold alone.

How You Can Help

Every pound you give keeps a child warm for a night — and a community hopeful for a season.

Cozy Kids Project FAQs

1. What is the Cozy Kids Project?
A winter initiative by Kashmir Welfare Foundation that provides warm clothing packs to children in remote areas like Neelum, Leepa, and Shounter Valleys. This project is targetted towards the hard-to-reach villages of Kashmir and done in partnerhsip with schools.

2. Can I send used clothes from the UK?
No. To ensure quality and logistics efficiency, we source new winter items locally in Azad Kashmir. Its more cost efficient and reduces wastage and environmental impact.

3. How much does one pack cost?
Each child’s winter pack costs £10. With Gift Aid, it becomes £112.50 — helping more children stay warm.

4. When is the deadline for donations?
We aim to dispatch all kits by 5 January 2025, before roads close to high-altitude villages. However, distributions will continue after that in villages that we can still reach.

5. Where can I see impact updates?
Detailed reports and case studies are published on our blogs page for transparent impact tracking. Don’t forget to keep an eye out for it.