MUSLIMS HELP NEEDY AMERICAN STUDENTS
Pennsylvania, 15 Syawal 1434/22 Agustus 2013 (MINA) – A leading American Islamic organization has launched its annual initiative to help poor families get ready for schools, offering hundreds of backpacks to children of all faiths in US eastern state of Pennsylvania.
“This is the real Islam,” Zafar Chaudhary, a Muslim businessman in Matamoras, Pennsylvania, told Pocono Record website on Tuesday, August 20. “To share what God gave to you with others.” Onislam quoted by Mi’raj News Agency (MINA) as reporting.
Inviting the leading ICNA Relief, a division of the New York based national organization Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), to Matamoras, Chaudhary and Abdul Rauf, another businessman, wanted to pay back to their society.
“We want to give back to the community because we have businesses here,” Chaudhary said.
Coming to the city, ICNA gave away 600 backpacks filled with school supplies to students on Monday.
The giveaway welcomed students from Port Jervis, N.Y., Dingmans Ferry and other places who started to show up at noon.
Children flocked with their parents to the giveaway, where they had option to choose the color of backpack, folders and notebook.
The package also implied contained pencils, a sharpener and scissors.
To maintain credibility and good ties with the community, none of ICNA backpacks contained advertisements or religious markings on the packs or on any of the items inside the packs.
The regional police attended to control the crowd. ICNA Relief plans to give out free school bags and school supplies to different communities all across NY.
This initiative is part of ICNA’s national Back 2 School Giveaway Project, which is hosting over 30 similar events across the US.
The giveaway, which started in New York with just 1,000 backpacks, is now in its fifth year.
In 2011, through ICNA Relief USA, 15,000 school bags filled with supplies were distributed in 49 cities in 16 states.
The number increased in 2012 to reach 30,000 backpacks slated for giveaway which covered 21 states.
This year the group expects to give away 30,000 backpacks in 12 states.
Outreach
Attending the event, eastern Pike Regional Police praised ICNA’s initiative to help the needy across the country.
“I think every kid said thank you,” said Matamoras Mayor Janet Clark, who volunteered to help hand out the backpacks.
“It’s a wonderful idea, not just for Matamoras but for the whole area. We should do more of this working together.”
The United States is home to a Muslim minority of between six to eight million.
A survey, titled “The World’s Muslims: Religion, Politics and Society”, was published earlier this month by Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.
The survey also finds that American Muslims are the most moderate around the world.
It shows that US Muslims generally express strong commitment to their faith and tend not to see an inherent conflict between being devout and living in a modern society.
An earlier Gallup poll found that the majority of Americans Muslims are loyal to their country and optimistic about their future in the United States. (T/P013/E1)
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
