| Security v. Liberty
|
 |
On Monday, March 3rd, UCF will be holding a "Security v. Liberty" debate, co-sponsored by CAIR-FL and the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) of Florida. The event will begin at 6:30 pm and is free and open to the public. Topics for discussion include:Torture, privacy, rendition, racial and religious profiling, defense, military commissions, no-fly lists, Habeas Corpus, warrantless wiretapping, enemy combatants, Patriot Act, freedom of information, and Guantanamo. Click here for more information. |
|
Know your candidates and your rights!
|
 |
UMF will insha'allah be holding an event targeted towards raising community awareness of the presidential candidates, as well as their rights as US citizens. The event is scheduled to occur on Saturday, March 22 at the Husseini Islamic Center (HIC)... and it's sure to be a lot of fun, complete with a mock debate between both parties' frontrunners!
More information will insha'allah be available soon! Click here to check out our event page on facebook.
|
UMF attends Interfaith
|
 |
On December 12, UMF
attended a discussion with Interfaith Community Conversation, the longest
running interfaith group. The meeting
consisted of people briefly discussing their various beliefs, including Scientology,
Judaism, Agnosticism, and Christianity.
Many people had questions the Islamic view of current events. Islam was the focus of the meeting thereafter, and
many if not all of the misconceptions were cleared up. The meeting was so
successful that they decided to have an entire meeting dedicated to Islam in
the near future.
The interfaith was a great way for UMF to
promote unity, as the group itself is built on respect for each other's
beliefs. As Martin Buber said, "When two people relate to each other
authentically and humanly, God is the electricity that surges between
them."
Interfaith Community Conversation meets once a
month and is open to everyone.
|
|
Calendar of Events
|
 |
United Muslim Foundation is happy to announce the release of a new, online calendar of community events. Located at www.umfonline.org the calendar is meant to allow for more involvement among community members in organized local events. Information regarding time, location, and registration/RSVP will be included on the site. Want to add an organization's event to the calendar? Just click on the "add event" link on the website and your event will be posted after receiving approval. It's a great way to try and increase attendance. Help the community become more aware and involved. Post your event today! |
|
Salaam Alaikum,
It's a new year for all of us here at United Muslim Foundation - in more ways than one. UMF has accomplished many things in the past, and we're excited to continue our work as we begin our 5th year of promoting unity, clearing misconceptions about Islam, and helping the needy.
As of 2008, I have accepted the position of Executive Director of UMF. Masuma has done a wonderful job of taking UMF from a membership of a dozen people to a couple hundred now, and growing our mailing list to several thousand individuals. Under her leadership, UMF also had the opportunity to work with affiliates operating from many different states and countries. Masuma will continue to be on the Board of Directors of UMF and will also serve as our Correspondence Officer.
I've been asked several times about who benefits from UMF's work the most. Is it the local needy we visit in the soup kitchens and homeless shelters? Could it be the students who receive our scholarships? Is it the other non-profit organizations we work with who gain more exposure or contributions with a little help from us?
I believe that the people who benefit most from UMF's work are the 8 million Muslims who live in the USA. Whenever we help the needy or speak at a church or network with other organizations, we work to improve the image of Muslims and do our best to demonstrate the teachings of Islam.
Thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter and for your support. I hope to see you at our next event!
Peace,
Naushad Virji, Executive Director
|
|
Kids House Easter Egg Hunt
On Saturday, March 8, Kids House will be having an Easter Egg Hunt for 12-3 pm. Volunteers are needed to help with this event. If you are interested in helping out, please contact masuma@unitedmuslimfoundation.org by Sunday, February 24th.
Kids House of Seminole "provides a child friendly facility for information gathering and treatment for victims of abuse."
|
|
Fundraising for Children in Need
Islamic Relief is launching a nearly $10 million emergency appeal to help provide food, healthcare, and shelter in the most affected areas. Donate today to help them reach thier goal! |
|
Valencia screening of Promises documentary
 The Muslim Student Association (MSA) of Valencia Community College, in conjunction with United Muslim Foundation, will be holding a screening of the movie Promises on March 11, 2008. The documentary, which follows the lives of seven Palestinian
and Israeli children, offers a refreshing, human, and sometimes even
humorous portrait of the Palestinain-Israeli conflict.
Screening of the movie will take placeon the school's east campus and will insha'allah be followed by a discussion jointly led by an Imam and a Rabbi. Time and speakers will be confirmed soon.
For more information, please visit UMF's new calendar of community events at www.umfonline.org
|
Muslims Against Hunger
The Muslims
Against Hunger Project is a grass roots effort to educate both the Muslims and the greater community about the problems of hunger, poverty, and homelessness that are occurring in our own backyards.
Serving
at soup kitchens gives the Muslims in metro New York-New Jersey
an opportunity to participate an the "act of righteousness" and
show the greater community the true and compassionate face of the Islam.
Projects are currently running in Morristown NJ, Hackensack, NJ and Long
Island, New York. The group also plans to help start soup kitchen projects around
the US and Canada by organizing and training Muslim volunteers in how
to start and run a soup kitchen project.
If you would like to help, either through donations or volunteering at future events, please contact the organization directly at muslimsagainsthunger@gmail.com or call (908) 364-4441
For more information, visit: www.muslimsagainsthunger.com
|
Mosque praised for its expression of goodwill
Image taken from Islamic Ahlul Bayt Association: www.iaba-austin.org
The following was published by the Austin American-Statesman on December 28, 2007:
"...recently I was moved to tears by its message: 'Greetings on the birth of
Jesus.' As a Christian, I was overwhelmed at this generous expression of goodwill and
respect for another religion. None of the holiday music or decorations I have
seen this year has touched me as much as this simple message.
I am proud to live in this neighborhood, and I am proud that the members of the
Islamic Ahlul Bayt Association have chosen Milwood for their center."
This act of unity and goodwill is a lesson for all of us regarding the capacity for understanding among all people. May Allah (swt) give us all the strength to work in His way towards true peace. |
|
Girl's Night in Allentown
 Allentown's
fourth Girls' Night program, held on December 14 at the Al-Ahad Islamic Center, featured a "Cultural Fest" theme celebrating the
diversity among the Muslim girls within our community. The night
provided a learning environment for the girls to explore different cultural practices and traditions through presentations by Aayesha Jan and Amal Habib, and Melissa Mouchref and Salma El Ashry. Many who attended also brought along delicious treats common to their culture to share with the crowd.
While presentations were a great way to learn about the cultures practiced by many of the girls in the community, playing games helped to increase the group's unity and understanding. The diverse group was made into one large human web and challenged to rearrange themselves back into a single circle. They also competed in a crossword puzzle contest. Sr. Zainab Habib won the crossword and received a gift certificate to Bath & Body Works.
 
|
Arabic Classes Update
I have always believed that good communication is the key to averting
so many of the conflicts that arise in the world today. In
the endeavor to bridge the communication gap between the East and the
West, and help to build bridges of understanding between cultures, UMF
embarked at the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year on our very own
Arabic Program. I am truly amazed at the difference I see in how much
Arabic my children can understand and speak to date, and the year isn't
even over yet. Having grown up in the Middle East, I firmly believe
that you have to be immersed in an Arabic speaking environment to gain
an understanding into the native tongue, and UMF having trained
teachers using the Berlitz system has been able to achieve just that.
Our students can communicate reports on various subjects in
complete Arabic. As I walked into the different classrooms last week I
saw children ages 4 and 5 in around a colorful rug interacting with
their teacher and each other as they practiced Arabic colors and
numbers, students ages 6 and 7 put on a puppet show in Arabic,
describing who and where they were and what they were wearing and 8-12
year olds able to speak on the world map, transportation, shopping for
newspapers and magazines and having a conversation with a stranger to
introduce themselves and give their detailed information as well as
discuss where they are from, their address, their family details, foods
they like, and so much more! I am thoroughly impressed at how much our
students have learned since they began and how our amazing teachers
have peaked their interest every Monday and Wednesday after school. One
of the parents even told me that her daughter always tried to make sure
that her mom never missed bringing her to class even in the holy month
of fasting because she enjoyed it so much, she didn't want to miss a
thing! 
All this is made possible with help from our dedicated UMF volunteers
and donors who through their kind contributions make the work we do at
UMF possible. We are looking into hiring fluent Arabic speaking
teachers for the upcoming school year so we can continue our program
and make it an even bigger success. We ask you to please come forward
if you would like to be a part of our program and donate from your
heart and help us in any way you can.
The costs we have to cover to hold these classes at Lake Mary High School and to keep up the small class sizes with individualized attention and training for the teachers all adds up. We know that you will help us pull through as you always have, and in God we put our trust to make each day a success here at UMF. Jazak-Allah Khair.
|
|
Arabic Class Holiday Fundraiser
UMF Arabic Class Students held a splendid fundraiser before the
Holidays and raised over $300 to buy gifts for local foster children.
Together teachers and students wrapped gift baskets with pretty
paper and bows and carefully put them with hand written messages from
the heart to show how much they care. There gifts were delivered by UMF
in time for the Foster Children's Holiday Celebration at Intervention
Services Inc.
|
|
Sincerely,
Naushad Virji
United Muslim Foundation |
|
|
