Updated 29 July 2008
The Prophetic Hadeeth states: “Every time one wipes the head of an orphaned child with his hand, for every hair strand that he touches on the orphan's head he will be offered a palace in Paradise".
After much preparation and anticipation, the Day finally arrived. On a sunny day in July, the Tabligh Committee of the Islamic Shia Ithna Asheri Jamaat of Toronto (ISIJ), in cooperation with the World Federation conducted the first ever fundraising event to raise money for the children affected by the war. Several volunteers offered their time and efforts in bringing awareness about the deplorable state of the Orphans in Iraq. The session took place at two separate venues in Toronto: Scarborough Civic Centre and Mel Lastman Square. The event was held for 2 days, July 10 and July 11, 2008 and the idea was to reach out to other communities and present them with facts.
The tables were set up early in the morning by the volunteers with banners and leaflets showing pictures of orphans. The committee also showcased the specially designed water bottles that were sold to raise money for the orphans. They had been printed with the phrase “i care therefore i give”. The water bottles had been graciously donated by a member of the community and were being sold for $5 each, all proceeds going to the Iraq Orphan Fund.
The team also had prepared a brochure which included very important facts on the situation of the Orphans in Iraq, as well as devastating statistics taken from a recent report from the United Nations.
Very quickly, people started to visit the stall and became interested in doing whatever they could to help out. Some gave generous donations, while others offered to take some brochures and distribute them to their friends and family. Others gave whatever change they had on them and put them in the donation box. Many expressed their compassion towards the innocent lives lost in Iraq, having come themselves from war torn countries such as Somalia and Sri Lanka. They very quickly connected with the situation and had tears in their eyes.
Alhamdulillah, the event was also covered by the local newspaper, the North York Mirror. Click here to read the article.
Comments from some of the participants:
“It does feel awesome to have done such a project and now I do feel honoured to have been able to help at least one orphan if not more. Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity to do so.” Sajeda Canani.
"Having been blessed to recently doing the Ziyara of Imam Hussain (A.S.) and Imam Ali (A.S.), I perhaps saw a glimpse of what life is really like there. And hearing what Sayed Mahdi had spoken about in Muharram and the other campaigns done by some of our community members, this was a small step in bringing out the awareness of the plight of Iraq Orphans. Insha'allah this small step will allow us to do more similar types of campaigns down the road." Shahid Juma.
"We were inspired to do this event from listening to the Friday sermon of Sayed Mahdi Moderessi, during the 12 days of Muharram. In his sermon, he pointed out the plight of Orphans in the Holy city of Kerbala. One example that Sayed told us about was the conditions of the hospitals, filled with rats walking around the corridors. This just broke my heart! It made me realize how blessed we are to live in this part of the world. And also how much responsibility we have to try and alleviate the sufferings of our brothers and sisters around the world." Sukeina Bhimji.
Resident Alim, Maulana Seyyid Mohammad Rizvi spoke on this issue and encouraged the community members to donate for this cause.
He did mention a Ahadith from our A’ima: Whenever you wish to start with a new project, begin with taking care of the needs of the Orphans. Therefore, this has become a community event and part of ISIJ Donation Campaign.
You are kindly requested to donate towards this noble cause. If you would like more information about this, please visit http://www.iraqorphan.jaffari.org/ or e-mail tabligh@jaffari.org