Volunteers assisting with the food distribution at the 2nd AWS program in Oceanview on Sunday.Aishah Cassiem
VOC and Gift of the Givers (GOTG) were welcomed with warm hearts into the Oceanview community on Sunday for the second phase of the Ahlan Wa Sahlan (AWS) Ramadan outreach program. In the midst of winter, it was a beautiful sunny day for Cape Town, and volunteers took advantage of the afternoon to soak up the beautiful scenery of Fish Hoek, before reaching their destination of Oceanview.
Over 400 men, women and children made their way to the Nurul Islam masjid in Milky Way in support of the annual AWS initiative, with many dropping off food and clothing items for underprivileged residents in the community. VOC and GOTG volunteers arrived with fully loaded trucks of food, fruit and other food items as many impoverished residents lined up to get their share of the distribution after Maghrib.
Imam Abdul Hakeem Raban, the head imam at the masjid, said that with the highly poverty stricken area, they are forced to ask for assistance at many times to support the broader Muslim community in Oceanview. “The Muslim community in Oceanview is growing by the day and each and every week we have over 200 men visiting the masjid for daily prayers. However, with poverty being a problem in the area, many of these residence struggle to find themselves jobs and therefore we have a high unemployment rate in the community,” he said.
Raban added that although the area has numerous factories and businesses, there are still not enough work opportunities for people. “It is very hard for these people to find jobs and even though many make a living from fishing, I can assure you that it is not easy and that they can’t depend on that any more. That's because there are lots of fishing restrictions nowadays,” he said.
With the masjid's daily Islamic programs taking place, many residents are able to benefit and the kids themselves pick up very quickly. “We have various programs for the community as well as thikrs taking place every Thursday. The community is very privileged as the Muslim community is a strong one indeed and more and more are coming to the masjid every day," he said.
“We are trying to create more activities for the people to engage in. However, other than Islamic activities run at the masjid, we also have our monthly projects, where we give out to those who don’t have through our weekly soup kitchens. On days like these we will find many people lining up outside the masjid's premises with their bowls and families,” he added.
The mosque also hosts a monthly lunch set out for the community in the masjid's hall on the premises. Many non-Muslims are also welcome on these days. “If you can just see the Muslims and non-Muslims interact with each other when it comes to sharing it is amazing. The Oceanview community is almost like a republic on its own,” said Raban,urging the public to donate towards their monthly initiative and said that with the help of the broader community, many things would fall into place.
In the meantime, Ebrahiem Arnold, one of the coordinators of AWS, said that with the initiative heading into its third week, he is hoping to see as much support on Sunday 5 August, when the program moves to Bonteheuwel community masjid. "The spirit in Oceanview was amazing...they are a vibrant community. We hope to see the same vibe in Bonteheuwel next weekend and we urge the broader community to join us in the Khatmul-Quran programme," he encouraged. All donations for the AWS project can be dropped off at Gift of the Givers warehouse in Athlone. VOC (Aishah Cassiem)
Over 400 men, women and children made their way to the Nurul Islam masjid in Milky Way in support of the annual AWS initiative, with many dropping off food and clothing items for underprivileged residents in the community. VOC and GOTG volunteers arrived with fully loaded trucks of food, fruit and other food items as many impoverished residents lined up to get their share of the distribution after Maghrib.
Imam Abdul Hakeem Raban, the head imam at the masjid, said that with the highly poverty stricken area, they are forced to ask for assistance at many times to support the broader Muslim community in Oceanview. “The Muslim community in Oceanview is growing by the day and each and every week we have over 200 men visiting the masjid for daily prayers. However, with poverty being a problem in the area, many of these residence struggle to find themselves jobs and therefore we have a high unemployment rate in the community,” he said.
Raban added that although the area has numerous factories and businesses, there are still not enough work opportunities for people. “It is very hard for these people to find jobs and even though many make a living from fishing, I can assure you that it is not easy and that they can’t depend on that any more. That's because there are lots of fishing restrictions nowadays,” he said.
With the masjid's daily Islamic programs taking place, many residents are able to benefit and the kids themselves pick up very quickly. “We have various programs for the community as well as thikrs taking place every Thursday. The community is very privileged as the Muslim community is a strong one indeed and more and more are coming to the masjid every day," he said.
“We are trying to create more activities for the people to engage in. However, other than Islamic activities run at the masjid, we also have our monthly projects, where we give out to those who don’t have through our weekly soup kitchens. On days like these we will find many people lining up outside the masjid's premises with their bowls and families,” he added.
The mosque also hosts a monthly lunch set out for the community in the masjid's hall on the premises. Many non-Muslims are also welcome on these days. “If you can just see the Muslims and non-Muslims interact with each other when it comes to sharing it is amazing. The Oceanview community is almost like a republic on its own,” said Raban,urging the public to donate towards their monthly initiative and said that with the help of the broader community, many things would fall into place.
In the meantime, Ebrahiem Arnold, one of the coordinators of AWS, said that with the initiative heading into its third week, he is hoping to see as much support on Sunday 5 August, when the program moves to Bonteheuwel community masjid. "The spirit in Oceanview was amazing...they are a vibrant community. We hope to see the same vibe in Bonteheuwel next weekend and we urge the broader community to join us in the Khatmul-Quran programme," he encouraged. All donations for the AWS project can be dropped off at Gift of the Givers warehouse in Athlone. VOC (Aishah Cassiem)
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