Salaam guys and girls,

After an AMAZINGLY SUCCESSFUL Iftar sponsorship effort by the San Diegans (see last JE), we have about $1000 left (This amount has been pledged but not collected, since there are more than one way to spend as listed below).

In a nutshell, a few of us met up at Coffee Bean after aftar on 10/8/05 and came up with three convenient yet effective ways to donate if anyone is wondering how and where should they help.

1) South Asian Earthquake relief:

As of 10/11/05, close to 41,000 people are estimated to have been killed, 51,000 injured and 2.5 - 5 Million homeless in the South Asian earthquake. The biggest lost is born by Pakistan. If you?d like to help people in desperate need especially during the glorious month of Ramadan, please visit:

Islamic Relief - www.irw.org
LIFE - lifeusa.org

Note: I have personally donated through these organizations in the past because they are well recognized proper charity organizations unlike many others. You could see their ?About Us? section for more information.


2) UCSD?s fastathon program:


Basically a fantasic idea where non-Muslims are encouraged to fast for one day - In return, Muslim organizations donate upto $5000 wherever the funds are needed on these people's behalf. Your donations go toward collection these $5000.

This way, non-Muslim folks not only get an idea of what fasting is really like but also enjoy a rewarding feeling for helping the poors around the globe.


3) ICSD?s refugee program:


For folks from disaster-striken African countries including Somalia, Sudan who have taken refuge in San Diego and need help sustain the very basic necessities of life like food and shelter etc.



PS: Please remember, the ultimate goal of our (in fact your) effort is to help those who are in need. That said, I believe people in South Asia are in need the most at this given point in time since the merciless disaster has just struck them. In poor regions as such, it's the initial phase where funds are needed the most.



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1) T3mah (Option 1)
2) MysterAsif (Option 1)
3) Fattoun77 (Option 1)
4) Wael (Option 1)
5) Galaxy (Option 1 or 2)
6) Undisclosed- t3mah's naseeb friend (to UCSD MSA iftar sponsorship)
7) Murat (Option 1)
8) desi_chic (Option 1)
9) Hesham_2004 (Option 2?)

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UPDATE 10/12/05
Outlets for donating funds/items during Ramadan at the San Deigo Community:

1. Muslim Community Services:
This Committee is like the Social Services of the local Muslim Community in San Diego. Alhumdulillah, in the past they've hosted a variety of different activities to benefit the community, here is a brief overview of what they do:

A. Orphans & Widows Program:

They primarily focus on making various necessities available to poor and needy Orphans and Widows (who are all Refugees) of the San Diego Community. These Refugees are from many different countries/backgrounds - all of whom need much support getting established in thier new homes. They take donations of Islamic Clothes for both boys and girls (especially in need of hijabs), household items and monetary donations to help pay thier bills. They have also started a "CARE PACKAGE" program - this package includes necessary items that cannot be purchased with food stamps (i.e. soap, laundry detergent) This package is put together from donations and distributed to the households.

B. School Supplies Drive: collected school supplies for the Muslim Children at the ICSD school

C. Hosted iftar for Refugees at Masjid Medina

D. Organized efforts towards Hurricane Katrina Relief

For more information please contact:

Name: Sister Julia Roach (Treasurer of Muslim Community Services)
Email Address: [email protected]
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2.MSA-UCSD:
A- Fast-A-Thon ***PLEASE INVITE YOUR NON-MUSLIM FRIENDS TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS***

UCSD MSA, MSA-West San Diego, and MSA National are sponsoring a program throughout North America aimed at raising money for and creating awareness of the large number of people who go hungry in our cities everyday.

During Ramadan, we wish to share Islam with our non-Muslim peers by asking them to join us in our fast. One of the main reasons for fasting is to call attention to those who go hungry everyday, not as an exercise of religious expression but as a fact of life. For each of our peers that joins us in fast, we ask our sponsors to donate $1 to feed the poor.

Join us on October 28th and fast with us! Get hungry for a change, and experience life from a different perspective.

All proceeds will be donated to the International Rescue Committee www.theirc.org For more information about the beneficiary, please click on the relevant link above.

In 2004, 540 people registered to fast, and we were able to donate $793 to www.sdycs.org In 2003, 300 people registered to fast, and we were able to donate $500 to SDYCS.

If you are interested in sponsoring our endeavor, please send us an email at [email protected].
For more information please contact:

Web Address: www.msa-sd.org

Name: Aisha Admani

Email Address: [email protected]