SHS Muslim Youth Club Hosts Iftar Dinner

Principal Bonamo with students from the Muslim Youth ClubWith a feast fit for a king, the Scarsdale High School Muslim Youth Club celebrated its second annual Iftar Dinner. After last year’s successful test run, the student officers of the club were delighted to open up the event to the whole Scarsdale community. People of all ages and faiths were welcomed to the Learning Commons at SHS to help their Muslim friends break their fasts and to celebrate Ramadan.

According to Ing.org, “Ramadan is considered one of the holiest months of the year for Muslims. In Ramadan, Muslims commemorate the revelation of the Qur’an, and fast from food and drink during the sunlit hours as a means of drawing closer to God and cultivating self-control, gratitude, and compassion for those less fortunate. Ramadan is a month of intense spiritual rejuvenation with a heightened focus on devotion, during which Muslims spend extra time reading the Qur’an and performing special prayers.”

Club officers Kamila El Moselhy, Dani Nameen, Rehma Qadir, and Azlan Khan.

Reflection and community are other important aspects of this holy time and Kamila El Moselhy, one of the student officers and founders of the club, said she helped start the Muslim Youth Club to make it easier for herself and other Muslim students to find that sense of community and connection to others. In addition, she says that the club gives her a sense of identity and a place that feels like home.

Nicole DeLuca, the faculty sponsor of the club, couldn’t have been more proud of all of the students and their hard work. DeLuca happily pointed out that the students took the lead on every aspect of the festive celebration; From ordering food, to arranging the pot luck and volunteers, to decorating and setting up, the students took full ownership of the amazing event.

Of course the student officers were also grateful for Ms. DeLuca and all of her support. Addressing the attendees of the evening Kamila El Moselhy said, “I want to thank you all for coming today, this is an outstanding crowd. None of this would be possible without the support we get from our school, so we want to thank our teachers and the administrators for allowing us this space, giving us the tools to be proud of our religion, and enabling us to belong in our community. Thank you to Ms. DeLuca for her unwavering support and Ms. Gorman too.”

Another student officer, Dani Naeem, added, “I would like to thank you all for joining the Scarsdale Muslim Club and the rest of the Muslim community at this iftar. I hope you guys are enjoying the food from different cultures that people have brought. This year has been a difficult time for everyone and to have this large community and showout to this event is very special and something we can all cherish.”

Student officer, Azlan Khan, added “The diversity of our community is very unique, and celebrating our differences is what makes us stronger. We should never be afraid of differences, we should embrace it. This is what makes our community thrive. Thank you for giving us the confidence to be ourselves.”Club Officer Kamila El Moselhy with Club Advisor Nicole DeLuca.

Rehma Qadir was the last student officer to speak and she ended by saying, “We are so grateful that we have the opportunity to build on this community in Scarsdale and host this event with the help of the school.

We have a donation set up for the organization ANERA (American Near East Refugee Aid) which helps the civilians in need in Gaza. If you can, please donate to the box that we have set up. Thank you for coming and enjoy the rest of the iftar. Thank You.”

These officers, and all of the other students in the Muslim Youth Club, created a truly incredible celebration. It wasn’t only an evening for friends and neighbors to come together and break their fast, it was an evening filled with laughter, love, and an immense feeling of community and support. As one parent Rokaya Hassaballa said, “Events like this help you feel like you belong.”

BOE members Suzie Hahn  and Amber Yusuf join friends Attiya Malik and Hoosna Haque.