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Calligraphy at Masjid Baitul-Ikram
By Kamran Mirza (Muntazim Publications, Dallas, TX)
 By the grace of Allah, Dallas Jamaat has recently been blessed with a new mosque. It was under construction for the last few years. The new mosque will serve the ever-growing Jama’at in the area and provide them with a comfortable space to offer namaz and host Jama’at events.
After the construction was completed, several teams were formed to help enhance certain aspects of the mosque. One such team was assembled to beautify the mosque’s interior and exterior spaces. This team consisted of Ansar including Mubashar Chaudhary sahib, Kamran Mirza sahib, as well as Sadar Lajna sahiba. Team was led by VP Dallas Khalid Kark sahib. This team is responsible for making selections for furniture, carpets, paint, flooring etc. but also the calligraphy that would go at various spots in the mosque. 
To select the appropriate verses and to then post them with optimum quality, Khalid sahib connected with Hadi Ali Chaudhary sahib (Naib Ameer, Canada). To seek his guidance Khalid sahib explained the project and shared the ideas that our team had. Hadi sahib was so kind and forthcoming in helping the team and immediately started to work on the three verses that he thought would fit perfectly for the dome of our masjid. He designed the calligraphy and sent us the digital images. Our team then converted the images into vector format to be printed in high quality so the verses would appear sharp and accurate. The dome circumference is about 48 ft. To fill it with three verses, calculating their dimensions and sizing was very challenging. With multiple sessions and focused efforts, the team was able to bring out the perfect sizing for each verse and ordered the vinyl stickers of them. 
We requested Hadi sahib to create a custom teardrop shape of ‘Allah’ that could be placed in the Mehraab. We also requested a custom design for one of the verses to be placed in both men’s and women’s lobby areas. Also, there was a request for Kalima to be written and placed inside and outside of the mosque, and Darood Sharif to be placed in the women's hall. Hadi sahib provided the images for all the requested items which were then made on metal pieces in a beautiful grey color to match the ambience and aesthetics of the mosque.
We requested Hadi sahib to visit Dallas to oversee the installation of all these pieces and guide us where needed. He graciously accepted the invitation and came to spend a few days with us and helped us with the installation. It took three days for the installation; it was a hefty task. Team worked diligently to fulfill this blessed task.
Alhamdolillah, everything worked out great and we had success in every matter. May Allah bless all who participated in this task and shower his blessing to all the volunteers and workers who made this a success. May Allah bless Dallas Jama’at and the new mosque (Ameen). | A message from Qaid Waqf-e-Jadid (Mooda Shiraz Mantara sahib): "... And the case of those who spend their wealth to seek the pleasure of Allah, and to strenghten their souls is like the case of a garden on elevated ground. Heavy rain falls on it so that it brings forth its fruit twofold. And if heavy rain does not fall on it, then the rain suffices, And Allah sees what you do..." (2:266)
With a month left in the blessed Waqfe-e-Jadid scheme, we have over 1,950 Ansar brothers already participating. December is the month where we see a huge push and are looking to double our current participation. If you are not already participating, please consider doing so. Jazakallah. |
Helping homeless during COVID-19
By Chris Komari (Bay Point, CA)
 COVID-19 affected different people in different ways. In our state of California approximately 150,000 people experience homelessness.
It has changed the way we socialize, the way we see each other and definitively the views and landscape of our cities with a massive increase of encampments of the homeless people in our neighborhoods. Every time I drove to bigger cities across California, I saw clusters of encampments on the on ramp, off ramp, under the overpass and alongside of the freeways and highways.
City of Oakland was probably the worse homeless encampments after Skid Row in Los Angeles. The view was just unbelievable. One night I went by a restaurant that I usually like to go to have dinner in the city of Concord. On the way out, I saw an elderly lady sleeping in an open public sidewalk in front of businesses near that restaurant with a baby stroller.
I peaked at the stroller to see if there was a baby in there, but I did not see the baby. Maybe, she just used the stroller for something else, I wondered. That was very unsettling view; I felt sadness and anger at the same time knowing that I was powerless to help her that night. I was not so sure what to do for her; I just stared at the scene with a sense of powerlessness.
That night I promised myself that during the whole month of Ramadhan, I will spend as much money as I could spare for these homeless people whenever I see them on the street in my neighborhoods. This was my way of helping them. Providing them with food was a way for me to connect with the homeless, even though many of them might have had the EBT (Electronic Benefits Transfer) card. In addition, a bit of cash was kind of a big help for them and allowed them to buy any non-food items of daily needs. Of course, it does not solve the larger problem, but every bit counts and encourages us to be more compassionate to our fellow beings. May Allah help all those in need, and enable us to do our part (Ameen).
Send us your stories of brotherhood, Ijtima memories, or any other inspiring experience that we can share with Ansar brothers via this e-newsletter.
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