As COVID-19 spreads like wildfire in the world, low-income families are struggling the most.
Though the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted worship around the world for Ramadan, it did not affect the spirits of giving during the holy month.
The Muslim community in a New York borough have come together to give away food and other essential products to families in need.
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Leading the effort, the Islamic Circle of North America has participated along with the city officials to distribute 550,000 halal meals during Ramadan.
One of the food giveaway was organized in Jamaica, Queens, to serve hundreds of people.
“It’s part of our faith to help your neighbors that are closest to you,” Shumaila Noor, a coordinator with the Islamic Circle of North America, told NY1.
“Part of the reason why we fast is so we can feel empathy and we can feel what others are feeling when in hunger. So this is basically us in action.”
The need for charity efforts maximized due to the COVID-19 pandemic with many people out of work.
ICNA is one of the largest, non-profit, grassroots Muslim organizations in North America with many projects, programs, and activities designed to help in reforming society at large.
Over the past weeks, ICNA Relief has been providing food, hygiene items, and financial assistance. Services include a transitional home for homeless women and children, refugee assistance, back to school giveaways, health screenings, family services, hunger prevention, and more.
ICNA says its volunteers are distributing more than five times the amount of food compared to the same period last year.