On April 18th 2015, a group of enthusiastic and good-hearted volunteers from Kansas got together to host a potluck cook-off/picnic for Hunger Van. The cook-off coordinator Nilofar Yasmin worked relentlessly to gather volunteers to cook, set up, invite and host this major event! They held activities such as a Henna Competition, Cricket tournament and Biryani cooking contest and winners were declared based on votes with certificates provided by Hunger Van. Over 60 people showed up to the picnic and multiple people sent in donations. The team raised over $600 and was gracious enough to donate it towards our ‘Have a Heart – Feed the Homeless’ campaign on Indiegogo.
Congratulations to all the contest winners!
Special thanks from Hunger Van to the following volunteers:
Nilofar Yasmin: Food, coordinator
Sheyla Anjum: Donated money for shelter Booking and brought food
Fairoz : Donation and food
Farha Shawkat: Food
Saima Jamil: Food
Shajhan Mukadam: Food
Farha Subhan: Henna and donation
Shadab Azaz: Food and donation
Samina Suhail: Donation
Amina Khan : Food
Reshma Shahid: Food and donation
Abu Huraira reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Generosity is near to Allah, near to Paradise, near to the people, and far from the Hellfire. Miserliness is far from Allah, far from Paradise, far from the people, and near to the Hellfire. An ignorant generous person is more beloved to Allah the Exalted than a stingy scholar.”
Source: Sunan At-Tirmidhi 1961
If anyone would like to host their own cook-off please contact us at [email protected] or visit our website for more information http://mahop.org/cook-off/
Please note you can host any form of competition or cook-off you like, it could be a potluck or barbecue cook-off, or a small family gathering to raise money for Hunger Van. All donations are tax deductible.
About HUNGER VAN The Hunger Van was born in 2011 because Muslims Against Hunger founder Zamir Hassan, a practicing Muslim and resident of Bedminster, New Jersey decided that if hungry people such as the ones congregating around parks and train stations, could not come to the food, the food would come to them in vans, conveniently packaged and ready to eat. The cost of producing one hot meal is $6.07 and $4.85 for cold ones; and meals as well as events are donation-based. Sponsors are encouraged to raise funds for the feeding event. All of the food is vegan and can last for a long period of time without spoiling. for more information about Hunger Van project click here
The author of this blog, Falak Zaffer Ghatala, is the Program Director of Hunger Van | Muslims Against Hunger. She has a Masters in Chemical Biology but strongly believes in giving back to society. She teaches remedial English to non-native speakers/refugees/ex-convicts/adult learners who are looking to make a better life for themselves, and spends her free time studying religion. She runs a campaign called ‘The Do Good Campaign’ and her passion lies in doing good. She truly believes that: “Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for a kindness.” Lucius Annaeus Seneca.
