Monthly News & Updates
August 16, 2019 | Issue: August 2019
SHI'A MATCHMAKING EVENT,
June 2019
On June 28-29, the ISIJ of Toronto, hosted North America's very first Shi'a matchmaking event. The event had ___ participants from all over Toronto and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Thank you to Sr. Kulsoom Dharamsi for organizing this successful event. For a detailed report on the event,
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EID UL ADHA QURBANI UPDATE
Alhamdulillah, by the Grace of Allah we received contribution from a total of 501 donors for the Eid Ul Adha Qurbani campaign. Families in Africa will be fed with the funds collected. May our efforts be accepted, ameen.
AN OFFICIAL STATEMENT

On Saturday, August 3rd 2019 a gunman opened fire at a local
Wal-Mart in El Paso, Texas leaving 21 dead and approximately 26 individuals physically injured (WallStreet Journal Report). Less than 13 hours later, another gunman opened fire in a busy city area killing 9 and leaving approximately 27 individuals injured.

The Organization of North American Shia Ithnasheri Muslim Communities (NASIMCO) is shaken and deeply saddened by these attacks made against humanity. Our communities continue to pray for the victims and their families who have been greatly effected by the loss of their loved ones.
We send our condolences to all of humanity as we pray for one another's safety and well being during these trying times.
MCE ADVISORY MEETING, London
On July 26th, the CIL team was represented by Sumayya Pirbhai in London, England to discuss the current progress of the Madrasah Centre of Excellence (MCE) as well as the immediate and future plans of the work streams under MCE.

Alhamdulillah, with the ongoing Teacher Skills Program and Tarbiyah curriculum trainings, teachers will be well supported to ensure the ethos of the curriculum remains wholistic and student-centered. We have 18 madaris using the curriculum in North America, with a growing interest in our neighboring communities, and we look forward to using the recommended innovative strategies to assess the effectiveness of the curriculum over the next few years.
MUSLIM PLIGHT IN INDIA

NASIMCO's response to the on-going Kashmir crisis can be found here (USA) / here (CAN). We pray our efforts are accepted and the victims of Kashmir are granted ease and victory by the Grace of Allah.
Canadian PM Justin Trudeau visited the Crescent Village in Toronto
Canadian PM Justin Trudeau attended our KSIMC EID BBQ at the complex on August 13th. He was joined by our local Liberal candidate Leah Taylor Roy, and MPs Deb Schulte and Omar Alghabra. He stressed on the importance for Canada to remain a country which is inclusive to everyone.
Pictured below is the PM thanking Zera Aunty Moledina for the box of mithai's gifted to him.
UMOJA Unity Games
August 2 - 4, 2019, the Umoja outreach team hosted their annual Umoja Unity Games, in Detroit, Michigan. NASIMCO is a proud sponsor of this event and we wish Umoja the best of luck as they continue to encourage the unity between our communities. For more information about Umoja Games and how you can get involved, click here.
Meet Your President
We are introducing the 'Meet Your President' column to give members an insight into the history, experiences and future of Presidents and Leaders of our communities. We look forward to sharing with you a leader from a different jamaat on The Post each month. To start off, let's introduce to you Br. Arif Jacksi, president of NASIMCO.
ARIF JACKSI NASIMCO President
2019-2022

New York's very own, entrepreneur and business owner, Arif Jacksi has been elected as NASIMCO's (youngest) president at the age of 48. His involvement with NASIMCO consists of formerly being an Executive Councilor which was followed by his role as the Vice President during the 2017-2019 term. Jacksi's leadership skills trail back to the age of 15, when he became the chairman of "The Discussion Group", a youth committee in Moshi, Tanzania. Later in his life, he filled the role as joint-secretary, vice president, and then the president of SIJNY jamaat (New York, USA).

When asked, Jacksi mentioned that NASIMCO's three challenges include sustainability, funding and youth involvement. He sees and understands the lack of youth involvement and is working actively with youth members who have been elected for the team, to create a youth desk solely for youth members. In turn, the youths, with guidance from the NASIMCO board and participating communities, will help in generating funds to assist with other areas including the youth desk. The NASIMCO Head is aware that the loss of connection with NASIMCO's grassroots and jamaats has directly impacted the funding which has made it difficult to provide funds to the jamaats in need. Jacksi is keen on re-establishing the confidence and trust members once had in NASIMCO and to ensure them that the organization is always here at their service. He also plans to create a sustainability program with individual jamaats to reduce their reliance on donations.

Networking is vital and his initiatives cater to that exactly! Amongst several others, our NASIMCO president's initiatives include an APP development to simplify usage for the digital world, increase NASIMCO's social media presence, sharing of important resources for all neighboring jamaats to avoid duplication of efforts, and connecting with youths, seniors and women who have often times been overlooked, unknowingly.
His first mission for his term as president is: “To really connect with all the jamaats. I feel there’s a lot of disconnect and I really want to get that connection back.” Arif has begun this process by designating different jamaats to his Executive Council members who will be responsible for establishing a communication line with their assigned jamaats.

Throughout our conversation with him, Arif constantly thanked Allah for the opportunities which have been presented to him. He strongly believes that with the strength given by the Almighty, the support from his wife, and the prayers of his parents and family, he's been able to witness his own successes and hopes the same for this term as the president of NASIMCO. For Eid-Ul- Adha, he released a presidential address which can be viewed here !
NASIMCO JAMAAT VISIT:
MONTREAL, CANADA
NASIMCO President Br. Arif Jacksi, Vice President Br. Gulamabbas Najafi, and Executive Councillor Br. Kazim Mehdi met with the Board of Directors of the Shiane Haidery Islamic Association in Montreal, on Saturday, July 13 th 2019.
Montreal Jamaat was represented by President Br. Irshad Dhalla, Vice President Br. Sajjad Chatoo, Secretary Br. Redha Ali, Co Financial Br. Abbas Tirmizi, and Director of Operations Br. Syed Shahbaz Shah. The meeting was also attended by four ladies from the ladies subcommittee. Montreal Jamaat was established in 1973 and has grown to approximately 350 members today.
The forward-looking discussion focused the role of NASIMCO to facilitate the Montreal community in meeting its requirements.
NASIMCO will work with the Montreal Jamaat to provide a platform for greater engagement of the youth, ladies and senior members of the community. In addition, NASIMCO Tabligh Committee will liaise with the Mubaligheen in North America to ensure that the Montreal Jamaat is connected with scholars to be engaged for their events. Furthermore, following the success of the NASIMCO Shia Matchmaking Event in Toronto, possible extensions of the program will be evaluated to provide this support to the Montreal Jamaat.
The visit to Montreal Jamaat highlighted the opportunity for member jamaats to be connected for greater sharing of ideas, resources and capabilities.
UPCOMING EVENTS
NASIMCO Youth Network Desk
(NYND)
Coming soon, is a youth initiative driven by youth representatives to increase youth representation within NASIMCO. This initiative's goals consist of youth involvement, Islamic/secular/self guidance, and developing a safe space within our communities.
Would you like to get involved with the NYND?
Watch this space for opportunities to join this movement!
The NYND presents a monthly supplement for all member's youth committees around North America. Many youth teams around the nation have expressed the need for ideas for events to host. Together, the NYND has designed a system to be an aid for your community! Youths are welcome and encouraged to use these Youth Initiative Ideas to their fullest.
Do you have event ideas? We'd love to hear from you! Send us a message on the NASIMCO Facebook or Instagram page with your ideas, questions, comments and let us know what you think.

We highly encourage taking photographs and tagging us on your social media page or send them to us via Instagram or Facebook for us to feature your
youth community on The Post!
CAMP ASPIRE 2019
Happening this weekend is CAMP ASPIRE! For more information or to register as a counselor for the years to come, CLICK HERE. Donations are welcome to aid as a supplement for our children! The core values highlighted by the organizing team consist of infusing Islam into our day-to-day lives by following the guidance of the Ahlul-Bayt, The Holy Qur'an and our scholars. The program focuses on concept of "Living Islam" - an approach which focuses on developing an appreciation of God’s creation, a sense of relevance of faith in our lives and an immersive Islam where being Muslim is a natural feeling.

North American Shia Ithna-asheri Muslim Communities Organization
nasimco.org