Virtual Iftar celebration benefiting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital set for April 18

Mommying While Muslim podcasters host New Moon event

News provided by

ALSAC/St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Apr 13, 2021, 12:45 ET

MEMPHIS, Tenn., April 13, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- New Moon, the inaugural virtual Iftar celebration for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital®, brings together Muslim Americans this Sunday, April 18, for an evening of fellowship and philanthropy to benefit the lifesaving mission of St. Jude: Finding cures. Saving children®.

Jude patient dad Khurram with his daughter, Imani, at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Khurram and his wife, Sarah, were faced with their baby daughter’s brain cancer diagnosis just weeks after welcoming her into the world. Imani received lifesaving treatment at St. Jude.
Hussam and Linda found hope at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital for their son, Farouk, who was diagnosed with retinoblastoma at 6 months old. Now 6, Farouk has a younger brother, Jude, named after the hospital that was a lifeline for his family.
New Moon, a virtual Iftar celebration benefiting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, takes place at 6 p.m. ET Sunday, April 18.
St. Jude patient mom Sarah with her daughter, Imani, at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Diagnosed with brain cancer at just 5 weeks old, Imani is now celebrating her second Ramadan with her parents.
St. Jude patient mom Linda, in the St. Jude-inspired hijab, is grateful that her family’s journey brought them to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Her family traveled from Syria to Jordan and then to the United States, where their young son, Farouk, was treated for eye cancer at St. Jude.
Jude patient dad Khurram with his daughter, Imani, at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Khurram and his wife, Sarah, were faced with their baby daughter’s brain cancer diagnosis just weeks after welcoming her into the world. Imani received lifesaving treatment at St. Jude. Hussam and Linda found hope at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital for their son, Farouk, who was diagnosed with retinoblastoma at 6 months old. Now 6, Farouk has a younger brother, Jude, named after the hospital that was a lifeline for his family. New Moon, a virtual Iftar celebration benefiting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, takes place at 6 p.m. ET Sunday, April 18. St. Jude patient mom Sarah with her daughter, Imani, at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Diagnosed with brain cancer at just 5 weeks old, Imani is now celebrating her second Ramadan with her parents. St. Jude patient mom Linda, in the St. Jude-inspired hijab, is grateful that her family’s journey brought them to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Her family traveled from Syria to Jordan and then to the United States, where their young son, Farouk, was treated for eye cancer at St. Jude.

Hosted by Zaiba Hasan and Uzma Jafri, the mothers behind the Mommying While Muslim podcast, the Ramadan event begins at 6 p.m. ET and features such poignant moments as a keynote from St. Jude mom Sarah, who will share the story of how her family found hope at St. Jude after their baby daughter's cancer diagnosis.

The virtual Iftar celebration, which encourages the Muslim faith generosity pillar by embracing sadaqah, marks the first-ever influencer collaboration during Ramadan for ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude. Mommying While Muslim, the popular podcast that delves into the topics that matter most to Muslim American moms, recently shed a light on childhood cancer by sharing the stories of strong mothers like Sarah.

In 2019, first-time parents Khurram and Sarah received the unimaginable news that their 5-week-old baby girl, Imani, had a cancerous brain tumor. Surgery was able to remove most of the tumor, and Imani received chemotherapy at St. Jude that allowed a second surgery to remove her tumor completely. Imani is now back home, celebrating her second Ramadan with her family.

"St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is dedicated to the simple yet profound idea that no child die in the dawn of life," said Richard C. Shadyac Jr., President and CEO of ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. "I am grateful to be able to share that rich legacy of inclusion as we celebrate this special Iftar with our Muslim friends. Together we can help ensure that children throughout the world can receive the treatment they need, and get the chance to grow up and live life to its fullest."

The Iftar celebration also will introduce the St. Jude-inspired hijab now available in the St. Jude Gift Shop. Joining the Mommying While Muslim hosts will be the kids of the ADAMS Beat Choir, Reem Shaikh giving a prayer dua, and a testimonial from entrepreneur and influencer Layla Shaikley.

While Imani's treatment took her from her home in New York to St. Jude in Tennessee, Farouk's journey began halfway around the world. His parents, Hussam and Linda, Syrian refugees who had fled to Jordan, learned in 2013 that Farouk, then just 6 months old, had eye cancer. He began his cancer treatment in Jordan before his family moved countries once more, this time as refugees to the United States.

There, Farouk received treatment at St. Jude, which helps families from around the globe facing cancer and other life-threatening illnesses, giving kids like Imani and Farouk a chance to celebrate birthdays and other milestones like and the birth of a sibling. For Farouk, now 6 years old and cancer-free, that included welcoming a baby brother, Jude, named after the place that became a lifeline for his family.

At St. Jude, patient families find a home away from home and never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – because all a family should worry about is helping their child live. That also includes translation assistance for families who do not speak English as a first language.

More than 90 percent of children with cancer live in low and middle-income countries, many of them lacking access to adequate diagnosis and treatment. St. Jude is working with global partners to bring advanced medical care to children in every corner of the world. Because St. Jude freely shares its discoveries, every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children.

Visit stjude.org/give/ramadan to give sadaqah this month of Ramadan, and join Mommying While Muslim for New Moon, a free virtual Iftar celebration this Sunday, April 18.

Additional links:

New Moon Iftar celebration
Mommying While Muslim

About St. Jude Children's Research Hospital®
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Its purpose is clear: Finding cures. Saving children.®

It is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20 percent to more than 80 percent since the hospital opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude won't stop until no child dies from cancer.

St. Jude freely shares the discoveries it makes, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – because all a family should worry about is helping their child live.

Visit St. Jude Inspire to discover powerful St. Jude stories of hope, strength, love and kindness. Join the St. Jude mission by visiting stjude.org, liking St. Jude on Facebook, following St. Jude on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok, and subscribing to its YouTube channel.

SOURCE ALSAC/St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

Related Links

http://www.stjude.org

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