The services that Montgomery County Muslim Foundation offers may not be unusual for a welfare organization. But it is the manner the MCMF embraces diversity and encourages community participation that distinguishes it from other organizations.
With its ideal of humanitarian work for all, the charity has been opening its services to all in need – emphasizing the message of inclusiveness and diversity in the times of exclusivist rhetoric.
Tufail Ahmad, the Pakistani-American founder of the organization, has been the spirit behind the organization.
Still, Ahmad is modest in claiming success of the grassroots organization – which has won several awards in a matter of few years – and credits all those who volunteer to realize services for the community in the spirit of its foundational principle “Faith in Action.”
“Our mission is to feed the hungry and homeless, help the needy among us to live a better life, take care of the needs of senior citizens and youth and positively interact with other communities and faiths to promote a congenial living environment for all.”
Engaging youth as volunteers fosters a sense of collective welfare
But how does the welfare organization perform all these different jobs?
The answer is simple – involvement of all communities and using networks of professionals and common citizens. The MCMF coordinates with the County, interfaith organizations, other charitable organizations and local stores like Giant Food and Manna Food. It also coordinates with Women’s Center of Rockville in serving cooked food to homeless women living in their emergency center.
The MCMF has a Refugee Rehabilitation Program, which according to Ahmad, supplements the County government effort to “help new immigrants from different countries and of different communities in settling down as productive and useful neighborhood residents.”
The result is recognition by the Montgomery County and above all diverse communities – African-Americans, Spanish, South Asian, Arabs, refugees, students and volunteers who come away with a positive experience.
Image Credit: MCMF
Honoring Ahmad with 2018 Roscoe R. Nix Award, Montgomery Country Volunteer Center said:
“Tufail Ahmad’s commitment to engage his community and establish trust and understanding across lines of difference has helped us build a vibrant multicultural Montgomery County. By recruiting volunteers and raising funds through the Montgomery County Muslim Foundation (MCMF), Mr. Ahmad has served our neighbors in need regardless of faith, race, or gender.”
Ahmad says this has been possible due to the organization’s multicultural approach.
“At the time of Eid-ul-Adha, MCMF distributes raw meat to the poor and on Christmas and Thanksgiving we distribute gift baskets and toys to the deserving people.”
Community participation is the key to welfare service
Besides helping the hungry and the homeless, the charity also assists the newly arrived refugees in settling down. It also serves vulnerable residents with material and financial assistance and maintains a food pantry to provide groceries to seniors, handicapped and disabled persons on a regular basis, Ahmad says.
One feature of the MCMF’s work is attention it pays to the wellbeing of seniors. The number of seniors residing in the County has increased rapidly, the MCMF says on its website.
“They face several economic, social, transportation and health related problems for which adequate services and facilities are not universally or uniformly available.
“MCMF has developed a comprehensive Seniors Program to assist them in handling their day to day emotional, social and living problems.”
For the young, the MCMF has developed a Youth Empowerment Program to help the participants have a platform for exchange of ideas for betterment of their future.
“We are not making young people dependent on assistance but arranging lectures on careers and counseling them on finding jobs,” Ahmad says.
So, what lies at the heart of at the heart of MCMF’s success?
“The MCMF is a democratically run organization with a general membership of close to 400 individual and families. The general members meet at least once in a year to review the past performance and approve an outline of the future program,” says Ahmad as he prepares to host the annual fundraiser on October 27 – an event which is likely to draw participation of elected representatives, government leaders and teams of community volunteers.
PHOTOS: MCMF
