On Sept. 26, the Muslim Student Association held its annual “Fast-A-Thon” event. The purpose of the event was to bring students together in celebration of fasting while raising awareness about world hunger and discussing the Islamic tradition of fasting.
Fast-A-Thon is not new to Bradley, nor does it only exist on Bradley’s campus.
“MSA’s all around the nation host this event,” MSA president Haroon Zahid said. “The superseding organization for MSA’s is known as MSA National. They help university students start MSA chapters, plan events and set an overall course for MSA’s across the nation, and they’ve really helped get this event out there.”
In keeping with the Muslim tradition of fasting, each person in attendance broke their fasts at sunset.
With around 50 people in attendance and an informative lecture held by Ubaydullah Evans, resident scholar for an organization known as ALIM (American Learning Institutes for Muslims), Zahid, a junior health sciences and business management and administration major, said the event was a success.
Those in attendance also enjoyed a hearty meal from Chicky Baba and an opportunity to build friendships and understanding, as well as break down any cultural barriers.
Along with bringing students together, Zahid said that the event truly sought to raise awareness about the issue of global hunger and how students can be a part of the solution to end it.
“We have to realize that we’re much more fortunate than most of the world’s population and that we are in the position to make a change,” Zahid said. “We can all do something small to start the process, whether it be not wasting food or just simply making small donations to our local food pantry. It’s nothing big, but it’ll get the ball rolling.”
Zahid said he hopes to see more faces next year. However, he was satisfied with the turnout at the event and the impact MSA was able to make.
“We were able to collect close to $200 worth of canned goods for the Midwest Food Bank, so we were ecstatic in that regard,” Zahid said.
Any student interested in joining MSA or being involved in future events can send an email to bradleymsa@gmail.com or visit www.bradleymsa.com.
