Desi Senior Center’s Site Director, Nargis Ahmed, welcomed our seniors to the special Ramadan event organized by Exit Realty
Ramadan Begins
For 1.6 billion Muslims around the world, the most sacred month of the year began on the evening of Sunday, June 6. The month of Ramadan commemorates the revelation of the Holy Quran – the sacred religious text of Islam. Observant Muslims around the world will fast from dawn to dusk until July 5. As our seniors this time pursue physical and spiritual restrain and minimize activity to fast and pray, the Desi Senior Center will be closed for the month.
To celebrate the beginning of this holy month, Exit Alliance Realty generously organized a colorful event for Desi Senior Center at its auditorium in Hillside in Jamaica on May 26th. Our seniors spent an entertaining evening singing, storytelling and displaying their creative talents. Also attending the event were India Home’s Executive Director, Dr. Vasundhara Kalasapudi and Program Manager, Lakshman Kalasapudi, the President of Exit Alliance Realty, Azharul Haque, and mortgage expert Jan Fahim.
Seniors take the lead
Our seniors took the lead in performing at the event. Razia Shahnur set the evening going with a recitation from the Quran. The audience listened transfixed as Razzak Shikdar and Mayuma Muhammad sang beautiful nasheeds, or Islamic hymns.
Putul Chandra recited a poem and sang a song. Jamuna Chakrobati recited in Bengali, Sonar Tori, or the Golden Boat, Noble Prize winning poet Rabindranath Tagore’s famous poem, which begins: “In the sky rumbling clouds, it rains heavily./Sad, forlorn, I sit on the river bank./The harvest ended, the sheaves are gathered./The river is swollen and fierce./The rains arrived as I was harvesting./A small paddy field, no one but me –
Begum Sufiya showcased a poem she had composed. At the end of this evening where our seniors displayed and enjoyed their cultural heritage, a special dinner featuring delicious Bengali dishes was served.
-(Manik Didarul Islam contributed to this post )