When you donated your Ramadhan gift pack, you did it to help our families, probably forgetting that this charity benefits you as well. Here are 3 ways donating a Ramadhan gift pack helped you too.
When a loved one is in prison, it’s hard to be excited about anything.
Even Ramadhan?
Especially Ramadhan.
Because often, our beneficiary families are shunned by their communities and are forced to spend Ramadhan alone – immersed in their depression and overwhelmed by a myriad of emotions like grief, fear, and hopelessness.
In the words of one sister: “There was no taste of it. No Ramadhan or Eid. We didn’t feel anything.”
But this Ramadhan was different.
Because of your generous donations, we were able to help our families welcome Ramadhan and remind them that they’re not alone through our Ramadhan gift packs.
Just some of the items we gifted this year were Islamic games, books and stationary for both adults and children, Mosque colouring sets, khimars, beard oil, miswaks and books of dua.
And they were well-received!
“I got a Ramadhan gift box from HHUGS. I’m literally crying with happiness. May Allah (swt) bless each and every one of you and accept your ibadah.”
“I received the beautiful Ramadhan package and I’m so grateful. My girls were both so happy and excited with the gifts. May Allah bless you and everyone who is part of HHUGS.”
“I started crying when I saw the Ramadhan gifts. I said, ‘Look, how HHUGS thinks of me.’”
When you donated your Ramadhan gift pack, you did it to help our families, probably forgetting that this charity benefits you as well.
That’s why we want to remind you.
Here are 3 ways donating a Ramadhan gift pack helped you too.
1. You brought happiness to a believer
Many of our families have been shunned by their local community, which means they’re completely alone for the month of Ramadhan.
When you’re isolated with no support system, it’s even easier to be (and to stay) depressed.
But your gift pack showed our beneficiaries that there are still people who care about them and who want to see them happy.
And the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
“From the most beloved of deeds to Allah is to make a believer happy and remove a grief from him….” (Sunan al Bayhaqi)
You did both.
- You donated dates to a fasting person
Each gift pack you donated included dates, which means you managed to meet the criteria of two different hadiths in one go.
The Prophet (saw) said:
“Protect yourself from hell-fire even by giving a piece of date as charity.” (Al-Bukhari and Muslim)
He (saw) also told us:
“Whoever gives iftaar to one who is fasting will have a reward like his, without that detracting from the reward of the fasting person in the slightest.” (Al-Tirmidhi)
By gifting dates, with Allah’s (swt) permission, you’ve protected yourself from the Hellfire and earned the reward of feeding a fasting person.
- You’ve earned Allah’s (swt) mercy
Among all the raids and arrests, the biggest victims are children.
Grappling with emotions that even adults struggle to deal with, our beneficiary children are forced to become much older than their years.
But when they receive your Ramadhan gifts, they become excited, care-free children again – if only for a few moments:
“Every occasion, like Eid or Ramadhan, the children are waiting. They say, ‘It’s from HHUGS! It’s from HHUGS! What’s this for me?’ Especially when they see their names. It’s like family. They’re so happy.”- HHUGS beneficiary family
“In Ramadhan, one of the things HHUGS did whilst I was in prison was to send an activity pack for the girls which was lovely. The girls were so happy and they shared that with me. That brought a smile to me on that day.” – Husband of a HHUGS beneficiary
Bringing comfort to innocent children, making them excited about Ramadhan – even in the midst of their trauma – and giving them gifts that their parents might not be able to afford is an act of love and mercy.
And the Prophet (saw) said, “Those who are merciful will be shown mercy by the Most Merciful. Be merciful to those on the earth and the One in the heavens will have mercy upon you.” (Al-Tirmidhi)
It’s not too late to share in the reward
The Ramadhan gift packs have all been distributed, but there’s still so much you can do to support our beneficiaries.
When Ramadhan comes to an end, we’ll be hosting our annual Eid party and distributing Eid gift packs so we can spread smiles and joy amongst our families.
Just £10 is enough to gift a child this Eid and £350 will help cover the cost of our Eid parties.
It’s never too late to share in the reward.