Muslim youth honors veterans at Jefferson Barrack Veterans Hospital
Many of us probably spent Sunday of the Memorial Day weekend with friends over a BBQ lunch. That is exactly what I did yesterday, but it was especially exciting. At 10 am on Sunday I was on my way to Building 52 of the Jefferson Barracks VA hospital to meet with friends that make up the heart and muscles of MCS.
MCS stands for the ambitious name Muslim Community of St. Louis. For the second year in a row, that group held gratitude Memorial Day weekend lunch for our veterans who were spending the festive weekend away from home, and in extended care and rehabilitation facilities of the VA hospital.
MCS is the brain child of a group of St. Louis Muslims who wanted to a start community service group that reaches out to whomever may need them in St. Louis, Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
During the early organizational meetings, two main objectives emerged: involvement of whole families, and having youth participation in focus. From what I have seen over the past year, they have consistently achieved their goals. This group has funded and organized 5 very successful events over the last 12 months in diverse venues ranging from VA extended care facilities to homeless shelters and even a welcome dinner for new refugees registered with ARIS (African Refugee, Immigration Services).
To me, MCS is very distinguished from other local social service Muslim groups I know of. Their great achievement, in my mind, lies in their ability to motivate the youth that consistently formed half or more of the 40-50 volunteers in each event.
Yesterday, 42 volunteers from 18 families were involved. Twenty two young Muslims - as young as 9 years old - actively took part in preparing and serving food, setting tables, wheeling some veterans in and out of the wards, and even delivering some meals - with the help of the VA staff - indoors to some patients that could not come outside to the BBQ area.
Thank God the weather looked kindly upon us. Just few minutes after the guests finished their lunch and moved inside, rain started pouring. We then sat together for a quick meal, followed by cleaning up. The Muslim volunteers, old and young, served over 200 barbecued chicken and burger lunches to the veterans and chatted with many of them.
Above all, we delivered a clear message: we appreciate veterans, and thank them for their sacrifice and contribution to the making of the great society we live in.
Politicians start wars, but veterans bear the burden, and most of them pay dearly. What one thinks about a particular war does not matter. This is the day to say thank you to those who paid the most.
Khaled Hamid, 48, is an American Muslim. He was born in Egypt but has lived in Canada and the United States for nearly 20 years. Since 2000 he has worked as a physician in St. Louis where he lives with his wife and two sons. He is especially interested in civil rights issues and inter-faith dialog. 
nice to see muslim learning from us, how to participate in public service activities that help all Americans
Austin:
You said “… learn from us”. I think there is a little typo there. You probably mean ‘Us’, like in the ‘Royal’ Us.
Setting aside the ‘typo’ and the hatefulness shrouded in arrogance, I would like to offer you my deepest appreciation for the enlightenment you bestowed on barbarians like myself and my fellow Muslim AMERICANS. I am sure the children volunteers will also appreciate to know that their sense of commitment to the community did not originate from their Holy Book, the teachings of the Prophet, or from their parents. But that it is coming from kind individuals like yourself.
I am eternally grateful to you, wise and mighty Master.
Now that you are happy that you got the praise you so well deserve, please go and educate yourself in other religions and civilizations of the world. And while you are at it, do some research on you own to learn about the contribution of American Muslims to the welfare of all Americans for many decades, and of non-American Muslims in many of their native countries who manage to care for their needy fellow citizens under circumstances that most first world individuals will even find impossible to survive under.
If you even care - though I think you don’t - to learn anything about the sense of community and social justice in Islam check this:
http://muslimdreamer.blogspot.com/2008/01/islam-and-social-justice.html
Sounds like a worthwhile group. Participating in any productive, community building activity is time well spent. And when we can encourage our youth to get involved, we really make a difference. Now, and for our future.
I’m not surprised that the first comment was what it was. Khalid, sometimes it must feel like you’re trying to teach a whole bunch of pigs to sing. If you’re not familiar with the aphorism, it’s of two parts: It can’t be done because they lack vocal chords, and besides, it annoys the pig.
Here’s what I see: I see our youth getting involved in community service, and doing it in ways that suggests that the divisions of faith, political party, race, gender don’t matter to them in the same ways it matter to us, their parents. And that is ALL good.
why Hamid, you edited my post to you..
why not see the community work muslims do with their minority religions in all 57 OIC MUSLIM majority nations
you, Hamid feign ignorance about the supremist, coercive and threatening nature of islam, to all
muslims and non muslims
What a great organization! Looks like the kids really learned one of the lessons of their faith, that by giving to others they are truly blessed.
To Austin: Yes, many majority-Muslim countries oppress minorities. So do many majority-Christian countries. Right here in America, Muslims, Mormons, and even Catholics are regarded with suspicion by many. Bigotry is an unfortunate part of the human spirit — a part denounced by truly religious people of all denominations.