SubhanAllah last year around this time my dear sister Shahzia Rahman and I were scrambling around trying to figure out schooling options for our toddlers. By the grace of God, after many prayers, a couple of phone calls and a few meetings, the vision of Happy Hearts Learning Co-Op was born and within a few weeks we were in full operation at the Islamic Center of Irvine (ICOI)! Alhamdulillah we just closed out our first year of operation. Our last session for the 2013-2014 school year was on Thursday of last week. I just wanted to express my immense gratitude to everyone involved, including the board and staff at ICOI who believed in us, gave us a space, and facilitated every single step of the process to help us get started. I wanted to especially thank board member Sr. Sondos Kholaki who was our strongest supporter & ally, and office manager Andrea Tally and Aisha Zaky who were an extraordinary help to us throughout the year! I also wanted to thank Shaykh Jamaal Diwan who graced our class nearly every day on his way to his office and graciously greeted our little tots with a warm and welcoming smile and hearty handshake. May Allah (swt) reward them all. Ameen! I also wanted to say how proud I am to be a part of a group of women who are not only my sisters in Islam and my colleagues, but who have become my dearest of friends and whom I have shared countless tears of happiness and joy with throughout the year. I have come to love them and respect each and every one of them for their dedication, their passion, their sincerity and their love of Islam, of children, and of teaching. My fellow co-founders Shahzia Rahman, Maria Ahmed, & Rubina Diwan Umarji, I admire each of you and have learned so much from all of you this year. Your sacrifices this year have been immeasurable. How many nights of last minute shopping trips and back-breaking cutting/painting/assembling/baking, etc, did you all endure? SubhanAllah, only Allah (swt) truly knows and with Him is your reward! To list out all of the things I love about you would take multiple posts but these are just a few things that stand out: Shahzia, each day you walked into class you brought with you a warmth and an energy that was unparalleled, ma sha Allah! Your bright and loving smile, your warm and understanding tone, and your playful disposition always put the children at ease and the mothers in a good mood. Maria, your connection with the kids is truly amazing to witness. You have a natural ability to speak to them and command their respect, awe, and love. They were always glued to every word you said and eagerly awaiting the beauty and creativity you brought forth during every session. Rubina, your willful energy coupled with your gracious smile and laughter always kept us on task and in line. You demonstrated strength and encouraged every child to follow their own intuition and assert themselves with confidence. You helped identify their strengths and as a gentle guide led them through each task. This was our first year and although it wasnt always easy and we had our highs and lows, alhamdulillah we pulled together with an awesome group of moms (and their wonderful children) who stood by our side and worked with us every month to improve and keep up our stride. To all of you, we say thank you for trusting us this year with your most precious possessions, your beautiful and adorable children (ma sha Allah) who we have all grown to love so much. Thank you for not giving up on us and knowing our intentions have always been for the good of the children. Thank you for supporting us and helping us when we needed it and called on you. Thank you for teaching our children and caring after them while we taught your children and cared for them. And thank you for your continuous duahs and well-wishes. We couldnt have done it without you! Eman Khan Qazi, Lubna Saadeh, Tuba,Ladan Rashidi, Fajr Burhan Ibrahim, Nishat Ahmed, & Hitfan Kurtu. May Allah (swt) reward all HHLC family and friends, and may He bless our beautiful students, wherever their paths take them, with continued success, prosperity, growth, and a love of knowledge that will draw them closer to their Creator and always keep them under His mercy and shade. Ameen! In sha Allah, we look forward to another year at HHLC and plans are already underway for our next session! In sha Allah we will have some exciting updates for you soon, please stay tuned on our FB page (check link above) for more information! :)
Posted on: Tue, 27 May 2014 04:38:22 +0000
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