British-Pakistani family's act of humanity extends support to needy at home

LONDON: With intentions to serve white-collar destitute individuals back home in Pakistan, a United Kingdom-based Pakistani family has distributed over £500,000 in the last five years with their touching act of generosity at display.

The family of four — comprising the couple Abid Hussain and Rukhsana Shaheen, and their two daughters — carry out the colossal task of locating all those in need on their own, while ensuring utmost sensitivity and respect towards them.

The family's kindness has left an indelible marks on those they have have supported and serves as a testament to the power of empathy and generosity, and an essential reminder of the need for goodness in difficult times.

"We take one month's leave from our respective jobs in the UK once or twice a year and travel across Pakistan to personally locate white-collar destitute individuals, who don't go for begging for their pressing needs. It is a hundred donation policy on all projects.

We provide them with whatever is missing, including groceries, medical aid, wheelchairs, assistance in establishing businesses, paying defaulted rent, operation expenditures, and other facilities, all at their doorstep," the family said.

Abid Hussain and Rukhsana Shaheen, a Pakistani couple who migrated from Rawalpindi to Bradford 35 years ago, have made it their mission to bring solace to those in need and to show that one act of kindness can make a lasting impact on a person's life.

The family has installed more than 600 tubewells in water-scarce areas of Pakistan, constructed a mosque worth over £30,000 in Yemen, and established religious seminaries in Africa, Syria, and Lebanon. Currently, they are searching for land to establish a large shelter home in the federal capital Islamabad with all the necessary facilities.

Despite receiving offers from various charity organisations to join them, the family prefers to work independently. In the UK, they distribute groceries and other necessities to the homeless and unemployed; while in Pakistan, they distribute flour, cash, prayer mats, and copies of the holy Quran among deserving domestic workers in Media Town, Islamabad.

Rukhsana shared that the idea of serving suffering humanity came to her after the death of a relative, realising that life is temporary and she wanted to devote herself as well as her family towards helping those in need.

She believed that the world is fleeting and that one should strive to do good in this life to prepare for the hereafter. Starting with teaching the holy Quran to children, Rukhsana's daughter, Rummana Shaheen, known as 'ustadha' or teacher, founded and currently heads “The Rahman Academy”, which provides religious education to children and others in Bradford.

In response to reaching those who cannot access the madrasa physically, the academy has recently expanded to offer online courses to students worldwide. With over 250 students, currently enrolled in various courses and modules, Ustadha Rummana draws on her 10 years of teaching experience to rekindle the love of religion through understanding and practice.

Her commitment to education and service is reflected in her family's charitable work in Pakistan, where they have served the suffering humanity at their doorstep. In 2018, Ustadha Rummana travelled to Tarīm, Yemen to visit the renowned Dar al-Zahra school founded by Habib Umar bin al-Hafiz.