A Safety NetThe Muslim Food Bank Helps a Family at their Lowest Point

Who do you turn to when your life falls apart A few years ago, Abida Rahim’s life did. A single washroom pipe in Abida’s rental home was the reason for it all. On a cold winter’s night, Abida’s oldest of eight kids woke her up to tell her about the flooding in all the rooms. The washroom pipe had burst. As Abida walked around the house to investigate the damage, she could feel the water up to her ankles. Within hours, the carpets, the beds and the furniture were drenched with water. Abida’s life had never been easy but this was one situation she didn’t know how to handle. The next day, the walls were stained with mold and bugs started breeding on the floors. Abida was buried under stress by the cards life dealt her but she reached her melting point when she saw her one-and-a-halfyear-old daughter eat a dead cockroach she found on the floor. Though Abida’s husband, Salman, was present throughout this difficult time, his disability prevented him from alleviating the issues. Salman was in the army back home. A decade ago their home country went through a long period of instability. Militias took over government compounds and not a single soldier was spared. Salman was held captive for days, the torture left him disabled. Since then Abida has had to assume the role of the headof the household. Abida tried to contact her landlord but he was out of the country on vacation. That’s when she reached out to the Muslim Food Bank & Community Services to find a way out of her horrific circumstances. In her first meeting with caseworker Hiba Ali, Abida shared graphic photos of her home to show the extent of the damage. From that point on, it was a quest for Hiba to get things moving for this family. “It was a challenge because there were children living in unhealthy and unsanitary conditions,” Hiba recalled. She tried to find housing for Abida but due to the large size of her family, landlords either denied their application or asked for such exorbitant rent that Abida couldn’t afford to pay it. Meanwhile Abida and her family continued to live with the mold and the infestation in her home. As a temporary fix, Hiba reached out to the community to arrange for blankets because everything Abida owned was destroyed in the flooding. “We sent out a mass email to both Muslims and non-Muslims saying we need help,” Hiba said. Thanks to donors, Hiba managed to gather enough blankets to keep Abida’s family warm through the cold nights. Hiba also arranged mattresses and with the help of volunteers, delivered them right to Abida’s doorstep. “Our volunteers were just amazing! They picked up the mattresses from Coquitlam, from Cloverdale and from New Westminster. ”The issue at hand was still getting Abida a decent accommodation so Hiba recommended getting two apartments side-by-side. With tearful eyes Abida asserted that splitting her family was not an option for her. That put a lot of pressure on Hiba because she knew that if Abida’s kids are not relocated into a safe environment, authorities may intervene and put the kids in foster care. “I told her that if she doesn’t take this option then they will be in shelters and they’re all going to be split up,” Hiba recounted. The landlord finally returned from his trip and got the home cleaned. In the meantime, he gave Abida a notice to vacate his property. He blamed her family for the mishap that had taken place in his absence. It was now up to Hiba to do the legwork and find an affordable option for this family. Hiba looked through newspaper listings and found a five-bedroom home for rent. She knew that Abida would not be able to afford the advertised rent so she contacted the National Zakat Foundation, a charitable organization based out of Toronto. Hiba related the family’s challenges to them so they agreed to pay part of Abida’s rent for six months giving Abida some breathing room until she could find a permanent solution for her family. Next, Hiba called the landlord and introduced herself as a social worker and let him know about Abida’s situation. Besides negotiating the rent down, Hiba also convinced the landlord to accept part of the rent payment from Abida and part of it from the National Zakat Foundation. The landlord agreed and Abida’s family moved in shortly but that didn’t come without its challenges. The landlord had difficulty communicating his expectations to Abida due to language barrier. Abida didn’t speak English fluently but, more importantly, she was not well-acquainted in how manage upkeep of a home. She came from a different country that had a different set of rules and way of doing things. Having eight young kids didn’t help either. The house was a mess most of the time and the landlord made his displeasure known.Hiba had to step in yet again but this time it was in the form of an educator. Hiba taught Abida that just as tenants have rights so too they have responsibilities. She said that it was up to Abida to ensure there is minimal wear and tear on the rental home and a basic level of cleanliness is main- tained. That was not an easy task for Abida to shoulder all by herself which is why Hiba advised her to assign some of the chores to her kids. Through these simple lessons, Hiba helped Abida integrate into Canada as well as be an effective parent. The end of six months was fast approaching and all the rental homes available in the lower mainland were not within Abida’s budget. Though she had applied for BC Housing, her options were limited because she was not willing to move far from New Westminster. Hiba encouraged Abida to be willing to move to the Fraser Valley if a decent option comes up. “I told them that if you open up your options and broaden your scope, you’re going to have a) a home, b) lower rent and c) your family will stay together,” Hiba stated. Abida agreed to list more options in her application for subsidized housing and not long after, she and her family were placed in Chillwack. During the course of the journey in difficult journey in Abida’s lifeHiba provided multi-layered support. Whether it was finding mattresses to sleep on, lending a sympathetic ear to Abida as she went through emotional turmoil or finding her financial support when she couldn’t afford shelter for her kids, Hiba did it all.