السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته 

AsSalaamu alaykum MSA Family! We are back with the March edition of our newsletter. Big things happening this month, inshaAllah!

Ramadan is coming up in about 10 days inshaAllah! 🎊🎊 Oh, Allah allow us to reach Ramadan together and bless the month of Ramadan for us and for our brothers and sisters around the world. Ease the difficulties of our brothers and sisters in Falasteen, and those all around the world who are suffering during the time of Ramadan. Bring them peace and allow them to rejoice together with their families under the blessings of Ramadan. Ameen. 🤲

IMPORTANT: Be on the lookout in the groupchats and Instagram for taraweeh locations, resources to get you in the Ramdan spirit, and other community happenings during this holy month. There will be food accommodations provided by the dining halls during the month of Ramadan. If you are in need of Ramadan accommodations, please refer to the flier and surveys below for more information on the accommodations that will be provided. 

*NOTE: Dining operations are different during Spring break than they are when class is in session. Please read the descriptions at the top of both surveys to understand what the accommodations will be during these times. 

In addition to the Ramadan meals, there will also be a few iftars held by offices and organizations across campus, as well as an MSA Iftar. Refer to the March & April calendars below for the Iftar dates. Mark your calendars! We hope to see you there!

One last announcement before you scroll on down!!! Alhamdulillah we are excited to invite you to apply to be on next year’s MSA board! While being on the board is an important responsibility, it is an incredibly rewarding opportunity and so much fun xD Refer to the Secretary’s notes for more information.

As-Salamu Alaykum! Here are some events you can get involved in this month:

SHARE Lunch 

• Inshallah, we will be continuing our relationship with SHARE Center Lexington by providing a free lunch service for the people in the community. The SHARE Center is a non-profit social service and advocacy center that aims to advance the Lexington community by providing access to several services and resources. SHARE Lunch takes place on the first and third Saturday of each month from 11:00 am- 1:00 pm at the SHARE Center Lexington.

• March lunches will be hosted on 3/2 and 3/16. Make sure to RSVP when it's announced in the MSA Reminders GroupMe. 

Remember, with Ramadan approaching, try to partake in as many acts of charity as you can :)

Be on the lookout for other community service opportunities!

If you have any suggestions for events we should have, don’t hesitate to text me!

Reaching out to the campus!

Aslamu Alaikum!!

This week we witnessed our annual Islamic Awareness Week (WOOOO), dedicated to extending outreach across the University of Kentucky's campus and enhancing understanding of Islam. Alhamdulillah, it has been a tremendous success allowing us to progressively share the message of Islam each day. Here is a quick recap: 

5 Pillars of Islam Tabling

• On Monday, we tabled at the student center educating about the 5 Pillars of Islam. It was a ton of fun meeting so many people and teaching about the foundations of Islam. Above is a cute lil picture.

Islam in America: The Black Muslim Perspective

• In honor of Black History Month, Tuesday’s event invited, Mr. Kamaal Ahmad, a distinguished alumnus and former football player for the University of Kentucky, to deliver an enlightening lecture on the Black Muslim experience in America. He shared with us his upbringing and relationship with Islam, even mentioning his fond memories of his own time as a member of the UKY MSA. JazakAllahu khair Ustadth Kamaal for your time and words of wisdom!

Islamic Inventions: The Golden Age

• On Thursday, we created an interactive exhibit to showcase the many inventions Muslims brought to the world and emphasize how they have contributed to our modern society. Participants were guided through each station by our volunteers and were able to learn about inventions from Abbas ibn Firnas’s Flying Machine to Al-Zahrawi’s dissolvable sutures to the coffee that still keeps us going today! Alhamdulillah the event went great and inshallah everyone who stopped by learned something new :)

Women in Islam and Join us for Jummah!

• In honor of Women’s History Month, on Friday, we are tabling at the MLKC to educate people about some prominent women in Islam! We have stories about Khadijah RA, Aisha RA, Maryam AS, and much more:) We will be teaching about the hijab and handing out free scarves.

• We have also invited everyone to join us for Jummah to learn about salah and experience the significance of Fridays in Islam firsthand.

  
  

Other upcoming events

• End Overdose is a non-profit organization working to end drug-related overdose deaths through education, medical intervention, and public awareness. The chapter here at UK regularly hosts naloxone trainings and other events to make our campus safer for all.

• Join them this Thursday, March 7th, at 5:30pm in JSB rm 213 to learn how to use naloxone, a skill that could potentially save someone’s life!

  • To get involved follow them on Instagram @endoverdose.uky

• Check out BBNvolved to see all the other events being hosted on campus!

https://uky.campuslabs.com/engage/events

Here’s what to look forward to!

Dr. Palmer Hadith Class

• Hadith Classes will continue in Whitehall where Dr. Palmer is offering FREE classes about the 40 hadiths every other Thursday. Be on the lookout for when the first class of the spring semester will be! 

• May Allah reward Dr. Palmer for his efforts Ameen! 

• Important announcement: we will not be having class on March 21st! All other scheduled classes will proceed as planned inshAllah

  • If there are any changes, we will inform you in the MSA Reminders groupchat!

Fajr and Folgers

• As March will be the month of Ramadan, we will not be hosting Fajr and Folgers until April InshAllah! Be on the lookout for those dates :) 

Jummah Salah/ Friday Prayer

• Due to spring break, we will not be having Jummah on campus on March 15h!

• Jummah Salah happens every Friday at the MLK Center at 2 PM! If you are interested in giving a Khutbah, please reach out! If you would like to write a khutbah for a Khatib to deliver, reach out and that can be arranged as well, using this form! 

• We are looking for khatibs for this semester so please reach out! 

AsSalaamu Alaykum everyone!

Cultural Night

This month, our big social event was CULTURAL NIGHT! Alhamdulilah both sister’s and brother’s cultural nights were so successful and SO FUN! We saw some beautiful cultural attire and tasted the yummiest foods. It was so nice to have a chance to interact off-campus, away from the stress of school. Thank you to everyone who attended!

Coming up this March

With Ramadan coming up, we want to be intentional with how we plan our events. We know we’re approaching a stressful part of the school year, and there are many iftars being planned around campus during Ramadan (which we will update you on iA!). Therefore, the only big social event this month will be our ANNUAL IFTAR (party emoji)!! This year, our iftar will NOT be a potluck, and we will provide a meal for you inshaAllah. The event is on March 28th. We will announce details as the date approaches, but for now mark your calendars!

Honorary mention: ALSO go ahead and mark your calendars for a bigggg event that we will share soon iA, April 5th will be an iftar that you do NOT want to miss. 

That’s all I’ve got for ya, have a wonderful start to Ramadan inshaAllah!

اَلسَلامُ عَلَيْكُم وَرَحْمَةُ اَللهِ وَبَرَكاتُهُ‎

Here is a preview of the album for this month! Includes Cultural Night, Fajr n Folgers, Hadith class, and the first 2 days of IAW! Click on the link for the full gallery.

*For sister’s cultural night photos, please reach out to me, Najma Amarkhail

AsSalaamu alaykum everyone!

Ramadan

!!! As Ramadan approaches, a reminder to donate what you can to wherever you can. A little that is donated sincerely for the sake of Allah SWT can be the goodness that changes your life in this world and the hereafter for the best. We have many brothers and sisters around the world who this Ramadan will be struggling to find ample food and resources, so please keep them in your prayers and try supporting them by donating. 

Fundraisers

Below are some donation links for Palestine. Please consider donating as it is a responsibility on each of us to use what Allah SWT has given us to help others. 

https://secure.qgiv.com/event/palestineemergency/account/1627458 

This is a link to our Islamic Relief USA fundraiser

https://shorturl.at/gKQ09 

This is a link to Baitulmaal, which is a credible place to send donations.

We also have a linktree in our Instagram bio (@ukymsa) that has some resources to donate to. 

New ways to donate!

Alhamdulillah, we have just created a Launchgood page. This campaign is where payments to UKYMSA can be made, as well as, donations sent in support of relief efforts for the ummah. The Launchgood can be used as an alternative payment route to Venmo or paying cash. To access our page, use the following link, or check it out on our website! LaunchGood.com/ukymuslims 

Dues

You must pay dues to be an official member of our MSA. If you would like to pay your dues, it is $20. You can pay your dues to our Venmo (@ukymsa), or hand cash to a board member as well.

• IMPORTANT: If you want to vote for the 2024-25 board, you have to be a member of the MSA. If you want to run for the 2024-25 board, you must be on a subcommittee as well as be a member. Applications are open now! See the secretary section for more details.

JazakAllah Khayr

Notes from the Secretary:

ELECTIONS FOR THE 2024-2025 YEAR

• Here is the link to apply to run for the board for next year ooooooo scaaaarryy!!!!!

• All information for running is included above, such as deadlines and requirements.

Merch

• If you ordered merch and haven’t received it, come by the office to pick it up. It's hard I promise!!

Ramadan on Campus

• With Ramadan approaching, please reach out for any accommodations you may need- whether it be access to suhoor/ sehri or iftar meals, directions to the masjids you can pray at, or letters to your professors explaining what Ramadan is. We want to help you do your best while strengthening your relationship with Allah SWT during this blessed month!

Attention Seniors!!

• If you are graduating at the end of this semester or next semester and would like a graduation cord, fill out the link below ASAP!!!!!

  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf0DmaYYytNGnOwly1COPi4nJYbXDyqrCPlbQ4-GQIwIhG2WA/viewform?usp=sf_link

To stay involved and updated join the MSA reminders groupchat on groupme, follow us on Instagram, and check out our bbnvolved page and website!!

The dua for this month and the month of Ramadan is: 

اَاللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ كَرِيمٌ تُحِبُّ الْعَفْوَ فَاعْفُ عَنِّي

Allahumma innaka afuwwun kareem tuhibbul afwa fa’fu anni.

O Allah, indeed You are Pardoning, [Generous] You love pardon, so pardon me.

This Dua was recommended by the Prophet Muhammad (SAWS) to Aisha (RA) to supplicate on Laylatul Qadr, the Night of Decree. It is one of the best duas for forgiveness and should be especially recited during the last 10 days of Ramadan. May Allah SWT accept all your duas this month :)

That wraps up the March newsletter. As always, follow our Instagram (@UKYMSA) and join our GroupMe for more updates and announcements. Be sure to reach out to us if you need anything, and if there is anything you would like to see from the MSA, don’t hesitate to let us know! 👋

وعليكم السلام ورحمة الله وبركاته