السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته 

AsSalaamu alaykum MSA Family! We are back with the November edition of the MSA newsletter. 

The past month has been an incredibly tough time for our Ummah. We have suffered great losses across the world from natural disasters, the corruption of men, and the destruction of war. The extent of the crimes committed against the people of Palestine are indescribable and the onslaught of violence, both here and abroad, feels inescapable. We are aware that our Ummah is hurting and that members of our community are impacted deeply. We want to reassure you that you will always be able to find comfort, safety, and community with the MSA.

In case you missed it, below is our statement released following the vicious attacks by Israel and the subsequent silence of our university:

On October 18th, we remembered Wadea Al-Fayoume and all of our innocent Palestinian brothers and sisters who have returned to Allah (SWT). We gathered as a community and were joined by students, faculty, and staff across campus, to sit together, support one another, and make dua for the shuhada (martyrs). Among the attendees were university administrators from the Office for Student Success, including the Dean of Students herself.

Allah (SWT) says in the Quran:

 “And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather they are alive with their lord, receiving provision.” Ayat 3:169

The best thing we can do to help our brothers and sisters is to rely on Allah (SWT) to ease their suffering and alleviate their burdens. In these trying times, it is often difficult to find the energy to do daily tasks or put your feelings into words. If you are ever unable to articulate your duas, the following link is one made very eloquently by Imam Omar Suleiman.

Du’aa for Palestine 

Purify your intentions, press play, and say ameen after every du’aa.

Charity week was a success alhamdulilah!

Here is a recap of the events we had: 

• 10 for 10

• • On the first day of Charity Week, we had everyone text 10 people for $10!

• Social Media Bingo Board

• • On the second day of Charity Week we posted a donation bingo board on our Instagram story.

• Bake Sale

• • On Wednesday, 10/25 we held a bake sale in the student center where everyone fell in love with the brownies, oreo balls, rice krispie treats, and nutella cupcakes I made.

• Smash Bros. Tournament

• • Also on 10/25 we held a Smash Bros. Tournament in the Esports Lounge! Congrats to the winner, our very own secretary, Zohaib Iqbal, on winning!

• Henna Tables

• • On both Wednesday and Thursday we had tables where people could get their henna done in the MLK Center

• Volleyball Tournament

• • On Thursday, 10/26, we hosted a volleyball tournament at Seaton Center. Congratulations to The West Bank Ballers on their win!

• Basketball Tournament

• • On Friday, 10/27, we held a Brother’s Basketball Tournament in the Seaton Center. Congratulations to the 502 Brothers for winning the grand prize!

• Alhamdulilah we were able to raise: $1435.97. Thank you to everyone who participated in the weeks’ events!

Service opportunities this November:

SHARE Lunch

• SHARE Lunch was hosted on 10/7 and 10/21 and a total of 120 lunches were served Alhamdulillah

• November’s SHARE Lunches will be on 11/4 and 11/18

SHARE Community Garden

• Look out for updates in the GroupMe for the next day to volunteer at the SHARE Community Garden. 

LUA Tutoring 

• LUA tutoring will be every Wednesday from 3:15 pm to 4:15 pm starting October 11th. If you are interested in becoming a tutor join the LUA Tutors GroupMe! Click here to join: https://groupme.com/join_group/96990699/hs5M9YnS 

• Bellarmine University has invited us to join them on November 19th for a community service picnic! More information coming soon, but mark your calendars :)

• The Ohio State University MSA is hosting a Midwest MSA conference this year InshaAllah. This will be a very exciting weekend-long event full of lectures, workshops, networking opportunities etc. This conference will be from Jan 12th-14th. I will send out more details as well as an interest form in the groupme Inshallah so keep an eye out for that!

The following is a list of upcoming Student Activities Board events: 

• November 9 @ 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm

  • What? Like it’s Hard?: Y2K Trivia and Movie

  • Student Center - Worsham Theater

• November 10 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm

  • Cosmopolitan Catwalk

  • Harris Ballroom

• November 14 @ 3:30 pm - 5:30 pm

  • Jam Jam Jam

  • Harris Ballroom

• November 16 @ 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm 

  • Grocery Store Bingo

  • Harris Ballroom

• November 28 @ 12:30 pm - November 30 @ 3:00 pm

  • Interactive Art Piece

  • WTY Library-Atrium 401 Hilltop Avenue, Lexington, Kentucky, United States

For more details: https://www.uksab.org/events/

If anyone has any ideas for potential events with other organizations please reach out to me! 

~ Junaid 

As-Salaam-Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuhu!❗️

Lookback 

• JZK to all those who attended the first Jubilee Event. We had a great time Alhamdulillah! If there are any statements you would like me to consider using at the next Jubilee Event, please contact me! Stay tuned for the next event in this series. 

• We had a great turnout for the Bonfire Alhamdulillah! There was a wonderful Halaqa led by Ahmad Shalash and a Dua for our brother and sisters in Palestine led by Yusuf Hassabelnaby. May Allah (SWT) reward them both for their efforts and may He protect all those in Palestine. Ameen! 

November Halaqa

• There will be a Halaqa event regarding mental health this Wednesday (11/8/23) at 5:30 pm and it will be led by Hoda Shalash Insha’Allah! We will begin my praying Magrib! 

Dr. Palmer Hadith Class

• Hadith Classes will take place in Whitehall where Dr. Palmer is offering FREE classes about the 40 hadiths by Imam An-Nawawi every other Thursday. The November Hadith Class will be on the 16th and 30th of this month In sha’Allah!

Fajr and Folgers

• Fajr and Folgers will be held on the 10th and 17th of this month Insha’Allah!

• • We are changing up a few things for Fajr and Folgers this month and so on. We meet in the interfaith room in the Student Center. We start off the day praying fajr together, reading the first and last 10 Ayats of Surah Kahf, and then going to the office to play games! Coffee and donuts will be provided! We have a great time at the previous events so don’t out and spread the word! 

Jummah Salah/Friday Prayer

• 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! 
  

• • Due to the many announcements, there were some Khutbah Recaps that weren’t sent out on our MSA Reminders. I will put them down below as our Khahtibs work hard to put them together! May Allah grant them all success. Ameen! We had our first women's khutbah written by Najla Amarkhail.

KHUTBAH RECAPS

• “As we continue through our theme of ‘Taqwa & Tawakkul’, we remind each other of the importance of trusting Allah SWT through our most difficult situations. We also touched on the topic of seeking help from the creation as well as seeking help from our Creator. Lastly, we took advantage of this blessed day of Jummah by reminding everyone of our weekly reading of Surah Kahf and the gratitude we learn to have through the story mentioned in ayahs 32-44. May Allah SWT accept every ounce of our efforts, Ameen!” ~ Najla Amarkhail 

• “The Khutbah delves into the contrasting nature of life's hardships (Dunya) and the eternal beauty of Paradise (Jannah). It underscores the opportunity hidden within adversities to grow spiritually, humbling oneself before Allah, and drawing parallels to Prophet Muhammad's life challenges. It touches on the universal nature of pain and how prophets endured, relating it to the attendees' personal trials. The Khutbah ends with a heartfelt reflection on a moment from Aisha's (RA) life, encouraging attendees to remain hopeful, patient, and ever-faithful, for Allah’s mercy and rewards are boundless, awaiting them in the Hereafter.” ~Yusuf Hassabelnaby

• “Victory in the face of adversity is not a foreign concept to us as Muslims. The precedent of the Battle of Badr sets the tone for Muslims of all generations. Even when enemies may be many and we may be weak, it is ultimately our faith in Allah (SWT) that will deliver us victory. Allah (SWT) has promised us that “with hardship there will be ease,” and while Muslims throughout the world may be persecuted, oppressed, and murdered for practicing Islam, our victory is with our Lord whether it be in this life or the hereafter.” ~Taha Sullivan 

Alhamdulilah our big social event this month was the annual bonfire! We had such a joyful evening including roasting hotdogs and marshmallows for smores, riding the ‘haunted’ hayride, and a halaqa from Ahmad Shalash. We are so thankful to everyone for showing out, as it is incredibly important to come together in the community during difficult times to grieve, heal, and pray to Allah to ease the pain and suffering of our brothers and sisters in Palestine. More photos from the event are available in the gallery below!

Upcoming Events

MSA Friendsgiving

• InshaAllah my favorite event of the year is coming up! Friendsgiving fosters amazing memories and the food is always top-notch, Alhamdulilah. This event is essentially just us coming together to reflect on the semester and eat some yummy food, inshallah. As a reminder, this event is a potluck (wooohooo!!) which means we highly encourage attendees to bring their favorite dish. However, it is not required and we hope to see your face even if you are unable to bring something. We will send out a google sheet for food sign-ups along with the announcement for the event, so stay tuned!

  When: Monday, November 20th

  Where: Patterson Hall

AsSalaamu Alaykum! Enjoy the photo galleries from the month of October :) Big shoutout to Adam Agoub for lots of these photos. I, Najma Amarkhail, vow to finish the volleyball and basketball videos as soon as time permits. Please, ya shabab, do not be upset with me😀

• Bonfire pics

• GBM pics – Instagram

• Charity Week – 

  • Day 3: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1qyWYZSSiJMF3Tp8FaAii3ZDc6Bw9vPEf 

  • Day 4: 

    https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1AxhWGvqAQ_N3QxIxvLlS0WymmRwMRMAX 

  • Day 5:

    https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1ffbGkdrSiGvVFaF_tK2iGBx8PKdwpGnQ 

• MSA members supporting Palestine 

Notes from the Treasurer

Asalaam Alaikum everyone. Here 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. 

• This is a link to out Islamic Relief USA fundraiser

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

• This is a link to Baitulmaal, which is a credible place to send donations.https://shorturl.at/gKQ09 
  

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

Dues

• If you have not paid dues they are now 25$ since the midterm of this semester has passed. Remember if you want to run to be on the board, you have to be a member of the MSA for at least a year. Venmo is @ukymsa, or cash can be handed to a board member as well.

JazakAllah Khair.

Notes from the Secretary:

• AsSalaamu Alaykum, if you haven’t already, order the merch for this 2023-2024 academic year using the link below!!! It’s a great way to look back on this year and relive the memories you made!!!!! (and the design is tuff!!!) the form CLOSES TONIGHT

  BUY MERCH :)

Please contact me or other board members if you have any concerns or questions about dues, shirts, or anything else in general!

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

Before you go, here is a du’aa for our theme of the year- Taqwa & Tawakkul:

حسبنا الله ونعم الوكيل

Hasbunallah Wa Ni’mal-Wakil

“Sufficient for us is Allah, and [He is] the best Disposer of affairs.”

Allah (SWT) is the Most- Merciful and the Best of Planners. May saying this dua and putting your full trust in Him grant you the strength to overcome any and all hardships you may face.

Remember, the MSA is always here for you. Never forget that we are your family. If you need anything, do not hesitate to reach out and lean on us. 

• Safety reminders

  • Look out for one another and avoid walking anywhere alone, especially at night.

  • If you are in need of transportation or an escort, reach out to Ahmed Khan (men) or Najma Amarkhail (women) via Direct Message in GroupMe. 

• If you need help with prioritizing your needs, managing your responsibilities, or finding balance, please check out the following link for free support services and resources offered by the university: UK Support resources

• Tipline/suggestions to better our MSA and help support you: suggestions form

That wraps up the November newsletter. As always, follow our Instagram (@UKYMSA) and join our GroupMe for more updates and announcements. 

Until next month, 👋

وعليكم السلام ورحمة الله وبركاته