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| No need to lurk around - contact Hampshire mosque and meet other prominent local Muslims that share your interests. |
In the wake of the Boston bombing and the statewide terror alert sparked by seven "chemical engineers" and "recent graduates" from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Singapore (currently residing in Sunderland, Amherst, Northampton, Cambridge, and New York) exploring the Quabbin reservoir, local residents are proud to highlight the achievements of the many other Muslims who have joined our communities and volunteered to become the public faces of the American Muslim community.
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| Javeria Mir, Gul Ahmed, Utama Abdulwahid, Wajih Elsallal, and Naz Mohamed (L-R) proudly serve the Western Massachusetts community. |
Many of our prominent local Muslim community and mosque leaders are also from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Malaysia - and many are recent graduates with backgrounds in chemical engineering, infectious diseases, and public health and safety. Coincidentally many even live in Sunderland, Amherst, Northampton, and New York.
WHO'S WHO? - PROMINENT WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS MUSLIMS
South Hadley and Granby are proud to welcome newlyweds Javeria Mir and Gul Ahmed to the community.
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| Newlyweds Javeria Mir and husband Gul Ahmed |
Both Javeria and her husband work tirelessly with various public emergency services organizations that help keep us safe in the event of a natural or man-made disaster. and to ensure that we receive a generous portion of Allah's blessings.
Javeria has been studying the Quabbin for many years with the Quabbin Health District and the Northampton Health Department in preparation for another terrorist attack. She and her husband, Gul, a chemical engineer, often enjoy romantic afternoons walking there and discussing its capabilities and vulnerabilities.
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| Javeria Mir serves the community with the Amherst Health Dept. |
Javeria Mir, a recent Pakistani immigrant and UMass graduate in food safety, biology, and public health, currently works as a Sanitarian in the town of Amherst and with Emergency Preparation Planning services in Springfield. She is also a director of Hampshire Mosque, which promotes peace and understanding.
Gul Ahmed, a trained chemical engineer, came to the US recently to take a graduate class and fell in love with Javeria. They were recently married and had a baby, and now Javeria has purchased a home in South Hadley for them to live while he looks for a job.
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| Gul Ahmed strives to follow the perfect example of his prophet, Mohammad |
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| Gul Ahmed and mom Naz Mohamed at Hampshire mosque |
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| "Men are in charge of woman because they spend of their property for the support of women" - Quran 4:34 |
Our Jihad is helping prepare Massachusetts for the next terrorist attack.
What's your Jihad?
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| Naz Mohamed-Ahamed |
Naz Mohamed-Ahamed graduated from Umass in 1986, and she and her late husband Bashir Ahamed have enjoyed the peace and serenity of the Quabbin and other local recreational areas for years. A beautiful bronze Owl statue was recently erected in Northampton to honor Bashir and his contributions to the community. Naz is the mosque's representative with the ION interfaith organization promoting peace and tolerance as voiced by Dr. Hazratji.
Dr. Assem Sayedahmed from Egypt is listed as a (former) President of Hampshire mosque Inc. at a Sunderland address. He formerly lived in Belchertown just minutes from the beautiful Quabbin recreation area, and is now preaching Islam in Rhode Island. Dr. Sayedahmed is a Food Microbiologist and NEHA certified trainer in health, safety, and poisoning.
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| Assem Sayedahmed |
"Saudi Arabia is your owner you Dog"
Saudis consider themselves the 'top of the heap' among Muslims and generally do not socialize with the lower echelons of Egyptians, Turks, Pakis, or other Asian Muslims - so it is nice to see that a Saudi subject was studying the Quabbin with other Muslims - perhaps they are becoming more tolerant.
Hampshire mosque founder Wajih Elsallal was born in Syria and raised in Saudi Arabia. He resides in Iowa and was a research assistant at UMass Amherst until 2006. In January 2013 he accepted an engineering position in Bedford MA, near Boston and Cambridge.
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| Wajih Elsallal (L) at UMass |
Utama Abdulwahid, another mosque director, is originally from Malaysia and earned a Phd from Umass in 2004. Utama lives in Belchertown just minutes from the Quabbin and is a post-doctoral student at UMass.
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| Utama Abdulwahid |
HAMPSHIRE MOSQUE - OFFICERS
Undoubtedly the recent Pakistani and Egyptian graduates from Amherst, Sunderland, and Northampton that were studying the Quabbin at midnight were up to no harm, but just trying to learn as much as they could about the facility in the hope that they too might, perhaps someday, be as critical to our safety and security as our many other Muslim American neighbors.
The unidentified Muslims caught sneaking around Quabbin recently may contact Hampshire mosque or the Springfield mosque for more information or to meet some of the Muslim citizens who have chosen to become prominent members of our community.
ALLAH AKBAR - A TASTE OF ISLAM COMES TO AMHERST
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| Amherst Health Dept. employee Javeria Mir makes sure that the Halal cart follows all regulations regarding food safety, inspections, and storage of explosive gas cylinders. |
After 9/11 American Muslims were overjoyed to see these things popping up like mushrooms around the site of the former World Trade Center and around Boston, and now Amherst has welcomed their very own (drum roll please) - Halal Guys.
These guys are more fun than a barrel of monkeys and are proudly serving delicious six different halal treats to those that like their meat slaughtered to cries of Allah Akbar. #spreadthelove #jumpinjihadi
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| Displaying accomplished skill with a meat cleaver, halal guys Elsayed Abdelglil Ahmad Elsayed have chosen to ignore Dr. Hazratji's exhortations to "violence and bloodshed" at the nearby Hampshire mosque and concentrate on serving delicious Islamic treats to the Amherst community. |
New York City Vendor finds new home in Amherst - Noman's Multimedia World
On October 11, Elsayed Abdelglil and Ahmad Elsayed arrived in Amherst in a Ford Explorer with their cart, no more than eight feet tall, hooked to the back. The two Egyptian cousins settled on the sidewalk in front of the Unitarian Church on North Pleasant Street. Abdelglil takes out chicken and lamb from the car to store in the cart’s cooler, which also includes vegetables and burger buns. Elsayed sets up a propane tank to fuel the grill. The two have essentially stored an entire kitchen’s worth of food and materials into a mobile cart with a menu of only six options, yet they’ve made a living out of it their entire life. The same routine is repeated every weekday morning.
Abdelglil and Elsayed emigrated from Egypt 17 years ago after finishing high school, looking to get into the restaurant business. In New York laid the prime opportunity to get into a rising food cart industry. “We found a guy who was just starting up and asked if we could join him,” said Elsayed. “He had us running the cart at night while he ran it during the day.” After ten years, they bought their own cart and started a franchise. Today, they have two carts operating in New York City.
Despite gaining business in New York, the cousins sought to expand their franchise. At the advice of a friend in Amherst, the two left their families in New York to come to the town already known for its wide variety of food. While they stay at a hotel in Chicopee, MA for $80 a night, other workers operate the carts in Queens. On the weekends, they return to the Big Apple to collect meat for the following week. Elsayed says there aren’t any places closer by that sell the same type of meat they need.
Although business isn’t anywhere up to par with their carts in New York, the two are starting to see an increase in business, mostly from students. Abdelglil noticed longer lines forming around 6PM. They did not disclose how much revenue is taken home on a daily basis.
Halal is the term used to describe meat slaughtered in the manner ordained by Islamic tradition [i.e. Allah Akbar must be shouted while the animal's throat is slit]
FRESH MEAT ONCE A WEEK
Areas with a higher Muslim population tend to have more halal meat suppliers as opposed to regions like Western Mass, where it is usually more expensive. It is estimated that the number of halal carts in New York City total well over 200. In a rather simple business model, the carts gather meat for an entire week from a provider in the city and cook it on spot. Meals range from $3 burgers to a maximum of $6 for a full plate with rice, chicken, and/or lamb.
NO TOUGH HEALTH REGULATIONS LIKE IN NY
New York Halal offers a unique method of dining in Amherst. Though food trucks have come around occasionally along with hot dog carts during events, such a cart that operates on a daily basis has not been existent. While the town has strict regulations on food trucks, New York Halal does not qualify as a truck and doesn’t take up much space, making it easier for them to function. They simply have to pay a $100 fee to the health department for inspections, securing a state peddler’s permit and getting approval from the Select Board. “We haven’t heard anything negative from the town,” said Abdelglil. “We’re not competing with anyone,” he added.
Still, Abdelglil and Elsayed are met with several challenges. Standing outside for 10 hours a day in the cold, which they’re accustomed to, is not as much of a problem as the commute has been. “My wife and twin daughters are in New York now…I only get to see them on the weekends, so it’s hard,” said Elsayed as his cousin went to add quarters to the parking meter for their SUV. “We don’t have a permanent place in Massachusetts yet, so there’s a lot of driving back and forth that can get really tiring,” said Abdelglil.
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Abdurahman Osman, a senior set to graduate this winter, makes regular visits to the cart. “Having been down to the carts in NYC on several occasions, I was excited upon seeing one in Amherst,” said the accounting major. “Being Muslim, we have certain dietary restrictions on the food we can consume, and considering there aren’t many places that offer it in the area, it’s very convenient.”
Abdelglil and Elsayed remain optimistic about their future here. With plans of expansion to Northampton and Boston, they are hoping for more improvement in Amherst. “Once we find a permanent place and get more settled in, I think we’ll be much better off,” said Elsayed, adding that they plan to increase hours while also staying open on the weekends next semester. Since students make up a high portion of their business, New York Halal will not remain open during winter break at UMass, and will instead return to Queens while renovating the cart to attract more customers. “Look at our cart,” said Elsayed. “It’s ugly!” ###
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