A local non-profit joined forces this week with New Westminster police, firefighters and New West-Burnaby MP Peter Julian to help families in need.
On Wednesday, Julian gave his Facebook followers a glimpse of a community holiday party he attended — one that focused on helping low-income families in the city. He wrote, “Today, I helped out with an awesome community event organized by Social Forum / Hope Omid with New Westminster Firefighters & and New Westminster Police officers.”
Social Forum Hope, as reported in the Record, is a non-profit organization that residents Roqiya Ahmadi and Mohammad Amin Ahmadi established in 2016 to fight child poverty and child labour in Afghanistan — where the founders are originally from.
According to the non-profit's website, it aims to support those families where the men were killed in war, and as a result, the children were forced to work on the streets. The organization sends funds for food and shelter, and provides the necessary skills for the women in those families to be able to earn a living.
The Ahmadis raised money for the non-profit through a thrift store called Hope Omid (20-825 McBride Blvd), which had to be temporarily shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eventually, they started giving out food hampers to community members in need through their own money and via sponsorships.
Julian, who has previously supported the Ahmadis in their events, participated in their most recent one as well. At the event, as he wrote in his post, volunteers “delivered over 200 care packages & hundreds of pounds of food items to low income families in #NewWestminster."
"What a great way to finish our mission by participating in a community holiday party. Thank you to Hope Omid organizers & volunteers for their support for our community,” he added.
