EVENT HELPS FUND VITAL MEDICAL SUPPLIES

This article appears in today's Leicester Mercury (but not on its website):

Event helps fund vital medical supplies

Charity volunteers raised £53,000 for emergency aid in Gaza by holding a fund-raising dinner.

Islamic Relief volunteers staged the event at Koyla's, in Charter Street, Leicester.

The money will help to provide medical supplies to hospitals in the area.

Salim Lorgat, a fund-raiser for the Islamic Relief, said he was pleased with the response to the event.

He said: "there was so much support, it was very moving.

"Families in Gaza are suffering and we are delighted to be able to support with vital supplies to hospitals."

Globally, the charity aims to raise £10 million for its work in Gaza, half of which being spent on medical supplies and half on trying to help the area recover from recent events.

"It would be easy to be disheartened by how much damage has been done to but we are encouraged by the dedication of our staff in Gaza and the generous response of supporters in the East Midlands," said Salim.

DMU STUDENTS UNION COMMUNITY FAIR

Rahat Ahmad (left) and Minou Cortazzi at the Counil of Faiths stall

Today we're participating in the Community Fair at De Montfort University Students Union - a marketplace event for Freshers Week. We're up on the second floor, where it's light, bright and airy - a welcome contrast to the darker, sweatier environement in the O2 Academy at the University of Leicester, where we were yesterday.

One of the first people I see here today is Zubair Sidat (Vice President, Welfare), whom I first met during Discover Islam Week at DMU back in February. I interviewed him then and posted the video on YouTube. He's obviously been a busy man and we don't have much time to talk, but Zubair does mention that he'd like to have at least one activity in DMU during Inter Faith Week. I'm not sure whether he means the Students Union per se or the student Islamic Society - but we can get together and work that out another time.

Going around the displays, I spend some time chatting with the good people promoting Islamic Relief and have the welcome opportunity to reacquaint myself with Salim Yusuf Lorgat, their East Midlands Area Manager.

I also do the rounds with flyers for Leicester Speaks, drumming up interest and support for the launch event on Wednesday 12 October as well as for the week-long programme.

I have to say that I'm not in favour of packing up early at these events. If we're booked to be here till a certain time, I would rather be here till that certain time. I feel sorry for those visitors who turn up in good time to go round an event like this, only to find out that half the exhibitors have gone.

Oh, and that Nightline bear is here too - someone different inside (male this time, apparently yesterday at the O2 Academy in the University of Leicester it was a woman).