First ever family fun day by youth group The Young Khadims at Ghamkol Sharif Mosque

The Young Khadims organised the first ever family funday

A family fun day kicked off a new ‘My Masjid My Future’ scheme at the Ghamkol Sharif Mosque in Newbold on Sunday 18 June.

The fun day was the first by a new community youth group, The Young Khadims, which work together with the local mosques and the community for bettering society. 

The ‘My Masjid My Future’ scheme encourages the local community to make use of the local mosques through different facilities such as their car parks, community halls and classrooms. This first event saw people come and attend from all walks of life.

Jamal Aziz, of The Young Khadims, said: “The was some uncertainty initially about the event, given the weather we had before but the weather was on our side. The turnout was amazing as people turned up in numbers; the kids loved meeting Mickey Mouse and stallholders came not only from Rochdale but the likes of Bolton, Manchester and Bradford.

“We would like to thank the Ghamkol Sharif Mosque for giving us the opportunity to hold this funday, the local councillors for their advice, the community for their support, the stallholders for being part of the success.

“Finally, we would like to thank The Young Khadim volunteers who made sure everything was going as planned throughout the event by helping residents and attendees with car parking, running the bouncy castle and overall managing the event: Ahmad Jamal, Umar Farooq, Faisal Mohammed, Saqib Saadiq, Hashim Mohammed, Junaid Qamar, Subhaan Abbas, Furqaan Ditta, Roohan Arshad and Bilal Amin.”

Khadim is the plural of the Arabic word ‘khidmah’ which means service; the group’s motto is “to selflessly serve society.”

The Young Khadims was launched in December 2022, with members’ ages ranging from 14-23. Since the launch, the group has carried out events like feeding the homeless, a sleepover at a mosque, a funeral and educational workshop, and youth and community iftars.

They have also held charity fundraisers and hosted shows on a local radio station.

The Young Khadims will carry on more events under the ‘My Masjid My Future’ scheme during the summer to help bring communities together.