For most of us, Ramadhan is a time of family, gathering and the joy of community. Our memories of Suhoor as children live within us, as we continue those traditions with our own children and watch them embrace this blessed month. In the homes of HHUGS families, however, Ramadhan is tinged with sadness and loss. When a father has been imprisoned, and life has turned upside down, Ramadhan brings with it a sharp reminder of all that has been lost.
The peace of the month carries a sadness and emptiness as iftar meals, tarawih prayers and Eid preparations all take place without the heart of the home: the father, husband and beloved son.
The financial burden makes preparing iftar that much harder. The social isolation hurts more in a month of togetherness. The stigma faced by having a family member imprisoned stings more sharply in a time meant for mercy. This Ramadhan, you can respond to the silent calls, desperately penned by families about to lose all hope. Show them the value of the Ummah and how this month can be made sweet again.
Families pour out their hearts in letters of pain. When Ramadhan has been turned upside down, you can help set things right again.
This Ramadhan, respond to their silent cries with relief and hope.
Your support will empower women with the necessary skills to support their household. Elderly parents can be united, through prison visits, with family members they have been torn apart from. Children can benefit from essential mentoring and support services to stay on the right track with strong, reliable role models. Families can truly feel the mercy of this month and the excitement of Eid through gatherings and gifts to mark the occasion memorably.
“Whoever walks with his brother to assist
him with a need until he has helped him
completely, then Allah plants his feet firmly
on the Day people will not stand firmly.”
(at-Tabarani)
Eid gift, or a Ramadhan Gift Box for the whole family (£40)
Restore joy to the celebration of Eid with gifts of clothes, toys and treats. The absence of a father can taint the days of celebration for many HHUGS families. In households entrapped in poverty, gifts and new clothes are considered a luxury out of reach. You can deliver much-needed delight to a child through a gift voucher for Eid, giving families the independence to choose a gift according to the child’s age and interests. You can also provide a Ramadhan Gift Box to bring joy to the whole family. Though their father may be absent that day, your gift can show them how cherished they still are and help them to feel the sweet spirit of the month, once again.
“I have heavy heart most Ramadhans, but I try my best to not show it so that my daughter has happy experiences. I honestly think these HHUGS Ramadhan packs lift the heaviness for me. It reminds me I’m not alone.”
“Absolutely love the surprise Ramadhan gift. HHUGS gifts always brings smiles on our faces at a time we feel a deep void in our hearts. We have almost forgotten what it feels like to feast together as a family as it's been over 12 yrs. Alhamdulillah for everything and especially for HHUGS who have been there for us right from the start. May Allah (swt) keep you all happy in return and be pleased with you all. Ameen.”
Fund a prison-visit
When absent from the home, prison visits are the only opportunity for families to spend quality time in their detained loved one’s company. These trips are not always easy, however. The average UK prison visit is a 120-mile round-trip. For an elderly parent in poor health, or a single mother with small children, mobility constraints and the high cost of travelling to a remote location, make prison visits impossible. As a time of family and togetherness, Ramadhan makes the pain harder to bear for the families of prisoners. This Ramadhan and Eid, a brief reunion can fill the yearning of their hearts and strengthen their resolve to carry on.
“When your husband is no longer in your daily life, you really look forward to that one visit. My son would ask me, ‘how many more sleeps until we see him?’ […] I remember saying, ‘how is anyone going to take us?!’ –but these volunteers, who had their own families to deal with, actually took us all the way up north on Eid. I was so grateful to them for their generosity.”
Feed a family for a month £250, or a food pack £50
Losing the main breadwinner in the home means that it is not only just the plates that often remain half-filled. Gone too is the security of adequate nutrition for the children, the guarantee of regular wholesome food and a pared down iftar, relying solely on the bare necessities. With bank accounts frozen and benefits withheld or delayed, HHUGS families often struggle to feed their children. With soaring food costs, families are struggling more than ever. They won’t be looking forward to iftar the same way we will, this Ramadhan. The gift of food vouchers can fill that void, providing families with nutritious food to break their fasts with throughout the month.
“I couldn’t apply for any benefits because I wasn’t a UK national. It wasn’t legal for me to work. I had no income. I was very depressed. HHUGS paid for my bills, my rent, my food. I think if HHUGS were not there I wouldn’t be alive right now.”
Essential counselling £50 per session
Bearing the loss of your father and husband in dramatic circumstances cannot be underestimated. Women and children have often witnessed traumatic raids, followed by the struggle to survive through poverty and isolation. This harms the emotional wellbeing of a prisoner’s family. Children, bullied at school, often bear shame and anxiety, while their mothers barely cope with the burden of caring for a family alone. As for a prisoner’s elderly parent, fear and isolation cause depression that can fast escalate. With past lockdowns compounding feelings of isolation, the pandemic has further exacerbated poor mental health in HHUGS households. This Ramadhan and Eid, there remains a huge void to fill. However, with the right support, the essential emotional healing can start today.
"The therapy and the counselling has provided me a safe space to speak to someone, without fear of any judgement, knowing that it’s safe, secure and private. That is the most fulfilling and most comforting thing to have – to know that whatever you feel and you’re struggling with, that there’s someone you can offload to who is a professional, that understands how the mind works. It has changed my life so much and I am grateful that I have that. Alhamdulillah for HHUGS providing me with that safety net.”
Shelter a family with the cost of rent, utilities, and vital repairs
Following an arrest, many families of prisoners fall into poverty. With assets confiscated, they struggle to pay the rent, and so, face eviction and constant harassment from bailiffs. Often they haven’t even the means to fix a front door smashed in a raid. Exposed to the elements, they are forced to live without basic security in their own homes. And with thousands in the UK falling into rent arrears due to redundancies and soaring inflation levels, homelessness is a terrifying reality many HHUGS families now face. This Ramadhan, you can give them the shelter of a safe home, filled with security and hope.
“They used to knock really hard. Sometimes I would feel that the door was going to break. Sometimes people would scream from the letter box, ‘open the door!’ […] I used to shake out of fear. I would continue shaking until they left. For a long period of time, I was very nervous. All my finances were cut. I didn’t have money for food. My health began to deteriorate.”
Support a child’s physical and emotional wellbeing
On top of the trauma they have endured, children of prisoners are often stigmatised and ostracised by peers at school, and the community at home. Bullied and lost, many succumb to mental-health problems and often even turn to truancy and delinquent behaviour. Girls are particularly vulnerable when they lack a solid male role model in their lives and can resort to looking for that lost love in harmful places. All children struggle in the absence of social support and role models who cherish them.
Your support can fill this emptiness inside. Academic support and recreational activities, as well as needs-based psychotherapy and mentorship, can help HHUGS children tackle their inner turmoil and find comfort in the attention and affection they yearn for.
“Yusuf used to stay in his room alone all day, but HHUGS, they paid attention to him, taking him on Islamic conferences and retreats. […] His approach to things became different, he would know right from wrong and he became a positive healthy young man. He changed his attitude towards me from hostility to kindness and he began helping me look after our family. […] I couldn’t have imagined that they would have such an impact on him. I believe I would never have been able to help Yusuf in the same way.”
Empower a single mother to gain independence through education and training
Hindered by material poverty and social isolation, the wives of prisoners struggle to fill the absence of losing their main financial provider. Many face the additional challenge of language constraints as well as a lack of basic skills and work experience. Without support for childcare and funding for education, they’re unable to improve their situation, while their association with a terror suspect further reduces their chances of employment. With the pandemic having cost thousands their livelihoods, this is a time of even greater hardship for single mothers who already have the odds stacked against them. But a generous investment, this Ramadhan, can change that, giving such single mothers skills she needs to gain financial independence.
“HHUGS helped me in regard to my business as well. I felt empowered that I have the strength and confidence now to build my business and interact with people because they had faith in me. It has enabled me to be a bit more financially independent and provide for my kids. Always in the back of my mind I think, I wouldn’t ever be in this position if HHUGS had not given me that push to go in that direction. They want us to be independent and get our lives back on track. They want us to rebuild that confidence, regain stability in life and be there as a stepping stone. I feel they have excelled in that job.”
Relieve a single mother struggling with debts she cannot pay
Following the arrest of their husbands, wives of prisoners are left to pick up the pieces on their own. With assets confiscated and benefits frozen, they quickly accumulate rent arrears and unpaid bills. In some cases, they inherit the debts of their husbands, which were previously unknown to them. With limited financial resources, these become near impossible for them to pay off. At a time when thousands of UK families are suffering from mounting debts, the wives of prisoners are left alone and utterly helpless. Your generous donation can help clear her debts and ensure she breathes a sigh of relief this Ramadhan.
“I’ve been borrowing money the past week and a half. Wallahi, I don’t know what we’re going to do over the weekend. I’m just really dreading when the agent finds out the rent is overdue.”
Connect the isolated with Eid gatherings and family events
No one deserves to be left alone in times of hardship, even moreso in the month of Ramadhan. Yet this is the reality families of prisoners live with, day in and day out. Often presumed guilty by association, they are ostracised by their own communities, and face harassment. This Ramadhan and Eid, when other families come together, the wives, children and elderly parents of prisoners will be feeling that emptiness more intensely than ever. You can step in and fill the emptiness inside with the sweet embrace of a community that cares. With your support, we can facilitate Eid gatherings where families can connect with others who truly understand.
“They [HHUGS] also arranged Eid parties we could attend. We finally started to feel more normal, like there were some people who weren’t afraid to associate with us. HHUGS saw us as human beings, not as criminals and terrorists. They treated us as part of the Ummah.”
“The month of Ramadhan has come, a blessed month in which Allah Almighty has obligated you to fast. In it the gates of the heavens are opened, the gates of Hellfire are closed, the devils are chained, and in it is a night that is better than a thousand months. Thus, whoever is deprived of its good is truly deprived.”
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