Several local Muslim students took the opportunity during Ramadan to share their religion and culture with their peers.
For their non-Muslim friends, attending an iftar dinner is a way to show support.
A group St. John’s Jesuit juniors were “supporting the boys,” Brady Gray said of his friends who hosted a dinner last week.
“I liked getting to learn about my friends’ religion and experience how they pray,” Miles Green added.
St. John’s was one of several schools whose Muslim Student Association hosted a community iftar dinner this month. Iftar is the meal that breaks the daily fast at sunset. The fasting from food and drink and increased prayer during the month of Ramadan is meant to strengthen Muslims in their spiritual lives. The holy month began this year on Feb. 28 and concludes the evening of March 29 with the celebration of Eid al-Fitr, the festival of sweets.
“Last year we had the most students ever, and then this year we had even more,” said Houssam Hajar, president of the Muslim Student Association at Ottawa Hills High School. The MSA’s March 8 iftar brought in 300 attendees from the school and wider community. That’s double the turnout from two years prior.
“It's exciting to see how it's growing within the school and the students,” the senior said, noting that the annual event has become something the students look forward to each year. “Seeing your own classmates there to support you is pretty exciting to see.”
These dinners are typically catered by a local Middle Eastern restaurant such as Grape Leaf Diner, and a speaker is often invited to discuss Ramadan traditions and Islam as a whole. Others incorporate a recitation of the Qur’an. Some have started adding henna stations, and Maumee Valley Country Day School added this year an opportunity for people to learn how to write their name in Arabic.
Those who had been fasting — even some of the students’ friends — broke their fast at the stroke of sunset with water and a date. Then they prayed maghrib, one of the five daily prayers, before digging into the meal.
“We want to promote cultural awareness and have people increase their understanding and respect for people from different backgrounds,” said Rami Ridi, co-president of the MSA at Maumee Valley. “And ultimately, just reducing prejudice and discrimination.”
The senior planned to go to at least two other schools’ community iftars, and knew of some others in the area, too.
Maumee Valley students have hosted a dinner during Ramadan for the past 10 years, Rami said. This year, they added Pakistani food to the spread, he said, and they hope to incorporate even more cultural foods in the future.
Shared traditions
While some non-Muslims might attend for the food, others come for the opportunity to learn about a different religion and culture. The hosts hope people will see connections between different religions.
“These [are] opportunities to learn about our commonalities and how we are all on this common mission of drawing closer to God,” said Omar Gad, who spoke at the St. John’s iftar March 18. “It allows us to value the things that we have within our own tradition ... and appreciate what others have. It’s critical for bringing hearts together, especially in these tumultuous times.”
During his talk, Dr. Gad, a radiology resident and Islamic scholar, shared stories that are found in all of the Abrahamic faiths in which people cried out to God in fear but found comfort in their trusting relationship with him.
“I ask God to increase us in his worship in these sacred times of Lent and Ramadan,” Dr. Gad concluded. “To increase us in worship of him, to increase us in remembrance of him, and to increase us in friendship to him.”
He also said that, despite the health benefits to fasting like decreased inflammation and cholesterol, that's not the main benefit to the fast. It's meant to help one attain awareness of God, he said.
“He was very accurate in saying both Christians and Muslims fast for the same reason,” said Catholic attendee Peter Shanks. “That's a tradition we definitely have in common.”
The student organizers also emphasized that Ramadan isn’t just about refraining from food, even though that’s what people tend to think of.
“Really, the most important thing about Ramadan is the spiritual part of it,” Houssam said. “It always seems to come at the perfect time ... for your soul to kind of refresh, and your heart to refresh, reconnect with God.”
Welcoming spaces
MSA organizers estimated a nearly even split of Muslims and non-Muslims attending their community iftars — with slightly more Muslims. While the majority of attendees were students’ families, classmates, and teachers, people from the wider community showed up to support and learn, too.
“It is truly a blessing that as Muslims in such a complicated time in the world, we have the freedom, space, and ability to practice our religion openly and freely, with much support,” St. John’s junior Yousef Ahmed said when introducing the program.
The students expressed that their schools, both public and private, have been very accommodating to their need to pray during class, fast, and to allow them to host the annual iftar dinners.
The schools’ acceptance of Muslim students makes Houssam “proud to practice my religion,” he said.
“I've never really felt that sense of stress when I have to pray in Ottawa Hills or when I have to talk about my religion,” he said. “I feel like I'm accepted for who I am. That's a pretty big thing, especially in this day and time.”
Students are able to step out of class for their daily prayers, Houssam said, and taking the day off for Eid is always an excused absence.
Maumee Valley has a designated prayer room for its Muslim students and is one of few local schools that closes in observance of Eid.
Since Eid falls over the weekend this year, it’s easier for families to attend prayer and festivities at the mosque and spend time at home together. Area mosques traditionally host large gatherings, which often include cultural foods, kids’ activities, entertainment, and more.
Fifth graders Farah Abou-Arab and Abdel Wahed, who attended the St. John’s iftar, said going to the mosque on Eid is their favorite part of the holiday tradition.
“Eid is always super, super exciting,” said Houssam, who is traveling to Lebanon this year to celebrate with family there. “It's amazing after having such a dense, super spiritual focus for a whole month, and then you have Eid to kind of celebrate with your friends and family.”
First Published March 27, 2025, 11:30 a.m.
