Living in an individualistic society, we often maintain our distance and not inquire about other people’s personal lives. While some may find such gestures intrusive, one woman truly appreciates it and says it changed her life.
Elaheh Mirhashemi remembers not knowing much about the programs the Ismaili community in the US offered when she first moved from Tehran. “Women in Richmond Jamatkhana would often force me to send my kids to the Early Childhood Development Center,” she says, “but I didn’t want to.”
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Being legally blind in one eye and having weak vision in the other, Elaheh did not drive. It was concerning her that her kids would not have a way to get to class. “Mothers in Jamatkhana asked me many times,” she said, “but I continued to refuse…they even offered rides for my kids.”
After much persistence by the volunteers, Elaheh finally gave in and enrolled. Her twin boys are nine and a half years old now and she realizes that giving them education from their early years was the best decision she ever made. “If the other mothers wouldn’t have forced me, my kids would have missed out,” she confesses.
Beyond community programs, it was really the support system that Elaheh found from Ismaili women in Richmond who are now her friends. From learning to cook Indian and Pakistani food to selling it and earning an income to support herself, she is grateful to women who supported her and taught her many skills. “I was very shy to ask for help,” she says, “but the women I met taught me that it is okay to ask for help.”
This notion of a support system is integral in the values that the Ismaili Women’s Group (IWG) offers to the Jamat. More than 100 volunteers are involved across the US in programs such as skills workshops, community service, social events, sports clinics, mental wellbeing events, and book clubs.
One such volunteer is Shamsah Poonja Charania, who leads IWG initiatives in Chicago. For her, it is a goal to involve as many women of the Jamat as possible and “try not to leave anyone behind.” Seeing the growing number of women partaking in IWG is gratifying for Shamsah as she remembers starting it from scratch in her Jamatkhana. “It adds fuel to my fire,” she said.
Shamsah feels that “It’s much easier to achieve enlightenment through volunteerism and by serving humanity.” She adds, “When you serve, there's a sense of personal gratification, and when people come up to you and show their appreciation and respect for the programs you are planning and express how much they needed it, it's all just icing on the cake.”
In 2019 alone, more than 200 IWG programs were held across the US, thanks to the help of volunteers.
