A group of young people helped spread some holiday cheer in downtown Brantford over the noon hour Wednesday.
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Members of the Brantford Muslim Youth Group distributed pizza and bottled water to those in need outside the Salvation Army center on Dalhousie Street.
“It’s always a good thing to help needy people, and our community is more focused on helping unfortunate people who need food and stuff,” explained Ateeb Ahmad.
“In the spirit of giving, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association has launched a nationwide initiative called Holiday Dinner on Wheels to offer warm, festive meals for those less fortunate. These types of initiatives… are part of an ongoing effort to serve Canadians and demonstrate the true spirit of Islam.”
Ahmad said the group aims to provide assistance once each month to help about 50 people in the downtown core.
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A homeless woman named Amy was one of the recipients of the food offering from the youth group.
“It just shows that everyone’s trying to get along with each other and no matter what our differences are or walk of life, everyone should be treating each other equally and the same way they would want to be treated,” she said. “I’ve only been homeless for seven months but it’s pretty hard. I struggled with drug addiction and other problems, but I’ve also been on the other side. I raised a family and was a PSW for a long time. I do worry about people.”
The woman said efforts like this do make a difference.
“It breaks up the distance between people, or at least they try to,” she explained. “It’s up to everyone if they want to take a gift, or give, but I think a lot more people should find more ways to give.”
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