Looking Above to Look Ahead.

2023 Ramadan Letter 4 | A final du'a for you, me, & Sanad

Abu Huraira reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said,

“Whoever does not thank people has not thanked Allah.”

For all those that donated, intended to donate, or even just read our letters with a good opinion but were unable to donate I ask Allah, with your good name, to reward you beyond what you can imagine from His limitless generosity. All those who have given to Sanad any form of good… small or large, from near or afar…I ask that Allah make it all a means to draw you near and make you among the muqarraboon. May you see the fruits of your generosity in this life, your barzakh, and akhira.

Know that your support gives life to our sincere and unceasing efforts to have adab, share knowledge, and show love to the hearts of children, families, and communities every day, insha’Allah from our time until the end of time. You are a part of this!

May Allah make me and our team always sincere, true, and able to fulfill the amana we have with you with excellence. May we be a reason your heart is filled with joy on the Day of Judgement. May we be a reason for you to receive Allah’s ridhwan. May we be a reason for your nearness to the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

I ask that you join me in asking Allah in these last hours of Ramadan for tawfiq for the Sanad Trust Foundation. We ask that Allah help us purchase a permanent campus for the Foundation and our school. A home that we are able to show Allah as proof that we tried our best for His sake. May Allah make it a home for children, families, and our community that will preserve the Light of Allah’s Deen and the Love of His Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.

May Allah accept all of our good intentions, duas, prayers, and fasts in this mubarak month and always.

Ameen.

Your brother,

Rehan Mirza

Letter 3 | 12 Years of Your Dreams

Have you dreamed of a place where your child could learn about the world around them and the world beyond them? A place that would surround them with all they need to grow well — socially, emotionally, and spiritually.

When we began Sanad Prep at Sanad Trust Foundation 12 years ago, this was our dream and so we began the work to make our shared dreams come true.

We wanted Sanad to also be a place where the family and community around a child would be cared for.

Naseeha Sessions were started to offer supportive listening and care to children who have lost loved ones, married couples struggling to remain close, a parent distant from their child. And there is still so much more we need to do for each other.

The Neighborhood Halaqa has been consistently welcoming families month after month, year after year for over a decade. We’ve even written two children’s books for the spiritual development of children along the way!

With Allah’s permission, the dreams are coming true.

Now, together, we begin the climb toward our next dream. A home for Sanad where Muslim families would be welcomed to learn, play, and grow together. It would be the hub for all other Sanad campuses around the country.

A hallmark location we can all be proud of; a beacon of hope for years to come. A place built to preserve the light of faith and love of Prophetic character.

In these last mubarak moments of Ramadan, we ask you to continue investing in your dreams by supporting the work of the Sanad Trust Foundation. Help us reach our goal of $30,000. We need only a few more generous hands and hearts to come forward. If 15 people gave $1000 we would meet our goal tonight insha’Allah.

We ask that Allah make you and us amongst the muqarraboon, those brought near, for the dreams we share and the sincere efforts we are making together for them. Wa ma tawfiq illa billah.

Your brother,

Rehan Mirza

Letter 2 | Leaders of the New School or Fools?

Imam al Haddad masterfully outlines the timeline of our existence in his treatise entitled The Lives of Man. In it, he chronicles the magnificent journey of this soul of ours — from its primordial state to a return to its paradisiacal heavenly home insha’Allah.

Now, to interject oneself during the brief time this soul lives its life on earth is bold, but then to do so in a way that could have a dramatic influence on the rest of its trajectory is potentially pretty foolish.

But what choice do we have? How else do we ensure our children realize their complete outward and inward potential in order to find excellence in this life and success in their life in the akhirah?

The risks are too great and there is no choice but to be bold, brave, and forward-looking in how we educate our children as families and community. Our academic institutions need to do better and can.

Sanad Trust Foundation was founded in this pioneering spirit and was moved by the challenge of developing a model of education that was not just different, but better than any other option we saw available.

A School Like No Other

Perhaps it was only an ideal when we began, subject to bias and opinion for some time…but now, demonstrably and objectively, Sanad Trust Foundation’s cornerstone program, Sanad Prep Education is arguably the best K-12 option for a Muslim Family in North America.

Our first graduating class is now completing their university studies and our second round of high school seniors will follow them this year.

No other high school program in the country is built like ours. We are able to leverage all the resources available from the public system but create our own magical learning environment founded upon the faith-inspired trivium of adab (moral behavior and good character), love, and beneficial knowledge.

Students at Sanad Prep take the same courses as their public school peers and more, they take honors, advanced placement, and dual enrollment college courses. We are at par with the top public high schools in the country but exceed them by leaps and bounds when factoring in a learning environment that not only enables students to preserve their identity and their connection to Allah but walks with them side-by-side as they grow both academically and spiritually.

We are already graduating students accepted to their university of choice, with tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships in hand and dual enrollment college credits. We will soon become the first and only Islamic schooling option to regularly graduate students with 1-2 years of college credits completed by the time they graduate high school, insha’Allah.

This opens up a whole new world of possibilities for us to explore, including developing gap year programs with leading North American Islamic institutions like Al-Maqasid, Qalam, and international institutes like Cambridge Muslim College, Dar al Mustafa, and others.

Reputation Precedes, Growing Locally and Nationally

This year we launched a sister campus in Allentown, PA with our partner organization Al-Maqasid. The new campus, Al-Maqasid Academy powered by Sanad Prep, serves middle school and high school children of the scholars and teachers at the seminary, and the community at large.

We are also in conversation with other cities in and out of Florida to establish campuses of Sanad Prep. Families are now even considering moving to the area because of what they are hearing about Sanad Prep.

For 12 years now we have consistently outgrown our space and have had to move every three years. It’s now time to invest to establish a permanent South Florida campus for the Foundation and all our education, wellness, and community initiatives. We will be sharing more in our final letter about our vision for this campus, a place where your family can learn, grow, and be in the company of others who are good for you.

At this moment though, we need you to know that your donation is not simply for a school that your children may or may not attend. Rather it is for an innovative, small nonprofit organization that is building a unique, effective, and expansive bridge for Muslim children and families in North America to succeed in this life and the next — that is something we should all care about.

And when we find a model and organization that has a decade-plus record of proven success and that works, we must invest…no matter if it is directly benefitting our children or not. This work and our success as an ummah require us all to carefully consider how we can make a positive impact on our collective success.

Recently, I was sitting eyes closed imagining what it would have felt like to look upon the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) on the full-moon night of the 15th of Sha’ban. Over 1400 years ago, we know he stood, in the still of that night, arms raised to the heavens, in the blessed cemetery of Madinah.

What a sight. The most beloved of Allah’s creation to exist, raising his hands to his Creator asking for our forgiveness. His heart imploring its concern directly to God. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, and his companions.

May Allah reward and be pleased with our Lady Ayesha for what she was able to capture in her heart and words for us to see that night after all these years.

Now, on this dawn of Ramadan, I follow his example. Looking above to look ahead.

An inspired effort

The effort to build Sanad Trust Foundation too has had many nights where one questions and seeks answers. And, as my family sought and found the new moon of Ramadan I was reminded again about those nights that the Prophet looked at the same moon and heavens, seeking answers.

How many righteous men and women have since done the same? And how many still do masha’Allah?

My heart is filled with hope because there are people of concern and prayer like you that remain in our ummah.

One of the profound lessons from our Prophet Muhammad — peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, and his companions — is that sincere concern must be followed by personal prayer and wise action.

With you by our side

This is where I see you, your good heart standing with us to help raise the efforts of Sanad Trust Foundation to Allah, seeking his support. We have accomplished so much this way.

Sanad Trust is now a recognized, established and respected soul-centered education, wellness, and community service organization. Its pioneering, blended-learning model and creative programs have benefitted and inspired thousands of children, families, and communities from South Florida to beyond in over 12 years of service.

As part of a Ramadan series, we intend to share a small collection of personal letters. Insha’Allah they will inspire you this month and share more about what we see ahead for the Foundation, with you by our side…hands raised to the heavens.

For now, let’s do these two things together

Until the next letter, let’s all ensure we have established a good intention for Ramadan. One of the greatest intentions our teacher mentioned we could make is that:

We intend to perfect our following of the best person who ever experienced Ramadan, the one by whom Ramadan was ennobled (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, and his companions) … All types of good and all other intentions are combined in this intention. — Habib Umar bin Hafiz

Now, let’s ensure we reap the benefits of Ramadan’s beginning by being amongst the sabiqoon…the forerunners of good action and deeds. If you have not had the chance to start your Ramadan journey with sadaqa, then let’s do so now.

There are many worthy causes I give to throughout the month. In addition to a thoughtful mission and vision, I look for efficacy, growth potential, and leadership when I give to an organization. Sanad Trust Foundation meets these standards and more.

I invite you to be amongst the first to give and inspire others to give to this year’s Ramadan campaign for the Foundation.

In the coming days, I look forward to sharing more about Sanad’s recent national expansion, the historic academic achievements of Sanad Prep students, and our plans to establish a state-of-the-heart education, wellness, and community center we can all be proud of and benefit from for years to come insha’Allah.

Until next time and always, Allah bless you and your family with openings of spiritual insight and accomplishments beyond what you can imagine this Ramadan.

- Rehan