March 30, 2004 > NISA celebrates first year anniversary of help line

NISA (the North American Islamic Shelter for the Abused), a non-profit organization whose mission is to help men and women achieve domestic harmony, is celebrating the first year anniversary of its help-line on April 17, 2004. NISA serves the larger Bay Area including the Tri-Cities. The event, entitled "Strengthening Families, Fostering Harmony" includes workshops on communication and domestic violence awareness in the afternoon, followed by a dinner program in the evening.

"Nisa's first year has been a memorable first step in our journey to provide a more holistic solution to the problems of domestic abuse and marital conflict," said Dr. Mohammad Rajabally, NISA's Chair of the Executive Committee. "We are also striving to remove misconceptions about what Islam states about marital and personal relationships both within the Muslim community as well as the community at large," he said.

"The event will feature speakers and workshop presenters who have considerable experience dealing with domestic violence issues, a problem that goes beyond ethnic, national and gender boundaries," stated Reshma Yunus, Executive Council Member. "More importantly, attendees will have an opportunity to learn about solutions."

The afternoon workshops will have two sessions. The first session, from 2:20-3:30 p.m., "Extended Family Dynamics - Effective Communication," will feature Dr Basheer Ahmad, Founder of Muslim Community Center for Human Services, Texas. This will be followed by a second session from 4:20-5:30 p.m., entitled "Domestic Violence - Signs of Deterioration" will be presented by Dr Kushal Ahmed, Founder of Domestic Harmony Committee of the Islamic Center of Long Island, New York. There will be a question and answer session until 6:10 p.m.

The evening dinner program will be from 6:30 to 10 pm and includes presentations from guest speakers, Dr Baseer Ahmad; Rebecca Cohn, Assembly member of District 24 and a strong advocate for Prevention of Domestic Violence; and Naheed Sheikh, Narika Advocate, NISA Advisory Board Member.

The ticket price for the workshops is $5.00 and advance registration is encouraged. The ticket prices for the evening program are $20 per person, $12 for full time students and $10 for children under 12. Pizza and babysitting will be provided.

Place: Muslim Community Association(MCA), 3003 Scott Blvd., Santa Clara, CA 95052. Tel: (408) 970-0647

For further information, visit the website at www.isna.net/nisa or call 650-856-0440.