First Ever Evening Eid!

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The Muslim Women’s Association of SA has been supporting Muslim women in Adelaide for over 25 years. Our team is always looking to adapt, see what is needed and try new things, to give the best services and support to our community that we possibly can. This year, we undertook to try our first ever Evening Eid. Traditionally we would hold a morning tea at our office during the day which some members could not attend due to work. We chose a restaurant as the venue for added convenience, guaranteed delicious food with no cooking or cleaning. The restaurant we settled on was Tangritah Uyghur Restaurant. The new location at 100 Grote Street is spectacular. The restaurant is rather large and the booth seating style allows for a more intimate feel. 

Large dishes were delivered to each of our tables to share. Naturally we had to have some of the tasty trademark Uyghur handmade noodles, served with fried chicken and vegetables. This chicken noodle dish was a clear favourite, earning rave reviews across the table and disappearing very quickly! There was salad and rice with lamb. We enjoyed large bowls of another trademark Uyghur dish: Ding Ding – short cut noodles with beef and vegetables in a spicy sauce. Long skewers of lamb kebab were brought out, hot and juicy straight from the grill. Finally, each table was given a jug of sweet, creamy and slightly tangy Ayran. 

Our team thanks the Tangritah Uyghur Restaurant family for their hospitality and we look forward to going back again. 

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We had just over 20 ladies attend. Thankyou for coming out ladies, thankyou for your beautiful company and conversation! Thanks also go to the ladies who provided feedback for the future Working Women’s Program. Your feedback is invaluable as guidance for our planning, to help us deliver the most appropriate services and programs for the community. 

We are still accepting feedback for the future Working Women’s Program through the Google Form until Monday 1st of July.

If you didn’t get the chance to provide feedback at the Evening Eid, please feel welcome to provide feedback now.

It only takes about 2 minutes. Feedback is also welcome from women who are looking for work. 

MWASA Team 2019 Eid Lunch at Sahara Moroccan Casbah

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Each Eid the MWASA team are very excited to make the most of every tasty halal cultural cuisine and try somewhere new; this Eid al Fitr our team booked the Sahara Moroccan Casbah for lunch. 

The Casbah is on the corner of Little Gilbert and Sturt Streets, conveniently located only metres away from Adelaide City Mosque. The area is lovely and quaint, walking down the street one cannot help but think back to the Muslim Cameleers and their families walking these same paths over the last 100+ years.

Sahara Moroccan Casbah is more than just a Moroccan food experience, it’s an entire Moroccan cultural dining experience. The front restaurant also displays many Moroccan items for purchase, from the spectacular lamps hanging overhead, to various homewares, clothing/jewellery and other personal items. Upon our group being seated, we were treated to a splash of rose water from a decorative job, to refresh the hands and relax the mind.

We were each brought a satisfying bowl of Harira soup to start. The main affair was, of course, couscous! One lamb and one chicken, both thoughtfully arranged in traditional north African style. This couscous is not the instant one from a box that most of us make at home, this is the real deal, fresh and distinct. The meat and vegetables showed the experience and skill of the chef, slow cooked until tender and still vibrant. After eating our fill of the savoury mains, we delighted in finishing off with a shared pot of tea and assortment of authentic biscuits. Every single team member from our office hails from a different country of origin, and we were united in agreeing this lunch was delicious.

There is a private function area to the back of the restaurant, an intimate area with intricate decor. Throughout the Casbah, everything is eye-catching! The plush textures, rich colours and complex designs are a welcome invigoration in this increasingly sterile and minimalist modern culture. In order to avoid disappointment, do as we did and call the restaurant some days beforehand to book. 

Our team thanks Brother Ali and his beautiful wife for their hospitality and we look forward to going back again. 

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Seniors very prepared for Ramadan

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Throughout the month of May, our seniors group met regularly in preparation for Ramadan.

The first gathering was for ‘Ramadan Love Letter’, a session led by Sister Nurhayati who is a graduate from Al Azhar University majoring in Shariah Islamiah. She is a recognised Asatizah by the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore. She also did her Post Graduate diploma in Islamic Law. 

The number of participants exceeded expectations. All attendees were captivated and engaged in listening to the guest speaker. Sister Nurhayati explained thoroughly the revelation prescribing Ramadan and the rationale behind fasting. 

Following on from Ramadan Love Letter was 3 Tajweed classes (reading the Quran with correct pronunciation and grammar), led by Sister Hanna. Some of the ladies from the seniors group enjoyed the Quran reading so much that they will in future also attend the Monday classes. 

This program was a huge success; the feedback received was overwhelmingly positive, all sessions went smoothly and the group is looking forward to future similar sessions.

For more information about our program for men and women aged over 65 years, go to our CHSP page.

MWASA Congratulates the Governor of SA on his extended appointment

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The Muslim Women’s Association of SA would like to congratulate the Governor of South Australia, His Excellency the Honourable Hieu Van Le AC, on his extended appointment.

The Government of SA Government House website is an official source for the biography of the Governor, we will instead speak only from personal experience.

His Excellency has been a friend to our organisation, graciously attending and speaking at milestone events.

When our office relocated to our current location in the Flinders University building, His Excellency cut the ribbon during the auspicious ceremonial opening. 

Earlier this year, at our Silver Jubilee Celebration for Service Providers, His Excellency gave a particularly insightful and moving speech where he expressed his gratitude and pleasure regarding the community services provided by MWASA for the settlement and wellbeing of refugees, in light of his own lived experience as a refugee. 

Governor Hieu Van Le is an admirable role model, not only for refugees but indeed for everyone, a symbol of how much a person can raise themselves above dire circumstances through integrity, humility and generosity. 

MWASA would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate and thank Mrs Le for her strong history of community involvement and support.

His Excellency and Mrs Le are charming guests on top of being absolute pillars of the South Australian community, we look forward to continuing our friendship with them and can hardly wait to see what other positive projects and progress the future brings.

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Feedback Needed for Future Working Women’s Program

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The Muslim Women’s Association of SA invites all current and future members* to provide feedback for a future Working Women’s Program.

Click here to have your say.

The initial feedback period will be the 2 weeks 17th June to 1st July 2019, however all feedback is welcome at any time by emailing admin@mwasa.org.au or calling the office on 08 8212 0800 during office hours. 

*Membership is available to women living within the Adelaide metropolitan region; services and programs are delivered within the Adelaide metropolitan region

National Volunteer Week 2019

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Given that it was the 30th annual National Volunteer Week earlier this month, we are taking this opportunity to acknowledge our wonderful volunteers. 

Volunteering Australia defines volunteering as “time willingly given for the common good and without financial gain” – but having said that, Australian volunteers contribute an estimated $290 billion to the national economy annually.

Our Volunteer Coordinator says that she is very impressed with the calibre of volunteers who have registered with MWASA. 

We asked some of our valued and highly respected volunteers about their experience volunteering with us and this is what they said:

To be notified about future volunteering opportunities with MWASA, please send through your details using the online form.

In case we currently don’t have any opportunities available in your chosen area of interest or expertise; Volunteering Australia has released the app GoVolunteer to match volunteers with appropriate opportunities.

Volunteering Australia Fact Sheet

Continence Program Concluded

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The third and final continence session was held last week.

The third session was a day tour to the Continence Resource and Independent Living Centre in Gilles Plains. Everyone gathered in the morning at the MWASA office on Victoria Square in the city and travelled out together. 

The tour commenced with a welcome talk by Rosalie the Registered Nurse, who works at the Continence Foundation. Three interpreters were provided to ensure that everyone could understand and benefit.

Following on from the welcome, Sonia the Physiotherapist gave a talk about the parts and function of the pelvic floor muscle. Sonia instructed our group on how to properly perform the Kegel exercise. Everyone was very attentive and felt comfortable to ask questions. One member asked how frequently the exercises should be done and Sonia suggested that at least 3 times a week should be enough. 

The next speaker, Lisa, provided further information about where to go for help if someone is experiencing the problem of incontinence. There are many types of health care workers, the first visit can be to the family GP (General Practitioner) and then the GP can refer on to the Physiotherapist or other specialist, or a nurse can also provide assistance. Lisa informed everyone about the Continence Foundation website, which shows information in 32 different languages, and she let everyone know about the helpline so that they are aware in the case the need assistance. 

Finally, the Occupational Therapist gave the group a tour which included demonstrations of the different kinds of equipment that a person can use to live independently. The equipment ranged from different types of beds, to kitchen utensils, gardening tools, personal care kits, walking aids, wheelchair cushions, scooters of different kinds, toilet seats and much more. 

Overall the day was incredibly informative and all participants learned so much. They enjoyed seeing and being able to touch the equipment, which helps with understanding and being able to retain that information. The members feel that this information will be very useful to them in the future. 

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Silver Jubilee for Service Providers

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The Muslim Women’s Association of SA (MWASA) Silver Jubilee for Service Providers was celebrated in February, to acknowledge the contribution made by Service Providers towards our success.
 
The event was held in the Bradley Forum Hall at the Hawke Centre. We appreciate the kindness of UniSA in providing us with this beautiful venue.
 
The event was organised by the MWASA Youth group, under the supervision of Project Manager Shaista Kalaniya. The tasks were distributed among the group based on their interest and skills. As always, the Youth Group made us proud by executing another successful event.
 
The program began with Quran recitation by Asyraaf Shahrizan, followed by the translation given by Melissa Ayyildiz. Chairperson Dora Abbas gave an opening speech, welcoming and addressing the guests.
 
His Excellency the Honourable Hieu Van Le Governor of South Australia and Mrs Lan Le kindly accepted our invitation to be Guests of Honour for the event. His Excellency’s speech was full of encouragement, appreciation and his views on when a refugee feels settled was very thoughtful.
 
Other guests included representatives from various organisations.
 
A performance was given by Brother Zuhir Naji, a newly arrived refugee from Syria who is a singer and ran a music school in his country before coming to Australia in 2016. He played Oudh (musical Instrument) and sang an Arabic song. His performance was enjoyed by everyone.
 
A slideshow was presented on the journey of MWASA, another highlight of the day which received a lot of appreciations from the guests. The credit goes to Zainab Al Hamad and Saad Kalaniya for putting together a memorable presentation.

Over the past month, a wide array of members of the Muslim Women’s Association were asked about their thoughts, journey, and experience which they’ve had with the organisation. Their responses were captured and compiled by Melissa and her team.

 
 

Acknowledgements & Congratulations

MWASA would like to thank all the volunteers who gave their time and effort in making this event a memorable and successful one.

We acknowledge Shamil Jamion who assisted with the videography and producing a video that captured the highlights of the event. 
 
We also thank Ramila Chanisheff for being the MC (Mistress of Ceremonies) for the event.
 
Management would like to congratulate Shaista and the MWASA Youth Group on the successful and memorable Service Providers event.
 

Sponsors

We take this opportunity to acknowledge our sponsors. 

We thank Nosaiba for all the hard work in getting sponsors.

UniSA
No photo description available. Hire-Ay 
No photo description available. Parwana Afghan Kitchen
20181010 221819 Syrian Sweets

 

Community Resource: Sonder Employment Solutions

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Sonder Employment Solutions is a new program aimed at migrants and refugees living in Adelaide’s northern and western suburbs who receive income support payments and need support with finding employment.

The service is entirely voluntary and is not connected to Centrelink Job Service Providers.

Sonder Employment Solutions is a free program and getting involved is easy. To access the program, complete the online referral form.