The Grand Iftar to deliver 1500 meals to Oxford’s vulnerable

A charity in Oxford has responded to the suspension of its annual communal Iftar this year by committing itself to delivering 1500 meals to the most vulnerable of its community.

With the UK currently in lockdown, the Oxford Homeless Project (OHP) has adapted its popular ‘The Grand Iftar’ get together to feed “the homeless and most vulnerable families across Oxford”.

Last month, OHP posed the question on its Facebook page: “So whilst we’re not doing the Grand Iftar – could we do something else?” before later answering: “Ramadan is a time to give and feed others so that’s what we shall do!”

The charity has now teamed up with Oxford Mutual Aid, Oxford Community Action, Oxford City Council and BAPS Oxford to organise and deliver a minimum of 1500 meals this Friday 15 May.

It has also setup the following fundraising page to help cover the costs of delivering its 3-course ‘Grand Iftar’ meal: www.gofundme.com/f/grand-iftar.

We are also continuing to provide food support for individuals and families in need that are struggling during this time.

“Food poverty is more prevalent during these challenging times. So whilst we can’t have a community celebration in person, we can still show our commitment by delivering a scrumptious 3-course meal to as many people in need as we can,” it said.

OHP was launched via The Grand Iftar in Ramadan by founders Shabnam Sabir and Tayyaba Hameed back in 2015 with the aim of “bringing people together to not only show them what Ramadan is all about, but to invite them to break fast with us”.

Having currently suspended its service of feeding the homeless at its centre, the charity has diverted its efforts towards assisting organisations hard at work in supporting the community’s most vulnerable.

“We’ve reached out to them all and are providing them with requested donations of food and other items that have asked for. Today we delivered 120 kg of rice and lots of bottles of water to the Porch as requested.

“We are also continuing to provide food support for individuals and families in need that are struggling during this time. We will continue to support them and others for as long as we can,” it said.