Dear Muslims,

I created this Launchgood page to help raise fund for a very important and special dawah and sadaqah jareyah project.

My wife,  who is a convert to Islam, has been helping with a dawah program in Costa Rica where she visited with them twice last year and met with some of the most dedicated sisters, who most of them became Muslims on their own just by searching the internet.  

One of the sisters there is in real need of help as she lost her home to the floods during hurricane Nate in 2017 and has been homeless since then.

I am writing to appeal for your Zakaht and Sadaqat to help this sister have a place to live. The cost to get a small house in this area is about $15K. 

Please read her story below and participate in this khyr. May Allah SWT bless you and your family.

​All funds raised will be collected in my personal account and I attest that I will withdraw and send directly to beneficiary Sister Habiba.

Khaled Ewida

Dallas, TX

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Her Story:

Salam! My name is Habiba, I am a 56-year-old convert from Costa Rica. I live in the southern area of the country near the city of Palmar Norte. As a majority of the Latin American countries, no one knows anything about Islam there. I was born and raised as a devout catholic. There are very few Muslims in Costa Rica, in fact, there is only one small masjid in San Jose. I was a teacher at the local church for 10 years and I taught my children Christianity and took them to church every day.

11 years ago, I opened up my Facebook and saw I had friend requests from 2 young Palestinians, they were 13 and 15 years old. They told me about Islam and shared with me surahs of the Quran and Sami Yusuf's nasheeds on my Facebook wall. I became intrigued by the Quran and I looked for more information on the internet. I spent 3 years researching Islam, listening to Quran translations, and many lectures online. Soon, I became convinced that Islam is the right religion for me and in July of 2012 I traveled to the Masjid in San Jose and I said my shahadah.

After I became Muslim, my children didn't talk to me for the first year. They thought that I had gone crazy, questioning how I could leave Christianity when I was the one who used to take them to church every day when they were little. On top of that, my brothers and sisters do not talk to me either. They want nothing to do with me ever since I converted.

Unfortunately, there is no Muslim community in Costa Rica to rely on for support. To make a living for myself, I used to sell clothing door to door and wash dishes at local restaurants while at the same time going to school so that I could one day become a special education teacher.

Losing my Home:

In October 2017, the tropical storm Nate hit the south zone of the country. My house was near the Térraba river which is the biggest river in the country. The water rose from the river destroying and flooding all the houses in the area. The water rose all the way to the roof of my house and I lost everything.

Unfortunately, there is no insurance or government assistance to help recover my home. The area is condemned by the government, considered a flood zone, and no one is allowed to rebuild there. The government has only granted me enough money to buy clothes and living expenses for 3 months. I have been homeless since then, and my family wants nothing to do with me. It has been extremely difficult to find a place to live.

After the flood, and for the past 2 years, I started suffering from respiratory problems and had to put my education on hold because of this. It was not till February this year when I was able to save up some money to go to a specialist. I began treatment with a lung specialist last February but with the coronavirus, the hospital stopped it. I hope insha allah, after the treatment I will be able to finish my schooling and continue practicing Islam even more. Even with my lung condition, I was still able to make a daily living selling clothes and washing dishes at local restaurants. It was enough money to cover food, but with the Coronavirus, the economy deteriorated, and I am unable to even work.

Currently I live with a non-muslim family that took me from church. It is challenging being dependent on and living with them since they want me to come back to the following of Christianity. Ever since converting to Islam, I have no one to call my own, especially in such a catholic-driven country. I want to live in my own home so that I can practice my religion freely. 

As soon as the corona restrictions are released, I will go back to working so that I can make a living for myself and study so that I can complete my education InshAllah. But for now, given the current circumstances, I am appealing to my Muslim brothers and sisters to help me find a small place to live so I am not dependent on others to offer me a place to live. May Allah SWT reward all of you for your sadaqa, especially in Ramadan.