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Debary Mosque Opens Free Health Clinic

news-journal

Published On: 10/6/2015 A.D. - 22/8/1436 H. Visited: 7331 times

DEBARY — Mohammad Shakil says his mosque’s opening of a free health clinic is not unlike the day a new neighbor was moving in and he offered to help.

No, we’ve got it, the man told him. So Shakil, of Sanford, instead brought doughnuts and Gatorade, and the man asked why.

“I said, you are going to be my neighbor,” Shakil said.

The Islamic Center of Deltona, tucked into a three-story building just off Enterprise Road in DeBary, has been open now for two years, and its leadership wants to offer a service to the community.

A ribbon-cutting for the Masjid Maryam, or Mosque of Mary, will be today, with services available to uninsured people who meet certain poverty guidelines. Doctors will be available to see patients starting on one Sunday a month, while some lab services and prescription assistance will also be available, Shakil said.

The mosque’s president, Riaz Qureshi of Orange City, said he views the clinic as a way to open a door to Islam — one that doesn’t always get portrayed in American media.

“We are blessed to be in America,” Qureshi said Friday. “Here we live in peace. We have freedom of religion. We have peace and security and the United States of America has given us a lot.

“We need to give back to the community,” he said. “One of the teachings of Islam is: To serve almighty God is to serve humanity.

This is one way of serving. There is a big medical need.”

Qureshi said the ribbon-cutting ceremony, which starts at 2 p.m., will be followed by a barbecue.

The mosque’s attendance has grown to some 200 people.