Blackburn Muslims donate £47,000 to local hospitals

There was an interesting article in the Lancashire Telegraph last week relaying news of a £47,000 donation made by members of an East Lancashire mosque to the Royal Blackburn Hospital and Burnley General Hospital.

The money was collected and presented by members of the Masjid-e-Tauheedul Islam in Bicknell Street, Blackburn.

From the local paper:

“Members of an East Lancashire mosque have donated £47,000 to provide home comforts for patients at Royal Blackburn Hospital and Burnley General Hospital.

“Blackburn peer Lord Adam Patel and representatives from Masjid-e-Tauheedul Islam mosque in Bicknell Street met health bosses to present the gift this week to the hospitals’ charitable fund.

“Speaking to health chiefs during a presentation event, Lord Patel said: “At Bicknell Street mosque we have always taken part in charity work.

““When the hospital needed a new MRI scanner we contributed generously, there was a need in the eye department and we also donated there and throughout the world we are collecting handsome money for charities in Pakistan and India and to people who are suffering in Africa.

““We have collected this money for this particular purpose for East Lancashire Hospitals to contribute something back.

““We want to prove ourselves as good citizens. We need to work together because this is our hospital and this is for the East Lancashire community.

““We are delighted to continue to offer our support.””

What a contrast to some of the reactions to news the previous week that Tauheedul Islam Boys’ School in Blackburn had been granted free school status by the Department for Education.  An editorial in the Lancashire Telegraph complained that, “If they go to religiously-segregated schools, they are surely likely to grow up viewing large numbers of fellow citizens as ‘different’.”

The donation to the Blackburn and Burnley hospital by members of the local Muslim community clearly prove such fears to be utterly unfounded.