S.I.S.T.E.R.S Races for the Cure

In conjunction with CAIR, S.I.S.T.E.R.S participated in the Susan G. Komen National Race for the Cure on June 2, 2007. This year marked the 25th anniversary of the Race for the Cure, which promotes breast cancer awareness and raises millions to help find a cure.

S.I.S.T.E.R.S Announces 2007 Scholarship Winners!

Sisters in Solidarity to Educate, Respond & Serve (S.I.S.T.E.R.S) received a large number of scholarship applications from a wide range of extremely talented and devoted young Muslim women. We thank all who submitted applications. Initially, we planned on awarding one scholarship to the top student, however, since we received so many quality applications, we decided to award two $1000.00 scholarships this year. We therefore are awarding one scholarship to a high school senior and one to a current college student. We are pleased to announce that the winner of the high school senior scholarship is Salihah Met (Herndon High School) and the winner of the college student scholarship is Saman Hussain (University of Virginia).

Salihah is an accomplished high school senior attending Herndon High School. She is a member of the National Honor Society and an active member of the Herndon High School Step Team. She participates in numerous community service activities including food drives for the needy in the area as well as tutoring. The touching essay she submitted connected life lessons she has learned from her mentally handicapped cousin and how her cousin in many ways, reflects the characteristics of great women in Islamic history including Aisha, Fatimah and Zainab bint Jash.

Saman Hussain, a Fairfax resident, currently attends the University of Virginia and will graduate with a double major in foreign affairs and religious studies. Saman, along with an impressive GPA, has maintained an equally impressive extracurricular life. She is an active member in the MSA, Students Educating and Empowering for Diversity (SEED), Pakistan Students League and the Women’s Leadership Development Program. Representing UVA, she participated in the Women as Global Leaders conference last spring in UAE where women from eighty-seven countries addressed issues to promote women’s rights on a global scale. She has interned with the Justice Policy Institute and the Foreign Service Institute (US Dept. of State). In her essay submission, she associates Hajar’s search for zam zam with her own, often hectic-paced search for herself and for her own zam zam — for life. She discusses the virtues and ideals rooted in Hajar’s personality and how she strives to emulate these qualities in her own life.

We congratulate both young women and wish them continued success in the future.

Click here for their essays.

Sponsored Sister

As a part of S.I.S.T.E.R.S efforts to support Women and Women's Organizations, last December S.I.S.T.E.R.S hosted a tea party in honor of Women for Women International. S.I.S.T.E.R.S also chose to sponsor a young woman through WWI's sponsorship program. Details of that young woman's life (as provided by WWI) follow:

Country: Kosovo

DOB: 1983

Married with 3 children

The situation of the Kosovar women we sponsor through Women for Women International is very difficult. Poor economic conditions, high unemployment (nearly 60% in 2004) lack of education, and years of displacement, war and trauma of forced displacement--along with rape and torture--under Serbian ethnic cleansing campaign during the war. After the war, many women became heads of the households, a family structure previously uncommon to them. Despite this new role, the illiteracy rate among women is increasing and employment among women is only at 30 percent overall, with a 21 percent employment rate in rural areas. Limited opportunities and dire economic situation prompt many women to seek jobs internationally, making them prey to the international sex trade, which thrives in the Balkans.

The Sponsorship Program has changed the lives of more than 55,000 women, giving them the tools to move from victims of war to survivors to active citizens engaged in the rebuilding of their country. WWI currently has more than 19,000 sponsors from 54 countries and 22,500 participants in participating in our programs worldwide.

S.I.S.T.E.R.S Announces $1000.00 Scholarship For Sisters

Sisters in Solidarity to Educate, Respond & Serve (S.I.S.T.E.R.S ) is pleased to announce their first annual scholarship for sisters. In an effort to highlight the academic and civic achievements of young Muslim women in the DC Metropolitan Area, S.I.S.T.E.R.S initiated this scholarship program in 2007. S.I.S.T.E.R.S aims to recognize and assist deserving students to achieve their higher education goals. This year, a $1000.00 scholarship will be awarded to the most deserving applicant. In order to be considered for this award, all applicants are required to meet the following eligibility guidelines. You must:

• Be a Muslim female between the ages of 17-22 years old.
• Currently be enrolled in or accepted to a 2 or 4 year university program.
• Have a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or better.
• Demonstrate an active participation in community service work.
• Complete a short essay component.
• Submit a letter of recommendation.

The deadline for the scholarship application is April 20, 2007. The winner will be notified by May 1^st. Guidelines and Application are no longer available for this scholarship. Please check back with us for next year's scholarship. If you have any questions or would like us to email you an application, email: sistersinformation@gmail.com.

Membership Form

For anyone who would like to join S.I.S.T.E.R.S, please fill out the form available here.

You can pay your membership dues ($35 a year) through either Paypal (click below)

or by mailing payment to:

S.I.S.T.E.R.S
P.O. Box 407

Fairfax Station, VA 22039

S.I.S.T.E.R.S Host Tea honoring Women for Women International

The article that follows is also featured in the Muslim Link.

By Tracey Abdulwahhab

Muslim Link Contributing Writer

A room full of women were brought to tears on Saturday, December 16th at the ADAMS Center in Sterling, Virginia upon hearing the horrific story of Nyria, a woman who survived the brutal war in Rwanda. Nyria's story, along with the stories of other women survivors of war were read during a fundraiser tea hosted by Sisters in Solidarity to Educate, Respond and Serve (S.I.S.T.E.R.S). The S.I.S.T.E.R.S Tea honored the extraordinary works of Women for Women International, a non profit organization that assists women like Nyria to rebuild their lives and to become active participants and assets to their communities.

Women for Women International currently operates in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Kosovo, Nigeria, Rwanda and Sudan. Over 30,000 women access its programs every day, benefiting 5.3 million family and community members. Since its founding in 1993, Women for Women International has distributed more than $28 million in direct aid and micro-credit loans (http://www.womenforwomen.org). Women for Women International recently received the 2006 Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Award, an annual award presented to an organization that significantly alleviates human suffering.

The organizers of the event brought sisters together for a social gathering, but more importantly, to raise awareness about social issues that impact women. Virginia McKinney, a guest from Michigan commented, "The tea was an eye-opening experience. Usually you only hear about how men are affected by war; rarely do you hear how war affects women and children." Sister Laila Shaheen from Lorton, Virginia was impressed by the turn out, saying "It was a great opportunity to see so many sisters here who really care about making a difference in the world." The donations raised included several one year sponsorships for women to receive training and assistance from Women for Women International programs.

S.I.S.T.E.R.S is a local non-profit, grassroots organization committed to promoting the ties of sisterhood and empowering women through education, outreach and charitable work. S.I.S.T.E.R.S aspires to cooperate with and enhance the efforts of like-minded organizations in order to further contribute to the advancement of women and women's work. For more information about S.I.S.T.E.R.S events or membership, email sistersinformation@gmail.com.