AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): For children in the St. John's Muslim community, Saturday was the day they've been waiting since the beginning of Ramadan.
"We get a reward because we fast the whole month of Ramadan," said 12-year-old Mehak Afahan, who has been looking forward to the Eid al-Fitr celebration.
"We have all sorts of fun stuff we can enjoy."
The reward? Bouncy castles.
While thousands of members of Newfoundland and Labrador's Muslim community gathered for prayers and celebrations at the Techniplex in St. John's on Friday, Saturday was a day for Muslim kids to have fun bouncing around at École des Grands-Vents in St. John's.
"We are just celebrating community and getting together," said Hasan Zaman, a parent at the event.
"It really feels good. Kids are enjoying it most. It is nice to see it all coming together and building the community stronger."
Several hundred children, accompanied by their parents, attended the event, with bouncy castles filling both the school's gymnasium and theatre.
"They can't wait to go on to the bouncy castles, jump, and get that energy out there, happily," said Ayse Akinturk, a volunteer executive with MANAL who helped organize the activities.
"Eid al-Fitr is very important for Muslims all around the world and especially for Muslims living in this part of the world in Newfoundland and Labrador," said Akinturk.
"It's a very small community, but we are growing very fast. And for those people who like to experience the unity of their community together, this is an important occasion."
Akinturk said events like these are great as they highlight the diversity of the province's Muslim population.
"You can see the diversity of the community out there," she said of the attendees.
"People who are originally from different parts of the world, but they are happily Canadian Muslims at the end of the day."
This sentiment was echoed by Soraya Carrim-White, who attended the festivities with her two children.
"This is great," she said. "It's really nice that we're able to come together as a group and just invite everybody and all of the diversity and just really enjoying time together, having fun like kids do."
Akinturk said Saturday was all about the kids.
"It means so much to our youth to see that their happiness is being acknowledged and celebrated by the larger community as well." said Akinturk.
"It helps them to feel belonging, even more than before."
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