Surrey high school hosts first Ramadan event
Published 2:00 pm Tuesday, April 14, 2026
Fleetwood Park Secondary school’s Muslim Student Association (MSA) hosted its first ever iftar on March 4.
Surrey Schools shared that students who are a part of the MSA at Fleetwood Park wanted to bring their community together while providing education about Ramadan.
The event provided 120 chicken shawarma or falafel meals to both students and staff to break the daily Ramadan fast.
Grade 12 student and MSA executive member Mubashir Ali Syed said inspiration for this event came from another local secondary school.
“We had seen Johnston Heights Secondary host an iftar two years ago, and since then, we’ve wanted to have our own. Some of us went from our last class straight to putting up decorations. It was very tiring, but once everything started to come together, I felt a sense of relief,” said Syed.
The event took two months to plan and was the result of collaboration of a number of organizations. Funding was provided by Islamic Relief Canada, a charity providing aid and development around the world.
Decoration costs were covered by the Miftaah Institute, an Islamic education group, while Al Basha Original’s in Surrey provided both meat and vegetarian food options.
Ticket sales from the event raised about $500 for Islamic Relief.
“It was nice to see our vision become a reality,” said fellow student and MSA executive Fatima Asif. “A lot of people liked the iftar – we had a lot of activities and guest speakers and we did a Kahoot on Ramadan itself and gave out prizes.”
Fleetwood Park’s Muslim Student Association was founded in 2023 and has 10 executive members.
Syed and Asif note the Iftar was open to everyone regardless of faith.
“We had a few non-Muslims there and the school admin, and they got to experience what Ramadan is all about,” said Syed. “Community and connection and the sacrifice you’re willing to make even while you’re fasting to bring the community together.”
Both Syed and Asif are graduating this year, but are hoping that younger students maintain the tradition in the future.