HHRD Fundraiser in Sacramento for KIND-R Hospital with Younis Khan
By Ras H. Siddiqui
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Helping Hand for Relief and Development (HHRD) is no stranger to those familiar with benevolent, charitable work. According to its website “HHRD is a global humanitarian relief and development organization responding to human sufferings in emergency and disaster situations around the world. In addition to our emergency relief efforts in natural or man-made disasters, we also work on long term relief and development programs.” And one of its projects KIND-R Hospital is catching the attention of Overseas Pakistanis and the wider American Muslim community as it aspires to build Pakistan’s largest Neurological Hospital and Rehabilitation Center in Karachi.
The Karachi Institute of Neurological Diseases & Rehabilitation (KIND-R) had its soft launch on December 16, 2025, with the opening of its 42,000-square-foot Phase I facility in Sohrab Goth which seeks to expand its services towards an Autism Center and a Prosthetic and Orthotics Center. The idea for this hospital began in 2017 and it is now a starting reality which is in its expansion mode. And for that to happen it needs resources. It was for this purpose that Helping Hand USA held a fundraiser in Elk Grove, California at Virsa Event Center (just south of Sacramento) on Sunday, August 23, 2026, featuring Imam Tahir Anwar from the Bay Area and Pakistani cricket legend Younis Khan. Local sponsorship was provided by Amana Mutual Funds and Guidance Residential, both of which are no strangers to the American Muslim community.
The event in Elk Grove was hosted by Abdul Khader, Dr Faisal Ahmed, Dr Jawad Arif and Ijaz Arif, and assisted by Sameeha Shaikh and Waseem Peracha. Dinner was served first, giving some late comers a chance to participate and not miss the formalities. Emcee Dr Jawad Arif welcomed everyone and opened the formalities by inviting young Suhaib Peracha for the Qirat which was beautifully presented by him. Jawad returned and said that this event is for a noble cause. He also introduced the sponsors and then invited Dr Faisal Ahmed to the stage to share his thoughts.
Dr Faisal has been associated with HHRD for some time and elaborated on the KIND-R project recalling his visit there about a year ago. He is a Child Psychiatrist and the author of a recent book on mental health. He specializes in neurodevelopmental disorders He said that people are often having difficulty in accessing mental health treatment even in America, what to say of Pakistan. There is almost nothing in Pakistan for such services and that is where fast developing KIND-R comes in with all services offered under one roof plus continuity in treatment. He added that he was really impressed with the level of care that he saw was being provided there. He concluded by reflecting on Pakistan’s recent 14 th August Independence Day celebrations and said that KIND-R is one project that we should be celebrating with it as it offers freedom from our limitations.
A short and informative video on HHRD and the KIND-R project was shown next setting the stage for Imam Tahir Anwar to offer his words of wisdom and inspiration. Imam Tahir has been active in our community in the Bay Area for over two decades now and it is always great to see him in the Sacramento area too. He expressed his appreciation for the hospital project and people associated with it for keeping/maintaining a remarkably high standard of care. On a more local level he highlighted his interaction with the community at fundraisers in the Sacramento area. He said that our love for Allah (SWT) and service to humanity brings us together. Deriving and sharing inspiration from the Hadith, Imam Tahir also conducted the fundraising quite successfully.
The call for Maghrib prayer was delivered by Moosa Ijaz as people took a break to pray. The next speaker was Sajid Riaz who shared some of his own views on KIND-R Hospital. He spoke of his family experience with a special needs child many years ago and the lack of supporting care at the time. He said that after a recent visit to KIND-R Hospital he was surprised by its quality and of facilities and care available in Karachi. The support that families today are getting at this hospital was amazing. He said that he personally wanted to thank KIND-R on behalf of the parents of special need kids and Karachi for giving this gift to the city where kids are treated free of cost. He also thanked all the donors to this hospital that made it a reality.
Next up on stage was Zain Jeewanjee who came all the way from the Bay Area. Although Zain may disagree with his introduction by Dr Ijaz Arif that he is a techie, but for us he is although tied to the insurance industry in Silicon Valley and far beyond. His philanthropical journey is also well-known and was also visible here. But if one has known Zain as long as some of us have, his passion for the game of cricket and the Pakistan cricket team (win or lose) has been remarkable. The players know him and even Younis Khan mentioned him more than once here. We appreciate his attendance at the event along with his better half Farzana and can vouch for the fact that he spoke from the heart here. And his description of Younis Khan as the humble record making captain of Pakistan’s Cricket Team was spot on.
No fundraiser featuring a Pakistani cricket player is complete without the auctioning of the game’s bats, balls and other mementoes signed by the player. This one was no exception as Younis Khan obliged and added his signature to items auctioned including a jersey. And the closing fireside chat with him, Ijaz Arif and HHRD Development Director Ilyas Chaudry was both entertaining and informative.
Mohammad Younis Khan is amazingly humble for a player who has scored more runs in test cricket (10,099) than any other Pakistani. He even surpassed the great Javed Miandad. Younis also captained the Pakistani team which won the T20 World Cup final in 2009 against Sri Lanka during which Abdul Razzaq’s bowling and spectacular batting by Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal and Shoaib Malik won the day. Younis Khan also happens to be one of only four Pakistanis to score a triple century (he scored 313 runs) in test cricket, the others being Little Master Hanif Mohammad (337), Inzamam-ul-Haq (329) and Azhar Ali (302). Just being in the company of such great cricketers is an amazing feat, yet Younis Khan interacted with the attendees at this event like they were his friends and family. He spoke very fondly (in Urdu) about his birthplace, Mardan, and of Karachi where he spent many years. He shared a great deal, including times in his life when he had almost no money vs times when he had enough. His message was that one does not become poor by contributing to charitable causes where the returns can be manifold and never ending.
