Ramadan suhur radio show to hit Montreal airwaves

Muslims Live, a new Montreal-based Ramadan radio show organized by the Muslim Association of Canada and the Muslim Students Association of Concordia, will be broadcasting live daily through the month of Ramadan at suhur time.

“Many Muslims in the community find themselves waking up like zombies during suhur, eating quickly and waiting with families in silence for fajr (dawn prayer),” says Razia Sultan Hamidi, who is spearheading the radio show.

“Suhur is a time to rejuvenate ourselves for the day and recharge. Insha Allah (God willing) by tuning in, listeners will benefit from topics that will recharge their spiritual batteries and can share the knowledge with their loved ones,” she says.

Ms. Hamidi, who grew up in London, Ontario before moving to Montreal, has fond childhood memories of listening to the local Ramadan radio show in her hometown at suhur time with her family. Although similar Ramadan radio programs have existed for many years in other cities such as Toronto, it is the first time such a program will be broadcast for the Montreal Muslim community.  Ms. Hamidi hopes that the program will also become an annual Ramadan event for the Montreal community and will help families to take full advantage of the blessings of suhur time.

“I love the feeling at suhur of waking up and knowing you have another day to benefit, enjoy this blessed month and reflect on ways to make yourself better than the day before,” she shares. “With everyone’s busy lifestyles, it is important to take some time out to benefit from the Words of Allah and His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him).”

Broadcasting live from the Loyola Campus of Concordia University, the bilingual show will feature French programming on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, with English programming on the remaining days. In addition to daily discussions and weekly Q&A sessions with guest speakers, the show will also feature weekly quizzes with chances to win prizes.

Khalil Khokhar, co-organizer of Muslims Live, hopes the show will help to not only serve as a beneficial reminder for the listeners, but also to motivate them into positive action.

“At a time where one is only thinking about quickly eating, praying fajr and going back to sleep, this show can serve as a reminder of why we are fasting and how we can get the most out of this month,” he explains.

“We hope that people can take the reminders and use them to push themselves forward in their goal of being better Muslims. We hope our work inspires our listeners to contribute their time and get involved with local mosques or in community efforts in any little way that they can. This will ultimately strengthen our community and bring us closer together.”

Muslims Live will be broadcast daily throughout the month of Ramadan from 3 a.m. to 4 a.m. Listeners can tune in at CJLO 1690 AM, or listen online at www.cjlo.com. The show can also be followed on smartphones, by downloading the “Tune in Radio” application and selecting CJLO from the “local radio” menu.

For more information on the show, visit www.cjlo.com/onair/muslims-live. ■