New Muslim reflects on support during first Ramadan

Chloe Sparks fasted from sunrise to sunset for the first time this Ramadan

A new Muslim from Leeds said people had welcomed her into their families during the month of Ramadan.

Chloe Sparks, 27, converted to Islam last year and has fasted from sunrise to sunset for the first time this Ramadan.

However, Chloe said she started to feel "a bit lonely" after realising that her Muslim friends were spending the month surrounded by family and she was spending a lot of time alone.

Sheikh Bilal Brown from New Beginnings, a charity dedicated to working with converts, said Ramadan could be a difficult time for new Muslims and "it's so important for converts to have a community around them during Ramadan".

'Never felt so welcome'

The holy month of Ramadan sees billions of Muslims worldwide refrain from eating and drinking during daylight hours for 30 days.

The month is seen as a time for reflection and increased worship.

For new Muslims like Ms Sparks, who are not only fasting for the first time but also fasting alone, the month can have its own challenges.

She said: "It's only really when I heard people talk about their experiences of Ramadan, spending a lot of time with their families, extended family and friends, that it made me start to feel a bit lonely and realise I was on my own.

"As soon as I became Muslim I was so excited to give fasting a try but I was quite nervous and I told myself it's OK in the first few days to go easy on myself and have some water if I needed to."

However, Ms Sparks said that one day before Ramadan started she changed her mind and she decided to "dive right in" and fast the full 30 days.

"It's been such an amazing experience," she said, praising how her community rallied around her.

She said: "There's a lot of community support for new Muslims here in Leeds, there's lots of organisations and I've honestly never felt so welcome or supported.

"Most of my support comes from the really amazing friends I've made... people welcome you in like you're their own family."

Sheikh Bilal Brown said converting could be a "lonely experience"

Sheikh Brown, 44, co-founded New Beginnings in 2020 after realising that there was a lack of support for people who had recently converted to Islam.

Recalling his own experience, as a convert to Islam himself, Sheikh Brown said he was a bit lonely at first "because you're Muslim on your own and you don't have a family with you to share the experience with", but added he did have his friends for support.

New Beginnings offers converts education around the rules of Ramadan to help ease them into it, but it also provides them with an online community where they can connect with each other.

"Converting to Islam in itself is a very lonely experience, I don't think the Muslim community understands how lonely it can be," Sheikh Brown said.

Arooj Jamil said she initially did not know much about challenges faced by people converting to Islam

Halifax-based food blogger and born Muslim Arooj Jamil began volunteering with New Beginnings in 2022 after the group asked her to cater an event.

She said that initially she did not know much about the challenges converts faced when they first came to Islam.

"I've not really had much exposure to converts or people discovering Islam for the first time," she said.

"As a born Muslim I've been surrounded by the South Asian Muslim community and always felt like I was part of something bigger... whereas for a convert their journey can be quite isolating and challenges that wouldn't even cross my mind they face on a daily basis."

She said that born Muslims like herself had a responsibility to reach out to newer members of the religion and help ease their loneliness, especially during Ramadan.

"A lot of new Muslims don't have anybody to break their fasts with... it's important we open our homes up and extend that invite without judgement."

This year she led a collaboration with Yorkshire-based restaurant MyLahore, which ran giveaways, distributed restaurant vouchers and sponsored the end-of-year Eid party.

Asghar Ali, CEO of the MyLahore restaurant chain

Asghar Ali, chief executive of the MyLahore restaurant chain, said he loved the work New Beginnings did for new Muslims during Ramadan, and that when he first started the business he vowed to never say no when an organisation reached out and asked for support.

"Ramadan is such a blessed month anyway and there is huge reward, so the fact that we're even given that opportunity, you know, we've grasped it," he said.

"Just the fact that we're opening the fast for so many different people is an amazing thing and opportunity to be involved with."

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