Sacramento Chapter of Friends of Indus Hospital Organizes Gala Fundraiser

By Ras H. Siddiqui

The Sacramento Chapter of Friends of Indus Hospital (FOIH), led by Dr Maqbool Ahmed, Dr Salwa Hussain, and Dr Samreen Jamshed, held a gala fundraising event in Sacramento, California, on Friday, January 24, 2025, attended by the Who’s Who of the area community at Hilton Arden West to promote healthcare access in Pakistan. It was a great evening of philanthropy, but not without its entertainment segment. As an added attraction, Pakistani drama and film actress Yumna Zaidi and Pakistani adopted American comedian Jeremy McLellan enlivened the proceedings with their presence. Around two hundred people attended the event including several area Pakistani American youths, an encouraging sign for our community.

The FOIH ( https://foihus.org/ ) vision and mission is succinctly spelled out: “Founded by American Pakistani expatriates and backed by a diverse community across the USA, FOIH is a testament to the power of global collaboration in making a meaningful impact on healthcare accessibility.” Its implementing partner in Pakistan is the Indus Hospital & Health Network (IHHN), which operates 10 Hospitals, 4 Regional Blood Centers, 3 Physical Rehabilitation Centers, 81 Primary Care sites, and other Public Health Initiatives in Pakistan. From its humble inception in 2007, it is now in the process of constructing one of the largest hospitals in Pakistan (presently partially functioning) in Korangi (Karachi) with a provision for 1,350 beds upon completion. One of the missions of IHHN is to “Create an excellence-driven, comprehensive, compassionate free of charge, replicable healthcare system accessible to all.”

Returning to the FOIH event in Sacramento, dinner was served first allowing attendees to socialize and partake in Pakistani cuisine (courtesy Farrukh Hashmi) and to enjoy some great mocktails from Maza Café. The formalities started on time as the first event emcee Dr Salwa Hussain called everyone to attention and invited two local youths Khadeeja Ahmed and Fatima Shams to present a recitation from the Holy Qur’an and the English translation of the verses. This was followed by the singing of two national anthems important to us, first that of the USA (the country which has made it possible for us to contribute) led by Rida Jan, and that of Pakistan (the country which gave us our foundations) led by Asif Haq. The entire hall stood up in respect for both and sang along.

Before proceeding further, it is important to mention three individuals who were honored at this event for their community service. They were a certain writer/reporter (yours truly, and thanks), and two much more deserving community members, namely Ehsan Hadi who along with his wife has been the main force behind the annual Pakistan Cultural Festival held in nearby Roseville, and to top it off, senior journalist, octogenarian Ariful Haque Arif who is quite active (MA) after 50 plus years of working for the Jang Group of newspapers and Geo TV (Pakistan). And three (actually four) artists whose work was auctioned here for the fundraising, namely Suzana Malik (calligraphy on pottery), Ahsan Ali (abstract on canvas), and two very cute young girls whose stuffed teddy bear creations were auctioned off to the highest bid for a toy that this writer has ever seen or heard of (Kudos PCM’s Qumar Ashraf). And all for charity. These actions were spread out over the evening program, but they were significant enough to be mentioned together here in this report.

Additionally, there were formal presentations by Dr Salwa Hussain, Dr Samreen Jamshed (event co-emcee), and Dr Hareem Zahid. They were joined by two local area physicians, namely, Dr Fouzia Godil and Dr Altaf Jan who shared with us their positive experiences while visiting Indus health facilities in Pakistan. Three key areas were focused on here. 1) There is a great need for additional health care services in Pakistan especially in the treatment of children suffering from cancer and malnutrition. 2) Indus Hospital & Health Network is doing splendid work in our country of origin, and it conducts itself in a very professional manner there. 3) We can all do our share from here by adding financial resources to help get medical care to many economically disadvantaged people in Pakistan.

All the presentations were very professional, and we could add Dr Maqbool Ahmed (who was multitasking this evening) and Rida Jan here to the list for their stage presence and presentations while conducting the fundraiser, along with the Director of Global  Initiatives from Indus Hospital Network, Pervaiz Ahmed. One is continually amazed at the cost of medical care in Pakistan. Just $25 for one chemotherapy session, $3,500 for heart bypass surgery, and $6,000 for full childhood cancer treatment of one kid. This same treatment would run in the thousands and/or hundreds of thousands of dollars here in America, but the fact remains that most people in Pakistan cannot afford these amounts, especially in the case of childhood cancer. The top donation request at this event was $6,000 and we are glad that some complied.

To assist with the fundraising and to add star power to the event, Yumna Zaidi appeared on stage. Numerous Pakistani American households follow Urdu dramas from back home here in America which are run on various channels that we access here. Although the Pakistani film industry always seems to be struggling, its television dramas continue to boom internationally. It was in this light that it was great to see and hear from a table of Indian ladies who came to this event to meet Yumna because they follow Pakistani dramas too. Yumna was polite and very articulate as she lent a hand with the fundraising and stayed till the end to have pictures taken with many of the attendees.

There is always a need for some humor when one parts with hard-earned money, especially when it is for a worthy cause. For that comedian Jeremy McLellan returned to the stage to close the event and soon had us all rolling in laughter. This time he expressed his interest in old Churches being bought by Muslims in America which are converted to Mosques. A scenario was described where old churchgoers return to worship at these venues without being aware of the change. Imagine their reaction! Jeremy also resurrected the tale of a Pakistani town named after an Abbot and about not being able to find an infamous personality there for several years. It was all in pronunciation!

To conclude full credit goes to the local Pakistani and South Asian community for attending this charity event for a great cause. As Dr Samreen Jamshed said on stage, one of the most valuable resources that we can share with others is time (Waqt). So, kudos to the community. Additionally, the same, if not greater praise needs to go to the FOIH Chapter in Sacramento for planning and executing this gala.