When 13-year-old Zayan Kajani sets his mind to something, the young man from Dublin makes it happen. Lately, his mind has been focused on helping others.
“Doing good feels good,” he said.
Kajani volunteers in a variety of ways at the Muslim Community Center – East Bay (MCC). That often involves lending a helping hand in providing clothing and food to those in need in the Tri-Valley at the MCC’s so-called “refugee bazaar.”
The 13-year-old really learned the power of giving back earlier this year.
“During the holy month of Ramadan, when I and Muslims around the world were fasting, I realized what hunger really feels like,” he told CBS News Bay Area.
When he learned that there are people in his community who deal with hunger every day, it really struck him.
“I was actually just surprised to be honest with you,” he said. “I didn’t really think anyone in Dublin was very hungry. You don’t see people on the streets, you see people in nice houses, you know?”
So he and his friends got together.
“We think: why don’t we do something about it?” he said.
CBS
In partnership with the MCC and the Alameda County Community Food Bank (ACCFB), Kajani and his friends created a food drive collecting food from schools and others in the Tri-Valley area.
“We were able to raise a lot of money and help a lot of people,” he says.
They raised nearly $20,000 – and – enough food for approximately 40,000 meals for people in the community.
“You talk about it, you know what you want to do and you know you’re helping people, but when you see it firsthand, you really have an impact,” he said. “To see that impact fully fleshed out, it really made us feel like, yeah, we did something really cool.”
The ACCFB is currently operating at record levels. It provides up to 1,000,000 meals to people in the community every week.
This year, the ACCFB reports a 500,000 pound increase in the amount of food going to people in the Tri-Valley.
Sister Aminah Abdullah of the MCC says the need is “absolutely there.”
“Last Saturday we started distributing food at 9 a.m., and normally we continue until noon. By 10:40 a.m., the produce was gone,” she told CBS News Bay Area. “Anyone can be food insecure. One job loss, one illness, one death in a family can cause anyone to become food insecure.”
When asked about Zayan, Abdullah couldn’t help but smile from ear to ear.
“He’s great, he and his friends are great,” she said. “Even though you’re young, you can have a huge impact. You can start to change the world.”
As for Kajani, his selflessness comes from the heart and from a place of faith.
“I think the perception of Islam has been somewhat tarnished in this society. Islam is really about generosity, peace and helping others. A big part of Ramadan, for me at least, is about empathy,” he said.
So whether it’s food, clothing or something else, Kajani has a message:
“Just help people if you can,” he said.
