{"id":6236,"date":"2015-11-22T10:21:06","date_gmt":"2015-11-22T10:21:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/english.thesunrisetoday.com\/?p=6236"},"modified":"2015-11-22T10:21:06","modified_gmt":"2015-11-22T10:21:06","slug":"7-year-old-donates-piggy-bank-money-to-mosque","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english.thesunrisetoday.com\/index.php\/7-year-old-donates-piggy-bank-money-to-mosque\/","title":{"rendered":"7 year-old donates piggy bank money to mosque"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Mosque\"<\/a>A 7-year-old boy donated all the money in his piggy bank to a Texas mosque that was vandalised in what police are saying is a hate crime.
\nThe Islamic Center of Pflugerville was hit by a vandal who left torn pages of the Qur\u2019an smeared with feces outside the entrance, police said. The vandalism was found early Monday morning by a congregant.
\nThe young donor, Jack Swanson, went to the mosque that afternoon and handed over his money \u2014 $20 that had originally been collected in the form of pennies over time, according to Faisal Naeem, one of the mosque\u2019s board members.
\n\u201cJack\u2019s $20 are worth $20 million to us because it\u2019s the thought that counts,\u201d Naeem told ABC News today. \u201cJack is just a little older than my son, Ibrahim. If we have more kind-hearted kids like them in the world, I have hope for our future.\u201d
\nAlthough no physical damage was made to the facility, clean-up costs were estimated to be about $150, a mosque member told police.
\nJack\u2019s mother, Laura Swanson, told ABC affiliate KVUE that she wanted to support the mosque and show that \u201cwhat happened in Paris is not what\u2019s happening in Pflugerville.\u201d
\nNaeem added that he didn\u2019t want to assume the vandalism was motivated by news of the Paris terror attacks until police conclude their investigation.
\nWhen the local Muslim community learned of Jack\u2019s generosity, they decided to surprise Jack with a gift.
\nThey sent him an Apple iPad which he had been saving up for with a message saying:
\n\u201cDear Jack,<\/em>
\nYou had saved $20 in your piggybank for an Apple iPad. But then a local Islamic mosque was vandalized. So you donated your $20 to this local Texas mosque instead. Because of your amazing generosity & kind heart\u2026Please enjoy this Apple iPad with our sincere thanks \ud83d\ude42<\/em>
\nLove<\/em>
\nThe American Muslim Community :)\u201d<\/em>
\nNaeem said he was frustrated with the \u201cgeneralisations\u201d often applied to the Muslim community after terrorist attacks.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s become so commonplace where something goes wrong somewhere and people want to blame all Muslims,\u201d he said. \u201cIf anything, it\u2019s a pointing indictment of the logical fallacy in our society\u2019s way of thinking.\u201d
\nNonetheless, Naeem said the mosque remains encouraged by the local community\u2019s outpouring of support since the vandalism.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\r\n