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Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh
Peace and Blessing be Upon You All.
My name is Musa Hoosain, step-nephew of Issa Traore and step-son of Boubacar Traore who will be the one relaying this heart-wrenching story.
Issa Traore was known to many of his African friends and relatives in Brooklyn as a hardworking, honest, and busy delivery driver by day, and a generous host for home-cooked African dinner in the night. He paid his rent on time and was generous to all who were in need. No one expected that this healthy and vibrant giant would end up being immobile with a series of drastic tragedies that fell like a spilling dominoes. I am his brother who is the witness of his extensive adversity.
The first tragic event started when his wife wanted a divorce a few months after the birth of his son. After that, he had a severe accident on his job in which he fell through a manhole and fractured his leg. He never reported the incident since his boss told him that they will work out some deal. Also, He never went to the hospital which caused his leg to deformed. Then, in January 2018, Issa was diagnosed with Craniopharyngioma, a brain tumor that caused blindness and memory loss. He had surgery for it, but unfortunately, it was unsuccessful and the tumor grew back in six months.
When I went to visit him in New York City, I realized that he could not function on his own. He was completely immobile. He could not see, he could not read, he could not even use the bathroom. Brooklyn, the place that he had been living in for 30+ years and knew very well (because he was a delivery man), couldn't be recalled by him at all from his memory. Day to day, this situation was really hurting him internally, emotionally, and physically. However, even though my financial situation isn't great and not conducive to fully support him, how could I not take him in? After moving in with me and my family in North Carolina, he was able to get another surgery for his brain tumor which was successful this time, and he began to improve Al-Hamdulillah (Praise be to God).
As he was recovering, he had hope that he can drive again and go get a job, as he told us "I love to work". Then, he was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea, where it was discovered his heart stopped around 180x every night he tried to sleep. This led him to take a breathing machine every time he wants to sleeps. But the worst scenario for Issa was that the doctor told him, "You will never walk again if you don't get the leg surgery." After the X-ray, they found that not only was his leg fractured, but so was his hip. He had to go back for another surgery which has left him in the hospital for 3 weeks to rest and get some basic therapy. He came back to what is now home for him with his brother and a home aid came to check up on him, but medicare only covered for 3 times. He went back to get a general check-up where they took an x-ray of his legs and was told even worse news when we had thought he had already gone through the worst of it. "Your legs are uneven. So, we are scheduling another surgery for your other leg to try to make them even." He had come back home in tears and broke down. He told me through the tears of a grown man "they just cut into and did surgery on my left leg and now they told me I have to go in for another surgery for my right leg on June 29 [2020]!" I had no idea what to say from utter shock nor could I increase my support for my brother by much more since I also have a family of 3 children and a wife to support as well. I also lost my job due to the coronavirus pandemic and I'm fully on unemployment.
But the story does not stop there. The tragedies keep piling during these 2+ years (Jan 2018 - on-going 2020). Very sadly, despite his disabilities of memory loss, inability to walk normally, consistent surgeries, immense weight gain, loss of appetite, large doses of medicine to offset pains and swells from said surgeries which then negatively impacted him and got him diagnosed with a rarer form of diabetes called Diabetes Insipidus; he finds himself in immense debt. During these 2+ years, he has accumulated fees for 6 months of rent, child support, taxes past due for IRS, and medical expenses. This could all be solved if he can apply for a disability program. However, you can only apply if you are a citizen, and, unfortunately, he is not and cannot become one until he fully pays out his debt. The total amount for his debts of IRS past-due taxes, child support fees, naturalization/citizenship/papers fees, and medical fees add up to $17,000.
We are asking humbly to support Issa, as he used to support many of his friends and family whenever they needed help. We testify to his shyness in asking for anything, and his greatest wish to go back to work. We also ask for your du'a (prayer) in easing his situation and making a brighter future for him.
Thank you so much for reading our story. Please share and support as much as you can for verily God will never reward a good a person except with good and whoever gives a goodly loan, God would increase that goodly loan multiple folds back to that person.
UPDATE: Al-Hamdulillah, we've received word from some muslims in the community that this campaign is also Zakat-eligible if you wanted to give Zakat during this month of Ramadhaan!
Allah says this in Chapter 55 of the Qur'an:
"Is the reward for good [anything] but good?" [55:60]
and in Chapter 57:
"Who is it that will lend to God a good loan which God will multiply ˹many times over˺ for them, and they will have an honorable reward (i.e Paradise)?" [57:11]
and later again in another verse of the same Chapter:
"Indeed, the men who practice charity and the women who practice charity and [they who] have loaned Allah a goodly loan - it will be multiplied for them, and they will have a noble reward (i.e Paradise)." [57:18]
Peace and Blessing be Upon You All.
My name is Musa Hoosain, step-nephew of Issa Traore and step-son of Boubacar Traore who will be the one relaying this heart-wrenching story.
Issa Traore was known to many of his African friends and relatives in Brooklyn as a hardworking, honest, and busy delivery driver by day, and a generous host for home-cooked African dinner in the night. He paid his rent on time and was generous to all who were in need. No one expected that this healthy and vibrant giant would end up being immobile with a series of drastic tragedies that fell like a spilling dominoes. I am his brother who is the witness of his extensive adversity.
The first tragic event started when his wife wanted a divorce a few months after the birth of his son. After that, he had a severe accident on his job in which he fell through a manhole and fractured his leg. He never reported the incident since his boss told him that they will work out some deal. Also, He never went to the hospital which caused his leg to deformed. Then, in January 2018, Issa was diagnosed with Craniopharyngioma, a brain tumor that caused blindness and memory loss. He had surgery for it, but unfortunately, it was unsuccessful and the tumor grew back in six months.
When I went to visit him in New York City, I realized that he could not function on his own. He was completely immobile. He could not see, he could not read, he could not even use the bathroom. Brooklyn, the place that he had been living in for 30+ years and knew very well (because he was a delivery man), couldn't be recalled by him at all from his memory. Day to day, this situation was really hurting him internally, emotionally, and physically. However, even though my financial situation isn't great and not conducive to fully support him, how could I not take him in? After moving in with me and my family in North Carolina, he was able to get another surgery for his brain tumor which was successful this time, and he began to improve Al-Hamdulillah (Praise be to God).
As he was recovering, he had hope that he can drive again and go get a job, as he told us "I love to work". Then, he was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea, where it was discovered his heart stopped around 180x every night he tried to sleep. This led him to take a breathing machine every time he wants to sleeps. But the worst scenario for Issa was that the doctor told him, "You will never walk again if you don't get the leg surgery." After the X-ray, they found that not only was his leg fractured, but so was his hip. He had to go back for another surgery which has left him in the hospital for 3 weeks to rest and get some basic therapy. He came back to what is now home for him with his brother and a home aid came to check up on him, but medicare only covered for 3 times. He went back to get a general check-up where they took an x-ray of his legs and was told even worse news when we had thought he had already gone through the worst of it. "Your legs are uneven. So, we are scheduling another surgery for your other leg to try to make them even." He had come back home in tears and broke down. He told me through the tears of a grown man "they just cut into and did surgery on my left leg and now they told me I have to go in for another surgery for my right leg on June 29 [2020]!" I had no idea what to say from utter shock nor could I increase my support for my brother by much more since I also have a family of 3 children and a wife to support as well. I also lost my job due to the coronavirus pandemic and I'm fully on unemployment.
But the story does not stop there. The tragedies keep piling during these 2+ years (Jan 2018 - on-going 2020). Very sadly, despite his disabilities of memory loss, inability to walk normally, consistent surgeries, immense weight gain, loss of appetite, large doses of medicine to offset pains and swells from said surgeries which then negatively impacted him and got him diagnosed with a rarer form of diabetes called Diabetes Insipidus; he finds himself in immense debt. During these 2+ years, he has accumulated fees for 6 months of rent, child support, taxes past due for IRS, and medical expenses. This could all be solved if he can apply for a disability program. However, you can only apply if you are a citizen, and, unfortunately, he is not and cannot become one until he fully pays out his debt. The total amount for his debts of IRS past-due taxes, child support fees, naturalization/citizenship/papers fees, and medical fees add up to $17,000.
We are asking humbly to support Issa, as he used to support many of his friends and family whenever they needed help. We testify to his shyness in asking for anything, and his greatest wish to go back to work. We also ask for your du'a (prayer) in easing his situation and making a brighter future for him.
Thank you so much for reading our story. Please share and support as much as you can for verily God will never reward a good a person except with good and whoever gives a goodly loan, God would increase that goodly loan multiple folds back to that person.
UPDATE: Al-Hamdulillah, we've received word from some muslims in the community that this campaign is also Zakat-eligible if you wanted to give Zakat during this month of Ramadhaan!
Allah says this in Chapter 55 of the Qur'an:
"Is the reward for good [anything] but good?" [55:60]
and in Chapter 57:
"Who is it that will lend to God a good loan which God will multiply ˹many times over˺ for them, and they will have an honorable reward (i.e Paradise)?" [57:11]
and later again in another verse of the same Chapter:
"Indeed, the men who practice charity and the women who practice charity and [they who] have loaned Allah a goodly loan - it will be multiplied for them, and they will have a noble reward (i.e Paradise)." [57:18]