"Corvallis showed its love"

Corvallis showed its love
By DALYA IBRAHIM
As I see it

We all belong to God, and to Him we will return.

I have received the sudden death of my beloved husband Sheikh Imam Awad Elgarguri with full submission to God’s will and with absolute belief and trust in His Divine wisdom. Since he passed away last month, I have been engulfed by an overflowing demonstration of love and care from the Corvallis community.

People from different backgrounds, religions, ages and nationalities have all been united by benevolent and humane feelings toward the man who lived amongst them and interacted with them all as a genuine and sincere friend for nearly three decades.

As the Imam and religious leader of the Muslim Community in Corvallis, Awad dedicated his whole life to setting an example of true Islam to his community members both inside, and outside, of his Mosque.

Islam means submission and peace. God created us from different nations and tribes, but we are all brethren in humanity. Diversity enriches and nourishes the growth and development of the human race and promotes peaceful collaboration and a coherent coexistence. This is the message Awad sought to exemplify.

I have witnessed firsthand how genuinely he cared for all the people — family, friends and even strangers — whom he may have met once in a store or at the post office, for example. To him, Corvallis was his beloved hometown, and he was so proud of it as a city and as an ideal community.

My children, family and I would like to present our most profound gratitude to all the people who have shared their heartfelt condolences either in person or through telephone calls, e-mails or the mail. My special thanks to the Adair Village Fire Department, the Corvallis-Benton County Public Library, Oregon State University faculty and Linn-Benton Community College staff, Oregon Connections Academy, All Family Vision Care and the Samaritan Internal Medicine, to name a few.

The sincere kindness that my family received from the members of BETT AM community, members of First United Methodist Church, and all the members of Salman AlFarsi Islamic Center alike made my husband’s vision of the ideal society a living reality.

To all of you, your kindness has been the light that warmed my heart and rekindled my spirit. This is the true Corvallis that my husband loved so dearly. His life was a celebration of good faith. Your kindness made his passing a commemoration of goodness.

Thank you.

Dalya Ibrahim of Corvallis is the widow of Awad Elgarguri.

Editor’s note: Awad Mohamed Elgarguri, 49, died July 18 in a head-on collision on Highway 99W. He was driving home from a prayer meeting with his 16-year-old son, who is recovering from his injuries.