Ilford women’s charity embarks on pilgrimage to holy city Mecca
Members of the Redbridge Disabled Women's Welfare Association have set off on a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia - Credit: Archant
A women’s charity has set off on a 11-day pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.
Thirty members of the Redbridge Disabled Women’s Welfare Association (RDWWA) are embarking on a journey to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.
They were waved off in Clements Road, Ilford.
Abida Iqbal, chairman of the RDWWA, said: “We went last year with 20 members and it was such a successful trip that the ladies asked me to organise it again.”
The group will be staying for five days in Mecca and five in Medina for the Muslim pilgrimage, called Umrah.
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They will carry out rituals including walking between the hills of Safa and Marwah and circling around the Kaaba, a building at the centre of Islam’s most sacred mosque.
Abida said: “It is a very spiritual journey to take and with the daily stress and problems we all encounter it is even more of a meaningful one.
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“This pilgrimage is a time of selflessness; praying for our friends and families.
“We are going as one big family because this journey always brings us closer together and in sync with ourselves and God.”
