{"id":1207,"date":"2026-03-12T09:53:52","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T14:53:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/?p=1207"},"modified":"2026-03-12T09:53:52","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T14:53:52","slug":"my-remarks-for-cornell-junior-public-school-iftar-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/2026\/03\/12\/my-remarks-for-cornell-junior-public-school-iftar-program\/","title":{"rendered":"My Remarks for Cornell Junior Public School Iftar Program"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><br>5:00 PM \u2013 Friday March 6th, 2026<br>Cornell Junior Public School <br><br>\u2022 Good Evening and Salam everyone. Thank you all for being here at Cornell Junior Public School for this iftar. <br>\u2022 Ramadan Mubarak to all who are observing, especially to the wonderful Muslim families here at Cornell Junior Public School. It is truly inspiring to see this school community come together to mark such an important and meaningful time in the year.<br>\u2022 Ramadan invites reflection, renewal, and compassion, and those values are lived out every day right here at Cornell Junior Public School.<br>\u2022 In a school as diverse and welcoming as this one, students learn early what it means to care for one another, respect one another, and support one another.<br>\u2022 One of the greatest privileges of serving this community is witnessing the incredible diversity that makes Cornell Junior Public School and Scarborough, so special.<br>\u2022 I want to take a moment to recognize and thank the incredible leaders, organizers, and volunteers who helped bring tonight\u2019s Iftar to life. Your dedication strengthens not only the Muslim community, but the entire Cornell school community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><br>\u2022 Whether you\u2019re running school programs, organizing food drives, supporting families, or creating welcoming spaces for students, your impact is felt every single day.<br>\u2022 Thank you as well to the educators, the school council, faith leaders, community partners, parents and the students who consistently show up with creativity, compassion, and energy. Cornell thrives because of your leadership.<br>\u2022 Iftar is much more than the breaking of a fast. It is a moment rooted in gratitude, unity, and reflection. It encourages us to slow down, to appreciate our blessings, and to remember those who may be facing hardship. It bridges our differences and strengthens the relationships that make a school community feel like a family. As we prepare to break fast together, I hope we carry forward the spirit of togetherness that fills this room.<br>\u2022 Scarborough is strong because communities like Cornell are strong, because you continue to lead with compassion, generosity, and hope.<br>\u2022 Thank you for welcoming me into this beautiful space tonight. It is truly an honour to join you and to celebrate the many ways you enrich this school and our city.<br>\u2022 I wish you all a peaceful evening and a blessed Ramadan. <br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"936\" src=\"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar2IMG_1440-1024x936.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1209\" srcset=\"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar2IMG_1440-1024x936.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar2IMG_1440-300x274.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar2IMG_1440-768x702.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar2IMG_1440.jpeg 1290w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 543px, 580px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"881\" src=\"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar1IMG_1439-1024x881.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1208\" srcset=\"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar1IMG_1439-1024x881.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar1IMG_1439-300x258.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar1IMG_1439-768x661.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/CornellIftar1IMG_1439.jpeg 1290w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 767px) 89vw, (max-width: 1000px) 54vw, (max-width: 1071px) 543px, 580px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>5:00 PM \u2013 Friday March 6th, 2026Cornell Junior Public School \u2022 Good Evening and Salam everyone. Thank you all for being here at Cornell Junior Public School for this iftar. \u2022 Ramadan Mubarak to all who are observing, especially to the wonderful Muslim families here at Cornell Junior Public School. It is truly inspiring to &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/2026\/03\/12\/my-remarks-for-cornell-junior-public-school-iftar-program\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;My Remarks for Cornell Junior Public School Iftar Program&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1207","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1207","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1207"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1207\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1213,"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1207\/revisions\/1213"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1207"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1207"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/paulainslie.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1207"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}