Hundreds attended the memorial service in the Hawera town square on Thursday, where heartfelt messages were shared for the local Muslim community and throughout New Zealand, especially for the family members of Dr Hamid who worked at the Hawera Hospital.
Amjad Hamid, 57, a cardiologist at Hawera Hospital
He was described as a bright light that would make everyone feel better and is going to be hugely missed by the entire community, both within his line of work and locally.
Ngati Ruanui iwi leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer said
Tonight provided the space to stand together and remember peoples lives, not their deaths.
It’s so intimate for our Muslim community who talked about loosing family members.
For us as a community talking about loosing Dr Hamid, a very special man who helped my mum recently and so many others.
Listening to the young Muslim woman speaking and hearing the sadness but future hope in her voice.
There are hard discussions starting for us as a nation and they will continue…but at a time when such horrific atrocity has happened it’s nice to be amongst your own community standing together and sharing aroha getting each other through the grief
Photo source: Debbie Ngarewa-Packer
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