Michelle Simmons
Background : Michelle was born on the island of St. Maarten but raised on the island of Saba which is where her entire family is from. She lived on Saba until the age of 17, when she graduated from High School. She then moved to Miami on her own to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Marketing Management at St. Thomas University. Prior to graduating in December 2009 she was offered an Admissions Officer position at St. Thomas and is currently working in this position at the present.
Islamic perspective: For the majority of her life, Michelle had not been exposed to many religions other than Christianity since this is the most predominant religion in her country. She was introduced to a deeper understanding of Islam in her second year of University when she met her friend, now her husband, Naeem Khan. Prior to this the only interaction she had with the religion other than reading articles or watching the news was in a religious studies course, which she enrolled in her freshman year.
Michelle said, her connection with Allaah had never been a strong one, and her understanding of religion was always skeptical because of the way the Catholic religion was taught to her. She did not attend Church often because she never felt like was taking home a positive message from the mass.
Her lack of faith always concerned her but was never motivated in her prior religion. It was for this reason she decided to research and explore Islam, in the hopes of gaining this strong faith that she observed in other Muslims.
After two years of learning, researching and practicing, she found herself ready to discuss her choice with her family and accept Islam.Islam has helped her to have a greater understanding in the religion as well as other religions, and have a deeper connection with Allaah. Islam has enabled her to live a more positive life and have gained a greater appreciation for life and all of its offerings.
