A leader of South Florida’s Muslim community will provide a Father’s Day talk on issues that affect people from all backgrounds.

Imam Nasir Ahmad has been brought to Bermuda by the New Africa Beneficent Association, a spiritual offshoot from the Masjid Muhammad in Hamilton.

His Father’s Day message is universal, according to Mustapha Rasheed, an organiser for Naba.

The group, founded seven years ago, has brought six different speakers to the island, many of them sourced by Mr Rasheed in his travels to Muslim conferences.

Mr Rasheed told The Royal Gazette: “Essentially we use our programme for educational purposes. We are Muslim, but Islam is just one of the religions of mankind.

“We bring in people that address the problems of human history from the perspective that we are all part of the human family.

“Every year we bring in a speaker, usually in February, on topics relevant to Bermuda and what is happening in our world.”

Dr Ahmad is the head of the Masjid Al-Ansar in Miami Florida. He will speak tomorrow at the EF Gordon Hall in the Bermuda Industrial Union headquarters in Hamilton.

The theme is “from Atom to Adam” and addresses “how we all come from one source”.

A father of three boys and two girls, Mr Rasheed said fatherhood had been one of his life’s “most challenging and most rewarding demands”.

“I’ve played 18 years of football and about ten years of entertainment, but being a father challenges my manhood.”

He said he had grown up with no father in the household.

Mr Rasheed said: “My mother and grandparents provided all my needs economically, emotionally and spiritually — but not having a father in my life left a void in my soul.

“So, I vowed to myself that if I fathered any children, I would always try my best to be a part of their life and to provide economic and emotional support for them.”

He added: “In observing the natural order of the human and animal communities, I found that fatherhood and motherhood were the most fundamental and precious gift given to us by the creator. So I’m thankful for my gift of having children and my role of being a father.”

Dr Ahmad arrived on Thursday and addressed Friday prayers at the masjid at the corner of Cedar Avenue and Laffan Street.

Admission to the Father’s Day luncheon at the BIU, which runs from 1pm to 3pm, is $30.