Interfaith Blood Drive Celebrates Life for 9/11 Anniversary

One group studies the Bible, the other the Koran, but when it comes to respect for life, both faiths came together for the second annual 'Muslims for Life' Blood Donation Campaign.

The event at the Wildwood Presbyterian Church Sunday was a collaboration of the Abraham's Children Interfaith group at the church and the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Zion to honor those who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2011. This year the American Red Cross collected 27 pints of blood that will go towards the national goal of 11,000, enough blood to save 3,000 lives.

"We have respect for life and we believe what happened (on 9/11) that it is completely contrary to our own beliefs," said AJ Ijaz of the Ahmadiyya. "We saw the destruction and the death and we take the stand that we are about life and preserving what we have."

The event is just one of several interfaith events the church has hosted with Ijaz in an effort to bring different groups of varying faiths together to build stronger relationships, and ultimately a better community.

"These events show folks that the extremists' elements that we see in the media isn't always the norm," said Walt Isaac of the Wildwood Presbyterian Church. "

"There are so many things in each of those faiths that are so common, and we're trying to promote that understanding between the different communities," said Debbie Crouse of WPC.

The congregation has shown a positive response. More than 30 blood donors rolled up their sleeves for the drive Sunday. Last year, for the 10th anniversary of 9/11 and the first ever Muslims for Life Blood Donation Campaign, donors gave more than 10,000 pints of blood nationwide.