History

Gainesville:

The idea for an organization to help women in the North Central Florida came about in 2005 when three Muslim women were sitting together trying to figure out how to help a single mother of a chronically ill child, after the father had left town. There were no area social services available because the woman had an income.

These women, Ameena Khan, Amany Shalaby, and Jean Ritch decided to incorporate the organization on June 2005 and then apply to the IRS for a charity status. In this manner they could work with community members and help those less fortunate.

TAMPA:

Radiant Hands Tampa began working with the four refugee resettlement agencies in Hillsborough & Pinellas counties in October 2015. Since 2015, RH Tampa has served almost 919 refugees from a variety of countries (Afghanistan, Somalia, Syria, Iraq, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sri Lanka, Iran, and the Republic of Congo, Venezuela, Cuba and etc) and from diverse religious affiliations such as Christian, Agnostic and Multi-denominational in addition to the Muslim majority.

Since 2016, RH has added several services to its operational system to cater to resettlement. The services and items provided ranged from translation, transportation, furniture, household items, school admittance, Medicaid, welfare assistance, and a social support team.

By the end of 2017, the travel ban significantly reduced the number of refugee families arriving in the United States, which impacted the number of families Radiant Hands could serve through traditional resettlement pathways. In response, Radiant Hands shifted its strategy and developed a Full Self-Sufficiency Plan focused on empowering refugee families already in the community.

The organization redesigned its operational model around structured programs centered on integration, education, sponsorship, skills empowerment, and business development, providing refugees—particularly women—with opportunities to generate income, build independence, and achieve long-term self-sufficiency.

By 2023, when Radiant Hands became an official refugee resettlement agency, the organization had already demonstrated strong professionalism, transparency, and accountability in managing community resources. Radiant Hands established detailed operational structures, policies, and reporting systems to ensure responsible stewardship of zakat and sadaqah funds, and implemented a structured case management and reporting system through Social Solutions (Apricot) to track services and outcomes.

Today, Radiant Hands advances its mission through seven integrated programs: EmpowerHer, Nourish, Bridges of Belonging, Crisis Relief, Pathways to Independence, Wellness and Resilience, and Reception and Placement, reflecting a holistic approach to supporting refugee and vulnerable families toward dignity, stability, and long-term self-sufficiency.

"O ye who believe! Turn to Allah with sincere repentance: In the hope that your Lord will remove from you your ills and admit you to Gardens beneath which Rivers flow,- the Day that Allah will not permit to be humiliated the Prophet and those who believe with him. Their Light will run forward before them and by their right hands, while they say, "Our Lord! Perfect our Light for us, and grant us Forgiveness: for Thou hast power over all things."

- Qur’an (66:8)

"One Day shalt thou see the believing men and the believing women-how their Light runs forward before them and by their right hands: (their greeting will be): "Good News for you this Day! Gardens beneath which flow rivers! to dwell therein for aye! This is indeed the highest Achievement!"

-Qur’an (57:12)