For Muslims moving or migrating to Yukon, the westernmost and smallest of Canada’s three federal territories, winter activities such as skiing and snowboarding might be intimidating .
The different culture and high cost has kept many families, including Hina Shahid’s family, away for more than two years after moving to the district.
This last weekend, and thanks to the Yukon Muslim Society, the Muslim family of four went skiing for the first time.
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“It was a great experience,” Shahid told CBC. “It’s a mental and physical break for us,” she said. “I really enjoyed it.”
The weekend event was the second time this year the Muslim society offered ski and snowboard lessons at Mount Sima, south of Whitehorse.
Fatima Javed said that the high cost of renting or buying equipment prevented many Muslim families from hitting the ground.
“I grew up here and winter sports are just one of those things where there’s just so many barriers,” said Javed, the society’s treasurer and youth outreach coordinator.
Opening Yukon’s first mosque in 2018, Javed hopes to engage Muslim families in the community.
“Now, we really want to make it more like a community space to hold events and just build that community,” she said.
The Yukon Muslims Society website estimates that there are about 40 Muslim families in Whitehorse.
For them, the mosque works a venue for social gatherings and religious study, not just a place of worship.
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