Coalition of Muslim women leader recovering in Waterloo region following ATV crash overseas

Fauzia Mazhar. (Submitted/Coalition of Muslim Women Kitchener-Waterloo)

After weeks in the ICU following a serious crash in Dubai, the executive director of the Coalition of Muslim Women Kitchener-Waterloo (CMW), Fauzia Mazhar, is back in Waterloo region.

“We are feeling her absence so much,” said Sarah Shafiq, who is acting executive director at CMW during Mazhar’s absence. “We are really relieved she is back in town, that she is in Kitchener. [We’re] really feeling that this is one step closer to having her back with us and back in the community.”

In August 2022, Mazhar was injured in an ATV crash while on a desert safari in Dubai. She suffered life-threatening injuries to her head and spinal cord, made worse due to complications from her former breast cancer treatment, according to a post from the family.

Shafiq said when the coalition heard about her crash everyone was scared.

“We were feeling a lot of uncertainty. We were very worried,” admitted Shafiq. “It was a difficult time for the coalition and I’m glad it’s over. It was difficult couple of days and couple of weeks. We were relieved that her health stabilized.”

Shafiq told CTV News in a phone interview that Mazhar is currently in a local hospital and is “healing and in good spirits.”

Staff and the board are carrying on the work while Mazhar recovers but Shafiq said her absence is noticed.

“We’re missing her presence, leadership and guidance,” she said. “We can’t describe our love for her.”