Runta News-Seattle
Amina Ahmed, one of the best-known long-time serving community leaders in Seattle, Washington, and who two months ago has become the first Somali Muslim Woman elected official in the State of Washington died on Saturday in a car accident at age 52. According to sources, Amina died on the scene around 1pm. Members of the community are morning and feeling sad about the great loss. According to the SeaTac Blog, Mayor Erin Sitterley and the City of SeaTac colleagues and Staff are also mourning about the loss of the newly appointed City Council-woman Ahmed, who passed away as the result of injuries suffered during a fatal auto collision.
Chief Editor of Runta News who have known Amina since he arrived Seattle 1996 described her as courageous advocate who have never backed off and always spoke for the community with a sincere voice. Satwinder Kaur, a City Council Member of Kent, Washington posted in her facebook page after receiving the sad news this message, “We lost a trailblazing woman, a fearless leader in SKC. My friend and newly appointed SeaTac City Councilmember Amina Ahmed was taken from us in a car accident. She was an amazing leader, always fighting for all of us. You will be missed, my sister. May you Rest In Peace. Inaa lilaah waa inaa Ileyhi raajicuun Allaha u naxariito ameen.”
Amina have worked many years for Refugee Woman Alliance (ReWA) where she had advocated and serviced for woman especially Somalis in Seattle area. She was the backbone of the organization and had helped build from the scratch until it has become one of the biggest organizations in Washington State with many buildings and branches in different neighborhoods or cities.
Last few years, Amina has been the Executive Director of a newly found organization called Partnership in Employment (PIE) which is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that aims to address the challenges of employment among Washington foreign-born populations. Thanks to the hard work of their diverse faculty, and philanthropic efforts of their donors that enable them to create liveable wage employment opportunities for immigrants and refugees in Washington State. PIE provides in-language, culturally-competent program designs that responsively support the goals of each client to build sustainable self-reliance in the immigrant and refugee community.
Amina’s sudden departure will surely be felt many years to come among many communities across the state, especially within the Somalis for whom she belonged and closely connected. She was survived by two young adults, a daughter and a son. On behalf of Runta’s staff and board of directors, we send our condolences to all members. We will update you on funeral arrangements through our updates on our social media pages.
The funeral services of Amina is today at 14101 Tukwila International Blvd, Tukwila 98168 and starts at 12pm. Also, on Tomorrow Tuesday, December 11, at 5pm, a vigil in honor of Amina Ahmed will be held at City of SeaTac City Hall 4800 South 188th Street, SeaTac 98188
Details of the accident you can find at SeaTac Blog http://seatacblog.com/2018/12/08/councilmember-amina-ahmed-killed-in-collision-on-s-188th-street-saturday/?fbclid=IwAR3fNlFavvnqgw84jmIvy0oDkEJgabQGqcp_BL0aS_-H4nrwTCApy7-VCvM
