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To The Hashim Family whom we knew and loved. We miss you.
The catastrophic fire that engulfed the Grenfell Tower in 2017 claimed the lives of three of our children and their parents. The Hashim family were among many who needlessly died that day.
Firdaws, aged 12, dreamed of visiting Disneyland, and will now never have the chance to go. We launched The Hashim Family Legacy, to make children’s dreams come true. In October 2017, we arranged our first trip as part of this project, visiting Disneyland Paris in her honour.
We will never give up on our children, not even Firdaws.
Honouring the memory of Yaqub, Firdaws, Yahya, Nura and Hashim.
Always in our hearts.
IN MEMORY OF
The Hashim Family
Firdaws
Intelligent, creative, and wise beyond her years, Firdaws often graced us with her beautiful singing. Everyone who knew her agreed that she had a bright future in front of her. She had limitless talent, and she was a voracious reader. Her father used to joke that he would go bankrupt if he kept buying books for her at the same pace as she finished reading them.
Firdaws was just 12 years old when she died at Grenfell Tower. Her death has cast a long shadow, but, like the star she was, her light shines on. Firdaws’ optimism and zest for life inspires us to encourage those same qualities in others through the Hashim Family Legacy.
Yahya
Yahya was a comedian--he would go to any lengths to make everyone laugh, and he loved to laugh just as much. He was the consummate gentleman: kind, polite, generous, and thankful. Yahya was loving--he always made sure that those around him were comfortable.
A budding foodie, Yahya thought almost everything was, “Ahh, delicious!” (Except for eggs!) He found ways to make even small interactions, like tasting food, charming. A family friend fondly remembers Yahya’s tendency to apologise for everything, “‘Sorry’ had to be the word he used most in his unfairly short lifetime,” she remembers.
Yahya was 13 years old.
Yaqub
The youngest of the family, little Yaqub turned six less than a month before the Grenfell Tower catastrophe. He was small but mighty and already had so much to offer those around him. Yaqub will be remembered for his endless and infectious energy and enthusiasm that could fill a room. He enjoyed telling jokes and he loved to dance. “Even before he could walk,” remembers a friend, “he would crawl around on the floor so fast that we could barely keep up.”
Yaqub had the chance to visit Norway the winter before he died; always positive, he never let the freezing cold ruin his fun playing in the snow.
For his birthday, Yaqub was so surprised to realise that others knew that it was his birthday, too.
Nura
‘Nura could befriend absolutely anyone – no matter who they were or what they believed in. This was made evident by the number of different people who were desperately trying to find her and her family during the early days of the fire. We received so many compassionate hugs on her behalf. And people still come to me in meetings and tell me what a wonderful mother she was.
‘I remember how you were telling me that you all missed us and wanted to see us during the summer time. I am so deeply sorry that I didn’t manage to come up with a specific plan as to where and when we could all meet up. What I wouldn’t give for doing that now?
‘I am so terribly sorry that you had to see the pain and suffering of your kids and your husband. I am so sorry that we couldn’t share your suffering, your helplessness, your confusion, your pain and your fear.’ – Assema
‘You did a great job taking care of your family. You cared about us, you cared about everyone around you; and you had no problem in showing your love. You used to tell us to do the right thing for our own sake. I love you so much auntie, I love you.’ – Eliza
Hashim
‘Hashim was our dearest, smartest, soft-hearted and generous brother and uncle; and my best friend. He was one year ahead of me in school and everybody used to know him since he was very smart and sociable. I used to be known not as me, but as ‘Hashim’s sister’, a sister of the smartest boy in our school. He had an almost ‘irritating’ loud voice and he used to love to laugh; he had the widest smile a person could have. He was generous; he loved to share whatever he had with others without thinking a lot about tomorrow. He was a favourite uncle to my daughters….’ – Assema
‘I can’t even begin to list all the things that made you the best uncle, brother, father or friend one could possibly ask for. You were intelligent, smart, hardworking, hilarious, and caring. You were always there for everyone and anyone who needed help. You were different than all the other adult figures in my life. You let me share my thoughts with you and you made me feel like my opinions mattered. (And as the opinionated person I am, I’ve always appreciated that.) One moment we would have long and serious discussions, and the next one would be filled with nothing but jokes and laughter. I made fun of you and you made fun of me, that was the essence of our relationship.
‘Yahya, Firdaws and Yaqub were the most incredible children, and they’re proof of what an amazing father you were. Thank you so much for being there for my mum, my sister, our entire family and me. You made us all better people. I’ve learnt so much from you, and I’ll carry that with me forever. I will continue to be inspired by your hard work, your kindness and the way that you lived your life.’ – Hanan
“I feel like Spiderman! This is so cool!”
Reece*, age 10, wanted to go bouldering. Our supporters made this happen in 2023.