Family and friends remember charitable accountant from Manor Park

Family and friends remembered the good deeds of a community champion and charity founder at a memorial service last week

Zafar Iqbal Sharif, of Third Avenue, Manor Park, died of a heart attack at the age of 52 three years ago while on holiday in Pakistan.

Described by his son Muhammad Usman Sharif as “a chartered accountant by day and a humanitarian by night”, Zafar helped the local community with their problems through East Ham MP Stephen Timms and created a charity, the Kashmir Relief and Development Foundation (KRDF), to help the survivors of the 2005 Kashmir earthquake.

The charity’s work was mostly funded by multi-faith organisations and donations from his community in Newham, building six schools, vocational training centres and water projects.

The memorial service was held on March 1 at Walthamstow Town Hall and it was attended by Mayor of Waltham Forest Cllr Richard Sweden and his deputy mayor Cllr Nadeem Ali and people in attendance were encouraged to sponsor a child’s education for £15 a month and donate towards a new school in a small village in Kashmir.

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http://www.newhamrecorder.co.uk/news/family_and_friends_remember_charitable_accountant_from_manor_park_1_1984510