South Windsor's Anwar Family to be Honored by ADL

The theme for the Anti-Defamation League's centennial year is "Imagine A World Without Hate." As part of the Torch of Liberty celebration, the ADL is honoring a few who have worked toward that end. Among them is the Anwar family of South Windsor.

In addition to the Anwar family - Dr. Saud Anway, his wife Dr. Yusra Anwar and their children, Taha and Taseen - University of Hartford President Dr. Walter Harrison and Deacon Arthur Miller and his wife Sandra Miller, who work with the Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford, will be honored with the Torch of Liberty award at a reception and gala at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 24 in West Hartford.

The honorees were chosen for their commitment to philanthropy and public service, according to a release from the ADL. 

Dr. Saud Anwar is a physician at Manchester Memorial and Rockville General Hospitals and is a member of the South Windsor Town Council. Dr. Yusra Anis-Anwar, maintains a private practice in Internal Medicine in South Windsor and their children attended South Windsor schools.

From the release is the ADL's description of the Anwar family and their contributions:

Dr. Saud Anwar is a founder and co-chair of the American Muslim Peace Initiative, which works to strengthen intrafaith understanding within Islam and interfaith understanding between Islam and other religions. He is a member of ADL’s Interfaith Coalition on Mosques, which was formed in 2010 to support Muslim communities facing unfair discrimination when trying to legally build or expand mosques around the United States. Like Deacon Miller, Dr. Anwar was a participant in Connecticut ADL's first Interfaith Mission to Israel in 2007. He is the founder and past president of the Pakistani American Association of Connecticut and a member of the Pakistani American Public Affairs Committee, a national nonprofit. Dr. Anwar also serves on the board of directors of Ibtida, an organization that works to improve the literacy of women and children in rural areas of Pakistan. Dr. Yusra Anwar has worked behind the scenes at a number of organizations and is very active in her community. Catholic Charities has nominated Yusra to be recognized by the State of Connecticut for her consistent support to refugees of all faiths and backgrounds across Connecticut. Saud and Yusra are married and have two sons. Taha, 16, is passionate about civil rights and is an intern for the U.S. Attorney's office. Taseen, 14, recently traveled to Haiti to visit the South Windsor Haiti School, a two-pronged project which aims to improve education in Haiti as well as interfaith relations among the Jewish, Muslim and Christian volunteers in Connecticut helping to build the school. The Anwar family, which resides in South Windsor, cofounded the school with other South Windsor community leaders.