She broke it with a date.
After fasting from sunrise to sunset, Rebecca Rosen, a political science sophomore, ate a date, along with hummus and flatbread at the 2011 Fast-A-Thon on Thursday night.
"I came out to show solidarity for the Muslim community and to prove that non-Muslims can contribute to Islamic causes," Rosen said.
The event, hosted by Islam on Campus, attracted about 900 participants.
Islam on Campus raised about $4,000 prior to the event.
Donations will be split evenly between the Alachua County Coalition for the Homeless and Hungry and the Islamic Relief East Africa Crisis Fund. Mohammad Ali Zafar, president of Islam on Campus, said splitting the donation between two organizations would help fight homelessness and hunger locally as well as abroad.
The Fast-A-Thon brought together a variety of students and community members, both Muslim and non-Muslim.
"One major point of this event is to educate non-Muslims about the religion of Islam and to take away any negative stereotypes that they might have," Zafar said. "This is not a religion of violence, and we wanted to make that very clear through this event."
Imam Omar Suleiman, the outreach coordinator for the Islamic Circle of North America, gave a presentation about the humanitarian aspects of fasting and the importance of sparking change in society.
After counting down the seconds left until sunset, participants enjoyed chickpea soup, chicken and rice while Islamic music echoed throughout the O'Connell Center.
Imam Omar Suleiman and Father Les Singleton discuss differences in faith over dinner at Islam on Campus' Fast-A-Thon. "To say you're an atheist is to deny a part of yourself," Singleton said as he described "Mere Christianity," a book by C. S. Lewis, to Suleiman.
