According to Rahyafte (the missionaries and converts website):
An exclusive Interview by Bentolhoda Mofakhami
Mr. Kyron Gosse remembered the life of his father’s older sister who was killed in the March 15 attack on Al Noor mosque in Christchurch, New Zealand.
+Mr. Kyron Gosse, please tell us about Linda Armstrong.
Linda Susan Armstrong, born 28 July 1954. She was born in Auckland, New Zealand. She is the middle child of two brothers.
Linda never really committed to a job field per say, she came from an accounting background, however, Linda had a ginormous personality and was very quirky. At one point she ran a clothing label for goths. Linda travelled the world quite extensively and even lived in Berlin for a bit. She would always connect in with locals and travellers, learning more about their culture, beliefs and every day lives. Linda had a huge heart and loved helping people and always stood up to injustice. That was just her nature to help people regardless of who they were and what they had. She was friends with millionaires and she was friends with people on the benefit and no one was treated any differently.
Linda was volunteering at a refugee centre in Auckland, she met many people at the refugee centre shared what Islam meant to them and as she learnt more she resonated with it. After some time being around Muslims and learning more about the culture and beliefs, she felt
That the religion really resonated with her and decided to fully adopt it as her own faith.
Linda really wanted to experience the Hajj In Mecca, she actually did do the hajj in 2017, sponsored by the UAE government.
The news is saying that she died shielding her friends with her own body, which doesn’t surprise us as that is exactly who she was. She died a hero and through the tears of her sudden passing, we beam with pride that she died protecting those that she loved and that her death is helping to bring the world together in love.
+Are her friends alive?
-Well, obviously 49 other people were killed in the attack. But I believe the woman that she died protecting is alive but injured.
My brother and I have arrived in Christchurch but are yet to connect in with the Muslim community. That is my goal for today. At the moment a lot of what we know is from the media sharing her friends’ stories.
+What was Linda to you?
She was my Aunty; fathers older sister. Linda had one daughter and 2 grandchildren.
+Are her children Muslims too? How much did she go to that mosque? Do you know this?
No, Linda was the only Muslim in our family. She went to the Mosque every Friday or for any community events. She had been attending that particular mosque for about 2 years and before that, she attended a Mosque in Auckland
She went pretty much every night during Ramadan.
+I heard that she Adopted a child, is this correct?
She sponsored a boy in Bangladesh. That is all I know. She did travel to Bangladesh within the last couple of years, I believe she visited him while she was there.
+Do you have any good memory of her to tell us? Or words of her?
One of my earliest memories is riding down the motorway on the back of her motorbike with her, or in her art deco studio where we screen printed out own sheets.
But most recently we really connected around good food. I used to be a chef so Linda would always be coming out with a new recipe. For one of her birthdays, she had cut out a picture of a cake from the magazine and said Kyron I want this. She was so happy when I made it, I was a little embarrassed as it didn’t look like the picture, but she was over the moon and so proud. We had a slice together that night and then she took the rest of the cake and shared it with all her friends saying “look what My nephew made me.”
DUA: Allah please accept this from us. You are All-Hearing and All-Knowing. You are The Most Forgiving.You are The Most Relenting and repeatedly Merciful. Allah grant us The Taufiq to read all the 5 prayers with sincerity.
(Taken from: To Be Earnest In Prayers By Amina Elahi)
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