Every year, Zarinah El-Amins mother, Cheryl, and fellow Muslim women in Detroit pooled their money to purchase toys for children on Eid, the annual festival that marks the end of Ramadan . They wanted to make sure every Muslim child who came to the mosque for Eid prayers could walk out with a toy a special way to mark the holiday and give back to the community.

So after her mother died last year, she took over the toy drive. But then the coronavirus pandemic halted gatherings and closing mosques in its wake and it forced her and the community to find a new way to celebrate together.

Muslims across the world have had to readjust traditions in order to comply with social distancing orders, and for the last month, Muslims have marked a particularly challenging Ramadan the holy month in which Muslims fast from dawn to dusk and traditionally break that fast with large dinner parties and gatherings at the mosques.

Eid al-Fitr, which took place Sunday, is usually marked by morning prayer services followed by traditional gatherings of friends and family over lavish meals. Instead, Muslims found other ways to mark the day, including praying at home and connecting with family over video-conferencing apps, such as Zoom.

In the days leading up to Eid, El-Amin and her two youngest children, Isra and Isa Naeem, picked out toys and packed goodie bags filled with candy to give to other Muslim children. For even just a day, El-Amin and her family can forget the pandemic and celebrate the true essence of Eid community and festivity after a month of sacrifice and hard work.