CLEVELAND — Qaisra Haider is heating up a south Asian dish called Chicken Korma.

“It’s very popular and every household will make it their own and make it unique,” Haider said.

She made the dish for her Pakistani family. 

What You Need To Know

  • The Pakistan Cultural Garden Groundbreaking Ceremony took place Sunday afternoon

  • The original event in March was postponed because of inclement weather

  • Qaisra Haider is helping lead the garden's development as the nonprofit's secretary

  • She said she hopes the garden will be complete in the next two years

“To be Pakistani is to be [from] a long line of history of my forefathers that were before me, and to carry forward all the things that have happened in my heritage before and pass it on to the next generation,” Haider said.

Haider’s doing her part by helping with the development of the Pakistan Cultural Garden as the non-profit’s secretary.

“About 20 years ago, when I used to drive down from, drive up here from Akron with my children to, you know, visit the doctor or something. We would get off I-90, I’d come down [Martin Luther King Jr. Drive] and the children really would look out the windows,” Haider said.

She said her kids noticed one garden was missing.

“They'd be looking at all the gardens and reading out all the names that were there, ‘The German, the Italian’, you know, all these lovely countries and everything, and they would say, ‘But mom, where is Pakistan? Why don't we have a Pakistani garden,’” Haider remembered. 

Years later, Haider said she can finally fulfill her children’s dream.

“Maybe not it for my children, but for the next generation of Pakistanis living here, they would see themselves represented and they would feel part of the culture, part of the country,” Haider said.

When the garden is complete, Haider said a replica of Minar-e-Pakistan, a famous monument in the country, will be on display.

“The first step will be to get our blueprints approved through the city and then to begin construction,” Haider said. “We're hoping that when people see that the ball is rolling, they'll be more motivated with their resources, so that we can get to the second phase."

Haider said she hopes the garden will be finished in the next two years.

Donations can be made to the Pakistan Cultural Garden here.