Emcee · Host · Speaker · Lead fundraiser
Twenty-five years hosting banquets and raising money for Islamic Centers, schools, hospitals, clinics, and relief organizations across Southern California. Some nights I run the program. Some nights I am the one asking the room for money. Usually both.
The night has one number
The decor is handled. The caterer is handled. Then somebody has to stand in front of four hundred people who came to eat dinner and get them to write checks, without begging, without stalling, and without losing the room at 9:40pm.
That is the part I am there for. I have done it for Islamic Centers, schools, hospitals, clinics, and relief organizations for twenty-five years, on both sides of the podium: as the board member who had to hit the number, and as the emcee brought in to hit it.
I do not script much of what I say. I read the room right then: knowing when it calls for humor and when levity would be a mistake, whether it needs to sit with something for a second, whether the energy is going and I should move. Twenty-five years of this is mostly twenty-five years of learning to feel that fast.
Most recently
On September 29, 2026 I was the emcee and lead fundraiser for an Orange County event supporting Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for United States Senate in Michigan. Over four hundred guests, Muslims and non-Muslims, with elected officials and representatives of the Democratic party in the room.
A political room is harder than a banquet room. People walk in with different reasons for being there and different levels of patience, and you still have to hold all of them long enough for the ask to land. It was a very successful night.
Three ways I get booked
Doors to close. Transitions, timing, speaker handoffs, and the judgment calls that keep a four hour banquet from becoming a five hour one.
Sessions on giving, personal finance, and what actually happens when you build a company for twenty-five years and then exit. Also the person who keeps a panel moving.
The part of the night with a number attached. Crowd work, knowing who the big donors are and calling on them by name, matching gifts, pledges, and keeping the QR codes moving.
How a big night comes together
Most nights are built level by level. One donor goes first, and every level after that is a different part of the room deciding to join in.
Every room is different, and not every night reaches every level. Each level is a different conversation with a different part of the room, and most of them happen inside the same twenty minutes.
These evenings are not high pressure. They work when somebody at the front holds attention long enough for people to feel why it matters. That is humor, warmth, and crowd work. After enough of these nights, you can smell where the money is sitting and adjust on the fly.
See it before you book it
The fastest way to know whether someone can hold your room is to watch them hold one.
No teleprompter and no script. Just reading who is still holding back, deciding what the room needs next, and saying it while four hundred people watch.
In their own words
“Excellent, excellent work with everything thrown at us! You’re a very very very calm man!”
Samar Abdel-AzizFounder, Sabil USA“First, having the ever-so-hilarious Asim Khan as the emcee really set an upbeat and happy tone for the evening! I, personally, have had to stop myself from referring to everything as ‘awesome’ since then.”
Yasmine O. Abdel-Aal, Esq.Event attendee“Thank you for the humor and sincerity you brought to the evening! You kept the event going and helped to connect all the pieces during the Gala. You are, by far, the most ‘talked about’ MC we have ever had.”
Dina EletrebyFormer Head of School, New Horizon School“Thanks for doing a great job as emcee Asim! We all really appreciate it!”
PresidentIslamic Center of Irvine“Thank you so very much for coming and supporting with such grace and humility. You made the event so fun, and it was just the right balance of humor and fundraising.”
Adita AryaAfghan Literacy Foundation“We are honored to have you represent the school. You did a great job and really have such a nice persona. Everyone left happy that evening because of your demeanor and charm.”
Iman EletrebyNew Horizon SchoolTexts after the event
“Great job tonight Asim. Huge success.”
Owaiz Dadabhoy, Uplift Charity“You did a great job last night. You’re really getting better and better at this each time.”
Hasan Siddiqi, Former President, ISOC“Nice job Asim Khan, MC and fundraiser extraordinaire!”
Dr. Baseer Khan“Masha’Allah amazing job for an amazing cause.”
Dr. Ahmed MansuryWhy committees call
Eleven years running a major nonprofit organization, two of them as President. I have built the budget, chased the pledges, and sat through the post-event meeting where the number came in short.
That is a different starting point than a professional host who arrives at six for a seven o’clock call time. I know what your committee is worried about, because I have been the one worrying about it.
Next step
Date, organization, room size, and what the evening is meant to raise. I will tell you quickly whether I am the right person for it, and if I am not, I probably know who is.
No obligation in asking. If I am not right for the night, I will say so.