BOULEVARD, Calif. — A local father recently gave his son valuable birthday gift: 40 acres of land in San Diego.
Faheem Muhammed gave his son the land for his 13th birthday, and posted about it on social media. The video went viral; even legendary rapper Diddy even posted about it.
When CBS 8’s Anna Laurel drove out to meet Muhammad and his family in Boulevard, there were boulders, trees, and the U.S.-Mexico border wall.
But when Muhammed looks at his 198 acres, he sees potential.
“We see clear space, where we can uninterruptedly enjoy nature, especially growing up in a congested city like L.A. when we are out here it's totally different," Muhammed said.
Muhammed bought the land in 2021 to get away. He lives in Los Angeles and runs a real estate business that buys and rebuilds properties in the South Side of Chicago.
He says to create a better living situation for the Black community in Chicago, his company, Oasis Investment Group, teaches people about home ownership.
“These are people who've had families on government assistance for years. And now they're actually enrolled into courses about how to own their own homes,” Muhammed said.
Muhammed says his mom, Aminah Muhammad, taught he and his siblings how important it is to own their own property and to help their community.
When his son, Faheem, turned 13 on March 16, he gave him 40 acres of land.
“I thought it would be a great opportunity to teach him a life lesson about the land," Muhammed said.
They’re teaching other kids from Los Angeles these lessons too. Their mom has organized Rites of Passage camps for inner city kids for years. His brother and sister have been bringing kids to San Diego County from their community in LA and renting camp space, now they can bring them to their own property.
They’ve already brought a group to camp. They took them on hikes, to ride ATVs, and they built campfires. They plan to bring more kids to San Diego for their Summer break.
When CBS 8 asked them what it is like out on their property at night, they all talked at once with excitement, “Amazing! It was fun! You get a full view of the stars! There’s not city lights out here. Seeing all the stars. Yeah, all the stars. It’s really beautiful,” they said.
Here's more information about the Dior Sunset Foundation. They engage and empower inner city youth in Los Angeles.
Faheem has some ideas for his new property. “You could build, like, ATVs around the whole thing. Build a zipline from the mountain,” he said.
Even though they are right beside the U.S.-Mexico border, they’ve had no problems. They can enjoy being together on their own private open space.
“We just see an opportunity to enjoy nature in its finest sense. You got fresh water, clear skies at night. You can see all the stars, the moon. The sunrises are beautiful," Muhammed said.
WATCH RELATED: Feeling the beat: The impact of dance for the Black community