An O.C. Friend Urges Prayers for Hussein

Haitham Ahmed Bundakji remembers meeting King Hussein of Jordan at an ice-skating rink in Amman, Jordan, when he was 9 years old.

Asking Muslims at the Islamic Society of Orange County on Friday to pray for the ailing Hussein during prayers, he emphasized it wasn’t an official request of the center, but rather a plea from his heart. Bundakji, 50, was born in Jordan and lived there for 19 years before moving to Garden Grove in 1968.

“He’s very friendly, very humble and down-to-earth,” Bundakji said from an office at the society in Garden Grove, where he is chairman of the board. “I always enjoyed talking to him.”

Bundakji, who last saw Hussein in 1984, said he’s had many encounters over the years with Queen Noor and the king, who was a motorcycle rider, water-skier and a black belt in karate.

“He used to race cars and he was one of the best pilots in the world,” said Bundakji, who was a commercial pilot in Jordan before moving to Southern California. “I’ve been constantly on the Internet and checking the news for his condition.”