East Montgomery Islamic Society
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Thank you for visiting our gofundme page. Please allow me to introduce myself:
My name is Aya Zaied and I am the Youth and Interfaith Coordinator for the East Montgomery Islamic Society (EMIS) in Montgomery, Alabama.
For those of you that don't know our story, EMIS was born in 2007 and its' congregation includes Muslim families from different backgrounds and from countries across the globe.
What brought the members of EMIS together was their mission to create a place of worship for Muslim families in Montgomery, as well as to teach our youth the core values of true Islam - honesty, diversity, tolerance, humility, modesty, and democracy.
Muslims have been living in Montgomery for many years and have made countless contributions to the city; they made their homes here, but there was a dire need for a mosque. Unfortunately, it was years in the making before enough money was raised to purchase property.
In 2011, EMIS purchased a 4.9 acre property on Vaughn Road in East Montgomery on which the proposed mosque was to be built. In 2016, after several more years of fundraising, the plans were submitted to the City of Montgomery for review and approval of a 6,000 square foot building.
Within a few weeks, a huge controversy erupted in the city about the building of the mosque and the rezoning of the property on which the mosque was to be built.
EMIS began a grassroots campaign to teach the people of Montgomery about Islam and to teach them that a mosque is no different than a church, a synagogue, a temple or any other place of worship and Islam is an Abrahamic religion, stemming from the same roots as Christianity and Judaisim.
EMIS, located out of a small office space just 3 miles from the proposed building site, reached out to its neighbors and friends in the community and together they were able to overcome all the odds and the mosque proposal was approved and the rezoning issue settled by a unanimous vote from the Montgomery City Board of Adjustment.
Together, with the help of our community, we stood for religous freedom and chose to belive in the good in people and not let hate destroy our faith in humanity and a better tomorrow.
Below you can read the articles and watch the videos concerning the struggle:
Proposed Mosque Sparks Debate - July 14, 2016
Board Delays Mosque Decision after Contentious Public Meeting - July 21, 2016
Josh Moon: Don't Just Allow Mosque, Help Build It!
Board OKs Exemption for Mosque
Board Approves East Montgomery Mosque
The Man Behind the Mosque
After a long struggle, EMIS broke ground on the project on May 25, 2017 and began building the mosque. We are now raising money to finish the project as the changes that had to be made to accomodate our neighbors and the Board were very costly ones. We hope to have the mosque up and running in time for Ramadan 2018.
EMIS Breaks Ground on New Mosque
Ground Broken for Mosque in East Montgomery
Construction of East Montgomery Mosque Begins
Once the mosque is operational, social, religous, and educational services will be open to anyone who shows interest - with no regard to race, nationality, or religion because we truly believe that in standing united, we are stronger and capable of so much more.
To learn more about who we are and our project, please visit the East Montgomery Islamic Society of Montgomery, Alabama's website at:
http://emismosque.org/
Please help us raise money to finish our project! Every little bit helps!
My name is Aya Zaied and I am the Youth and Interfaith Coordinator for the East Montgomery Islamic Society (EMIS) in Montgomery, Alabama.
For those of you that don't know our story, EMIS was born in 2007 and its' congregation includes Muslim families from different backgrounds and from countries across the globe.
What brought the members of EMIS together was their mission to create a place of worship for Muslim families in Montgomery, as well as to teach our youth the core values of true Islam - honesty, diversity, tolerance, humility, modesty, and democracy.
Muslims have been living in Montgomery for many years and have made countless contributions to the city; they made their homes here, but there was a dire need for a mosque. Unfortunately, it was years in the making before enough money was raised to purchase property.
In 2011, EMIS purchased a 4.9 acre property on Vaughn Road in East Montgomery on which the proposed mosque was to be built. In 2016, after several more years of fundraising, the plans were submitted to the City of Montgomery for review and approval of a 6,000 square foot building.
Within a few weeks, a huge controversy erupted in the city about the building of the mosque and the rezoning of the property on which the mosque was to be built.
EMIS began a grassroots campaign to teach the people of Montgomery about Islam and to teach them that a mosque is no different than a church, a synagogue, a temple or any other place of worship and Islam is an Abrahamic religion, stemming from the same roots as Christianity and Judaisim.
EMIS, located out of a small office space just 3 miles from the proposed building site, reached out to its neighbors and friends in the community and together they were able to overcome all the odds and the mosque proposal was approved and the rezoning issue settled by a unanimous vote from the Montgomery City Board of Adjustment.
Together, with the help of our community, we stood for religous freedom and chose to belive in the good in people and not let hate destroy our faith in humanity and a better tomorrow.
Below you can read the articles and watch the videos concerning the struggle:
Proposed Mosque Sparks Debate - July 14, 2016
Board Delays Mosque Decision after Contentious Public Meeting - July 21, 2016
Josh Moon: Don't Just Allow Mosque, Help Build It!
Board OKs Exemption for Mosque
Board Approves East Montgomery Mosque
The Man Behind the Mosque
After a long struggle, EMIS broke ground on the project on May 25, 2017 and began building the mosque. We are now raising money to finish the project as the changes that had to be made to accomodate our neighbors and the Board were very costly ones. We hope to have the mosque up and running in time for Ramadan 2018.
EMIS Breaks Ground on New Mosque
Ground Broken for Mosque in East Montgomery
Construction of East Montgomery Mosque Begins
Once the mosque is operational, social, religous, and educational services will be open to anyone who shows interest - with no regard to race, nationality, or religion because we truly believe that in standing united, we are stronger and capable of so much more.
To learn more about who we are and our project, please visit the East Montgomery Islamic Society of Montgomery, Alabama's website at:
http://emismosque.org/
Please help us raise money to finish our project! Every little bit helps!
Organizer
Aya Zaied
Organizer
Montgomery, AL