The Islamic Society of Baltimore (ISB) will be celebrating it 50-year anniversary in the summer of 2019, which will coincide with plans to complete its multi-million dollar expansion project. Some perhaps remember ISB in the media when former President Obama visited in 2016. It is a religious community center in Baltimore County, MD and home to one of the largest masajid in the DMV, Masjid Al-Rahmah, as well as Al-Rahmah K-12 School, Al-Rahmah Sunday School, and Al-Rahmah Quran Academy, which includes a Hifz/Quran memorization program.
With a deadline of August 2019, faculty members and staff are eager to get the expansion project underway. Plans to commence the project are momentarily suspended, pending approval for the final permit from the county officials.
The decision to expand the facility arose when county officials told ISB that they had too many temporary classroom trailers on their campus, and issued a mandate requiring ISB to move them and reforest the area while meeting county codes. This presented a problem for ISB, as removing the trailers meant finding a place for the 10-11 classrooms they were housing, or getting permission to move them somewhere else on campus. The Al-Rahmah K-12 School has approximately 300 students (numbers vary every registration period), and their Sunday school gets up to 350 students.
The solution for this dilemma was found when they looked back at phase 3 of the ISB history site plan, which included plans for more classrooms and a larger library. Phase 3, which was never executed, was modified, and plans to execute it ensued. The expansion project was embedded into a campaign called “The 50 Strong,” to coincide with the 50-year anniversary of the foundation of ISB in the summer of 2019.
The expansion project will expand the facility to accommodate the school classrooms for both Al-Rahmah School and Al-Rahmah Sunday School. In addition, it will increase space for the musallah during Jumah Salah and Eid, improve facilities for the sisters (including improved wudhu and bathroom facilities, expansion to the musallah, Improved access to the Sisters' section, added and improved halaqa space in upper level classrooms, and improved roof and AC/heat vents and fans), and move the HIFZ program within close proximity (its currently in another building).
The estimated cost of this project is $1-3 million dollars and much of the costs will have to come from fundraising. ISB was able to raise just over $1 million during Ramadan, but not all of that was allocated to the expansion (pledge forms at the fundraiser had the option to donate to capital projects or operations. Some people specifically requested that their donations go to zakkah or student sponsorship, and those requests were honored).
Ed Tori, volunteers as President of ISB and believes in investing in people and systems that work. Tori hopes that the expansion project will increase the functionality of the facilities for the growing number of community members. “The growth is probably one of the most remarkable things,” says Tori. According to him, an estimated 2,000-3,000 people attend the two Jummah prayer services, and another 13,000-15,000 people attend their Eid Salah. Tori is quite familiar with the challenges that large, diverse crowds present, but also sees the size and diversity of the community as a strength.
Tori also views ISB’s history as a challenge and a strength. He believes that ISB has come a long way since community members first started holding weekly meetings at John Hopkins University and gathering for Friday prayer in 1969. As that community grew, so did the need for a masjid. It started with Al-Rahmah Masjid, and then grew to include Al-Rahmah K-12 School, Al-Rahmah Sunday School , Al-Rahmah Quran Academy and Hifz program, a full time nursery, and free health clinic for insured and uninsured Muslim and non-Muslims. ISB also has sports programs, including football, soccer, badminton, and cricket leagues, as well as various services and programs for different age groups.
When asked what members of the community say they like the most about ISB, Tori responded “That it’s so welcoming, and there is pretty much something for everyone.” Tori himself has 6 kids who are in various programs at ISB, such as the youth group and Hifz and sports programs.
There are still many challenges that ISB faces with the expansion project: not being able to move forward with one part of the project until another is completed, raising the money to complete this project, meeting the August 2019 deadline for the removal of the trailers/finding a place to put the students, and reforesting the area where they remove any trees, while making sure to meet county codes.
Despite all the challenges, however, Tori sees this as a great opportunity to look at ISB’s history and the elders who first established it and present to them the fruits of their labor. The county-issued-mandate to remove the trailers may at first have presented itself as problematic, but later proved to be a blessing in disguise.
The 50-year anniversary will include a slideshow created by both the youth and elders at ISB, with pictures of old images and old historical timelines of the organization. Tori hopes that “this multimedia project will capture the diversity, the ethnicities, the socioeconomic backgrounds, the ages, and the professional backgrounds of everybody that’s contributed to ISB over the years.”
If you would like to contribute to the expansion project or any other programs at ISB, please visit: ISB.org/donate.
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