Aurora’s first mosque opened as Muslims everywhere mark Ramadan.
The Aurora-based Al-Abrar Muslim Association was founded in June 2015 and has been looking for a permanent masjid, the Arabic word for mosque, ever since.
The organization has found a permanent home, with Al-Abrar "soft opening" in the the former Baptist Church building at 33 Wellington St. E. in February. Worshippers were welcomed for prayers at the beginning of this month, as Ramadan began Friday, Feb. 28 this year, and is set to run till March 29.
The organization’s Imam Refaat Mohamed said it was good “to get the building back to its roots” as a religious place of worship, noting after the congregation left the former Baptist Church in late 2015, a business group sought to convert the building.
“This is a place of worship. It cannot be something else,” he said. “I really, really believe in that and God is great, so God granted us the opportunity to take it and to keep it as a place of worship, as well as our brothers and sisters from the Baptist church before. So we're very glad to do it.”
The masjid offers five daily prayer services. There are also plans for other services, including education programs, counselling services and perhaps in the future, a daycare and youth programs.
“We know Aurora is a very quiet, beautiful town, so we're going to continue to have that sense of quietness and softness in the town of Aurora because a lovely town deserves to continue as such,” he said. “We are planning to provide youth services where our youth can get together and learn ethics and manners and become stronger, through the way, and then continue through faith to be a solid support to the people in the town.”
Aurora resident Shaheen Moledina said she is excited for the prospect of local youth programming for her children. Moledina’s daughter, Laila Doran, 13, recently called on the town to hold a local Ramadan event during a delegation at a committee of the whole meeting on Tuesday, March 4.
“I like that Muslims are now being recognized in Aurora,” added Moledina, who owns the Active Minds Activity Centre on Ridge Road. “We live, play and work in Aurora, and now we'll even get to pray in Aurora, which is lovely.”
Moledina regularly attends Jaffari Community Centre in Thornhill, but said she is excited to have a mosque closer to home, noting she has already attended the mosque on Wellington for Friday prayers.
“I love the architecture of this mosque because it fits with the mosaic of Aurora, because it's a building, it's re-purposed and that's really nice,” she said.
Mohamed said the “beautiful” building was in a good condition when they took over.
“It has a unique location in terms of many people pass by, walk around, and that is a good opportunity for us also to provide a service to the community in the future when we are able to open the doors for open houses and let people know about our existence and how can we help and support the community also.”
Although, that location does mean purchasing the building has proven costly. The group had been fundraising for years to help with the cost, which between the renovations and buying the physical space, which totals over 15,000 square feet, is close to $3.6 million.
Mohammed said the group had raised nearly half of that amount, with fundraising efforts set to continue. He also noted there were several local members of the Muslim community who had helped with the project along the way, pointing to Omar Khamissa, former owner of Omars Shoes, who had organized prayer space for Aurora’s Muslim population, which numbered 3,550, according to 2021 census data.
Mohammed said there are also plans for an open house event in April to allow the community to familiarize themselves with the space.
More information about the new mosque can be found online.