PROFILE OF SCARBOROUGH MUSLIM ASSOCIATION By the late 1970s a large number of Muslims had migrated and settled in the east part of Toronto which is known as Scarborough. Currently over 100,000 Muslims reside in the Scarborough area and this number is growing rapidly. In the early 1980s, there was no permanent mosque facility in Scarborough, realizing this need the Muslims in Scarborough formed a non-profit organization in 1981 with the sole purpose of establishing a permanent mosque and Islamic academic school in Scarborough. The Scarborough Muslim Association (SMA) rented a hall and started offering religious services. To accommodate a growing Muslim population, in 1992 SMA purchased land and a building at a cost of $3 million Canadian dollars. Almost all paid by donations rose from the local Muslim community. The necessary renovations were carried out to the then existing building to provide prayer facilities and a Madressa for our Muslim children. Alhumdolillah as our families expand, more Muslims continue to immigrate to Canada, and as a result of the many dawah programs in Toronto, Islam is flourishing in North America. Consequently, the Muslim population in Scarborough continues to grow rapidly. The SMA provides the following services: Jame Abu Bakr Masjid: The existing building is primarily used for five times daily prayers, Friday, Eidain and Taraweeh Salah. A qualified Imam leads the salah and provides religious guidance and counseling to the community. Over 2000 worshippers come to our mosque. The existing facility cannot accommodate more than 1500 worshippers, therefore two congregations have to be held on Fridays, Eidain and special occasions. Often musallis have to pray in the outdoor parking lot, which becomes inconvenient and frustrating especially during the cold winter months. We desperately need a bigger space to serve the community better. Jamiya Islamiyah of Scarborough: SMA operates a regular five-days-a-week Madressa between the hours of 5pm and 7pm. Alhumdolillah over 400 Muslim children from the surrounding vicinity have the opportunity to take advantage of lessons in learning the Qur'an, aHadith, Salah, and Islamic morals and values for their social development. We also offer a Hifz class for the memorization of the holy Qur'an. The Madressa comprises of a staff of 20 well-qualified teachers to provide these services. Proposed plan for a new building for a Mosque and a full-time Islamic School Our existing building is 8,000 sq ft in size cannot accommodate more than 1500 worshippers. With a current flow of 2000 worshippers and a rapid growth of the Muslim population in the surrounding area we are in a desperate need to reconstruct the premises as this building requires expensive repairs and extensive maintenance. To fulfill our community's growing needs we have initiated plans for a new mosque and school site. An outline of the plan is as follows: A new building of approximately 42,000 sq. ft. Prayer facility to accommodate 2500 worshippers Full-time academic school from kindergarten onwards in an Islamic environment Larger classrooms for evening madressa and Qur'anic classes Gymnasium for youth development Enhanced funeral and burial facility including ghusl for deceased Muslims. Parking facilities to facilitate the larger number of musallis Outdoor playground for full-time school students We estimate this project will cost approximately $6 million Canadian Dollars. The construction of the masjid was started in November 2005. Please see our construction update page for latest updates. SMA Community Learning Centre: We operate a learning centre during the day to teach children Islamic and academic subjects in an Islamic environment under the supervision of qualified staff. Humanitarian Services: SMA has in the past and continues to be in the forefront to help victims of natural disasters around the world. We have helped raise funds for the conjoined Siamese twins (the Jamal sisters) from Pakistan and other critically sick children from around the world. We have raise funds for earthquakes and helped war stricken Muslims in Iran, India, Turkey, Bosnia, and Kosovo. Other Services: Marriage Performance Family crisis and youth counselling Liaison with Government agencies for support services for Muslims Funeral and burial services Counseling for Muslims in prisons, establishing Islamic libraries in prisons, providing halal food to Muslim prisoners particularly in the month of Ramadan