Mosque Foundation Celebrates Grand Opening of Expansion Project
by Connie Martin
The long awaited Expansion Project has finally reached completion just in time for Ramadan, and the Mosque Foundation celebrated this momentous achievement with a Grand Opening Ceremony, complete with ribbon  cutting, speeches, and a tour of the newly expanded and remodeled facility. On Friday, August 21st, the eve of the first taraweeh prayers of Ramadan 1430, Mosque Foundation congregants were finally able to see the end result of six years in the making, from the initial planning phase to the final phase of remodeling the pre-existing space.
The original mosque was built in 1981 on a few acres of swampy land in the middle of an unpopulated section of Bridgeview, with a prayer hall capacity of 300. Over the years, as the Muslim community grew, the Mosque Foundation thrived. Trying to provide the spiritual, educational and social needs of a growing population, the Mosque Foundation struggled to accommodate the large number of worshippers even after an Interim Expansion of the original building was completed in 1998.
Today, thanks to the blessings of Almighty Allah and the generous contributions from the community, the Mosque Foundation has added 27,000 sq ft to the pre-existing structure in 3 floors, doubling the previous prayer space to accommodate close to 4000 men and women, and adding much needed functional facilities such as larger and more updated wudu areas; babysitting & childcare facilities; administrative offices; Board of Directors meeting room; and a fully functional kitchen area, among many other amenities. |