The Need

The Islamic Center of Naperville, ICN, is part of a large suburban area in the Chicagoland that includes not just Naperville but, Naperville, Aurora, and all the surrounding cities, which include parts of Plainfield. So many of these cities don’t have adequate Islamic facilities and they look to ICN to provide them with all the services.  ICN has seen strong growth in its community, as we have almost 20 percent growth over the last few years in our Muslim community and that is really a testament to how the ICN has been welcoming to all Muslim brothers and sisters from many different walks of life. The community has grown to such a level where we have multiple Jumma salah at 75^th at Ogden and they’re full.  In sha ALLAH the new 248 project, Masjid Al-Nur, will give us an opportunity to accommodate a lot more people and potentially relieve the burden from the other centers.

ICN’s Story

The story of ICN begins in the late 80s when there were community members that were gathering at houses to pray Salah together. By 1991, Alhamdulillah, we had the opportunity to purchase the Olesen property and at the time we would get approximately 500 people on our busy occasions. Since the community has grown exponentially in the last 19 years, we had the opportunity to purchase the Ogden property at around 2007-2008. At the time of purchase, that property was a church, however we were able to repurpose it afterwards for our Islamic needs.

The Journey to Masjid Al-Nur

During that time, we had the opportunity to purchase the 248 property. It has always been one of our goals to have our own center built from the ground up and Alhamdulillah ICN was able to acquire a piece of land almost 13 ½ acres in South Naperville. The land was acquired through community financing and alhamdulillah with that we’ve now been able to get to the actual phases of building the property which we call Masjid Al-Nur.

Phase 1 – Building A  Mosque

The 248 property, Masjid Al-Nur, will be built in five different phases and currently we are embarking on the first phase of that project. The first phase of the project will be building a mosque, and the mosque will have three levels, a basement, a first floor and a second floor. The first floor will have a board room, the imams’ offices, as well as a large prayer area with two-level prayer space. The second level will have a women’s prayer space, women’s own multi-purpose room, mothers’ room as well as a special needs room so this way the mosque can cater for the entire community. We have consulted different resources and people’s perspectives in the ICN community to get their input on what is needed or useful to have in the new property and in sha ALLAH we will have their needs met. Our second phase will be building a school, the third phase will be building gymnasium, the fourth phase will be building a multi-purpose Hall, and then lastly our fifth phase will be an expansion of the first phase mosque facilities. This plan is for the many years to come in sha ALLAH As a matter or fact, there maybe up to 10 years between each phase.

Building A Mosque, Builds A Community

Every time we build a center, new families in the community have gravitated towards that Center. There are a lot of people that moved near 248 because they knew that this Masjid was in the works for a long time. Each of these families and community members that move add value to our community as they come up with new ideas, new programs, and take on the roles of leadership.

Build A Mosque From The Ground Up

The 248 project will provide additional space needed for our growing youth programs and it will bring a unique experience to Naperville and surrounding areas by establishing a center where the youth can learn, thrive, and participate in benefiting each other and the community at large. All three current Masajid that we have now provide their own specific and unique flavors, but since the existing locations were repurposed for our needs, there are certain things that we had limitations with. These locations were just not made with the Islamic rituals in mind.  Having all of those issues addressed with the new location that will be built based on our needs as a mosque and Islamic organization will allow us to have a facility that fits our needs.

Build A Legacy – Sponsor A Masjid Brick

In sha ALLAH, when future generations walk into the mosque, they will feel connected to a legacy that goes way back to this present time. When each of our community members comes in to sponsor a brick for the masjid, they’re putting in not just their money but, their heart and soul. Each brick represents the community members’ participation in the masjid, as such, each individual is making their legacy connected with this masjid. With buying a brick, you can be part of the most noble of endeavors and projects by contributing to the building of the house of ALLAH.

Building a Masjid is a major form of gaining an everlasting charity (sadaqah jariyah).

Phase 1 Cost – Target Collection

While we have embarked on building the project, the mosque won’t come to life without the community’s support. The building will in sha ALLAH cost at least 11 to 11.5 million dollars just to get the doors open and to be able to use the masjid facility. That is a big amount but, we are counting on all of you to make this a reality.