Urgent Appeal for Abu Bakr Mosque Project
Donation protected
Headline
Abu Bakr Masjid has been serving the Muslim community of Southampton for the past 50 years. This centre is a large 3 story building built over 100 years ago, now accommodating for over 1,000 worshippers at any time.
This is a very old building and needs extensive refurbishment and renovations so that it continues to be a strong focal point for future generations.
The renovations of this Mosque started in Ramadan 2018 and have almost been stopped due to low funding lately. The men's main prayer hall has been under renovations for over 2 months, hence the ladies' prayer room is currently being used by the brothers.
There are also additional activities and classes that take place in this centre, which are being affected by the current condition of the building.
The Mosque aimed to undergo the following major renovations and refurbishment:
- Mortuary and funeral services
- Masjid entrance and corridor expansion
- Under floor heating and levelling the floors
- Drainage and roofing
- Replacing old windows (Completed)
- Ladies Hall Refurbishment (Completed)
This is an urgent appeal, please a take a moment to read through this.
The following has a breakdown of where the donations will go and how it will help improve the mosque.
Mortuary and Funeral Services
The city of Southampton only has one funeral service provider for Muslims. Our aim is to be able to facilitate the community by providing funeral services in our Mosque as well.
We are currently undertaking a large project to incorporate a mortuary and body wash facility in our Mosque. The project is expected to cost in the region of £80,000 to complete.
Foundation laid down to extend the building for the mortuary.
Mosque Entrance and Corridor Expansion
Those who regularly attend the Mosque, especially for Friday prayers, will be aware of the difficulties are faced when it comes to entering and leaving the place. The corridor and the entrance get very crowded, and it can take longer to exit the building.
We are aiming to double the width of this corridor to ensure our attendees have quick and easy access in and out of the mosque. This will further improve our ability to ensure a safe and accessible route to the mosque for the disabled and elderly. The cost of this part of the project is around £35,000.
Entrance to the mosque and corridor potential expansion space.
Visual representation of the future entrance.
Men's Hall Under-floor Heating and Levelling the Floor
This part of the project currently our main focus at the moment. The men's main prayer hall is currently undergoing renovations. It has already undergone the process of levelling the floor as well as the under-floor heating has been placed.
Men's prayer hall during the process of re-levelling the floor.
Under floor heating being laid down in men's prayer hall.
We are now looking to raise enough funds to finish the floor work, lay down new carpets and re-paint the hall. This part needs to soon be completed in order to provide both brothers and sisters, a convenient place to pray.
Drainage and Roofing
There are many leaks and problems with our current piping and drainage system, therefore we are planning to clean and/or replace all of the drainage and piping across the Mosque. This will prevent water leaks and clogged drainage from occurring.
Coupled with the drainage improvements, we plan to have the roofing in some areas of the Mosque re-done to help maintain the building in good condition. This is predicted to cost approximately £10,000.
The community has been really generous, we appreciate all donations that have been made so far. We have been able to:
Replace Old Windows
The Mosque had single glazed windows, many of which were broken. In order to reduce monthly running expenses and improve efficiency, we intended to upgrade all the windows to double glazed windows.
The building's original windows.
The intention was to change all of the windows so that the heat would be kept within, as well as increase security within the Mosque. This part of the project costed around of £40,000.
New double-glazed windows placed all around the centre.
Ladies Hall Refurbishment
The ladies' hall needed urgent refurbishment. We planned to change the carpets, give the hall a deep clean and also re-paint and re-decorate the hall.
This included putting new lighting, new shelves, replacing old fans, a few additions to facilitate teaching in the hall as well as doing a few touch ups with the interior of the hall.
This has costed approximately £10,000
Re-painted walls, new shelves and other changes completed in the ladies' Hall.
Laying down new carpet in the Ladies' prayer hall.
Ladies' hall refurbishment completion.
We now need to make sure the rest of the project continues to improve our Mosque, so that soon we'll establish a better house of worship for the Muslim community.
“And hold fast, all of you together, to the rope of Allah, and be not divided amongst yourselves” - [Al-Imran 3:103].
Other ways to help
Giving money isn't always the only way to help. Investing you time and efforts for this purpose could really benefit this project as well as be rewarding.
Here are a few ways you could help:
- Spread the word! We cannot emphasise how much this means to us. If everyone one of you could take a moment to share this link on your Whatsapp or on other social media platforms, it could really put the word out there.
- Have you got good contacts with other mosques around the country who would be willing to help collect donations for us?
- Would you be willing to organise and visit different mosques and centres to help us collect donations?
- Do you own or know any business owners that supply construction/ interior decoration, who would be willing to help?
- Would you be willing to give us your spare time? We appreciate any pair of helping hands that could help us with labour work.
- Help us organise a fundraiser in the mosque! (Contact Hajra in regard to this)
- Do you have any other ideas to raise money? We'd love to hear them!
And above all, could you please take a moment to pray for us.
Get in touch with us
My name is Hajra and I'm a University student who's been going to this Mosque ever since my family and I moved to this city. This mosque has served our community in many ways, hence I decided to make this GoFundMe page as a means to say thank you and encourage the great work that is currently being done at this centre.
You may get in touch with me in regards to this fundraising page or even this project, however I'd highly encourage you to use the following details to contact the project organisers:
Zahir Ahmed
Masjid secretary
07877 463524
Imam Asjad
Imam (Head)
07737 005790
Imam Shokat
Imam
07809 828415
Alternatively, find us online:
- Masjid website
www.abubakrmasjid.net
- Contact the secretary
[email redacted]
- Our Facebook
https://en-gb.facebook.com/Abu-Bakr-Jamia-Masjid-554217887934560/?ref=page_internal
Our Address:
Southampton Central Mosque Trust
The Abu Bakr Masjid,
Argyle Centre,
Argyle Road,
Southampton,
SO14 0BQ
Remember that no act of charity goes unnoticed, Abu Huraira (RadhiAllahu 'anhu) reported: Allah's Messenger (SAW) as saying: "When a man dies, his acts come to an end, but three, recurring charity or knowledge (by which people) benefit, or pious children, who prays for him (for the decreased). - Sahih Muslim [13: 4005]
Thank you for your time.
Detailed breakdown of the estimated costs
Abu Bakr Masjid has been serving the Muslim community of Southampton for the past 50 years. This centre is a large 3 story building built over 100 years ago, now accommodating for over 1,000 worshippers at any time.
This is a very old building and needs extensive refurbishment and renovations so that it continues to be a strong focal point for future generations.
The renovations of this Mosque started in Ramadan 2018 and have almost been stopped due to low funding lately. The men's main prayer hall has been under renovations for over 2 months, hence the ladies' prayer room is currently being used by the brothers.
There are also additional activities and classes that take place in this centre, which are being affected by the current condition of the building.
The Mosque aimed to undergo the following major renovations and refurbishment:
- Mortuary and funeral services
- Masjid entrance and corridor expansion
- Under floor heating and levelling the floors
- Drainage and roofing
- Replacing old windows (Completed)
- Ladies Hall Refurbishment (Completed)
This is an urgent appeal, please a take a moment to read through this.
The following has a breakdown of where the donations will go and how it will help improve the mosque.
Mortuary and Funeral Services
The city of Southampton only has one funeral service provider for Muslims. Our aim is to be able to facilitate the community by providing funeral services in our Mosque as well.
We are currently undertaking a large project to incorporate a mortuary and body wash facility in our Mosque. The project is expected to cost in the region of £80,000 to complete.
Foundation laid down to extend the building for the mortuary.Mosque Entrance and Corridor Expansion
Those who regularly attend the Mosque, especially for Friday prayers, will be aware of the difficulties are faced when it comes to entering and leaving the place. The corridor and the entrance get very crowded, and it can take longer to exit the building.
We are aiming to double the width of this corridor to ensure our attendees have quick and easy access in and out of the mosque. This will further improve our ability to ensure a safe and accessible route to the mosque for the disabled and elderly. The cost of this part of the project is around £35,000.
Entrance to the mosque and corridor potential expansion space.Visual representation of the future entrance.Men's Hall Under-floor Heating and Levelling the Floor
This part of the project currently our main focus at the moment. The men's main prayer hall is currently undergoing renovations. It has already undergone the process of levelling the floor as well as the under-floor heating has been placed.
Men's prayer hall during the process of re-levelling the floor.Under floor heating being laid down in men's prayer hall.We are now looking to raise enough funds to finish the floor work, lay down new carpets and re-paint the hall. This part needs to soon be completed in order to provide both brothers and sisters, a convenient place to pray.
Drainage and Roofing
There are many leaks and problems with our current piping and drainage system, therefore we are planning to clean and/or replace all of the drainage and piping across the Mosque. This will prevent water leaks and clogged drainage from occurring.
Coupled with the drainage improvements, we plan to have the roofing in some areas of the Mosque re-done to help maintain the building in good condition. This is predicted to cost approximately £10,000.
The community has been really generous, we appreciate all donations that have been made so far. We have been able to:
Replace Old Windows
The Mosque had single glazed windows, many of which were broken. In order to reduce monthly running expenses and improve efficiency, we intended to upgrade all the windows to double glazed windows.
The building's original windows.The intention was to change all of the windows so that the heat would be kept within, as well as increase security within the Mosque. This part of the project costed around of £40,000.
New double-glazed windows placed all around the centre.Ladies Hall Refurbishment
The ladies' hall needed urgent refurbishment. We planned to change the carpets, give the hall a deep clean and also re-paint and re-decorate the hall.
This included putting new lighting, new shelves, replacing old fans, a few additions to facilitate teaching in the hall as well as doing a few touch ups with the interior of the hall.
This has costed approximately £10,000
Re-painted walls, new shelves and other changes completed in the ladies' Hall.Laying down new carpet in the Ladies' prayer hall.Ladies' hall refurbishment completion.We now need to make sure the rest of the project continues to improve our Mosque, so that soon we'll establish a better house of worship for the Muslim community.
“And hold fast, all of you together, to the rope of Allah, and be not divided amongst yourselves” - [Al-Imran 3:103].
Other ways to help
Giving money isn't always the only way to help. Investing you time and efforts for this purpose could really benefit this project as well as be rewarding.
Here are a few ways you could help:
- Spread the word! We cannot emphasise how much this means to us. If everyone one of you could take a moment to share this link on your Whatsapp or on other social media platforms, it could really put the word out there.
- Have you got good contacts with other mosques around the country who would be willing to help collect donations for us?
- Would you be willing to organise and visit different mosques and centres to help us collect donations?
- Do you own or know any business owners that supply construction/ interior decoration, who would be willing to help?
- Would you be willing to give us your spare time? We appreciate any pair of helping hands that could help us with labour work.
- Help us organise a fundraiser in the mosque! (Contact Hajra in regard to this)
- Do you have any other ideas to raise money? We'd love to hear them!
And above all, could you please take a moment to pray for us.
Get in touch with us
My name is Hajra and I'm a University student who's been going to this Mosque ever since my family and I moved to this city. This mosque has served our community in many ways, hence I decided to make this GoFundMe page as a means to say thank you and encourage the great work that is currently being done at this centre.
You may get in touch with me in regards to this fundraising page or even this project, however I'd highly encourage you to use the following details to contact the project organisers:
Zahir Ahmed
Masjid secretary
07877 463524
Imam Asjad
Imam (Head)
07737 005790
Imam Shokat
Imam
07809 828415
Alternatively, find us online:
- Masjid website
www.abubakrmasjid.net
- Contact the secretary
[email redacted]
- Our Facebook
https://en-gb.facebook.com/Abu-Bakr-Jamia-Masjid-554217887934560/?ref=page_internal
Our Address:
Southampton Central Mosque Trust
The Abu Bakr Masjid,
Argyle Centre,
Argyle Road,
Southampton,
SO14 0BQ
Remember that no act of charity goes unnoticed, Abu Huraira (RadhiAllahu 'anhu) reported: Allah's Messenger (SAW) as saying: "When a man dies, his acts come to an end, but three, recurring charity or knowledge (by which people) benefit, or pious children, who prays for him (for the decreased). - Sahih Muslim [13: 4005]
Thank you for your time.
Detailed breakdown of the estimated costs
Organizer
Hajra Iqbal
Organizer
