Building Masjid Appalachia – A Home for Muslims in the Hills

Small Southern Muslim community seeks trailer masjid to fund rent, rugs

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Building Masjid Appalachia – A Home for Muslims in the Hills

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2026 Project Update – The Next Phase of Masjid Appalachia

Alhamdulillah, with the support of this community nearly $90,000 has been raised to help establish Masjid Appalachia and bring Muslim community life to a region where many Muslims have historically lived far from a mosque.

Over the past year we were able to rent a small gathering space where prayers and community activities could take place. When the lease ended, the landlord chose to rent the building to another tenant at a higher rate. While disappointing, the decision was understandable from a business perspective.

This experience made something very clear: renting leaves the long-term future of a community in someone else’s hands.

Rather than rushing into another fragile rental situation, we are now focusing on building the long-term foundation of Masjid Appalachia so that the next space we open will be one the community can truly sustain and eventually own.

Masjid Appalachia is now a registered nonprofit organization, and the mission continues to grow both locally and online.

The Mission of Masjid Appalachia

Masjid Appalachia exists to serve Muslims across the Appalachian region—many of whom live hours away from the nearest mosque.

In many parts of Appalachia, Muslim families are scattered across rural towns and small cities without access to regular congregational prayer, Islamic education, or a nearby community.

Our mission is to help change that by building connection, support, and faith-centered community life in a region that has historically had very little Muslim infrastructure.

What the Work Looks Like Today

Building a community in a region like Appalachia takes more than simply opening a building.

The work includes:

• connecting scattered Muslim families across the region
• organizing gatherings and community events
• producing educational and outreach content
• traveling to connect with surrounding Muslim communities
• developing relationships with supporters and organizations
• laying the financial and organizational foundation for a permanent masjid

This type of grassroots community work requires consistent effort, travel, organization, and outreach as the community continues to grow.

How Your Support Helps

Donations to Masjid Appalachia help support the continued development of this mission, including:

• community gatherings and outreach efforts
• educational and community-focused content
• travel and networking with surrounding Muslim communities
• organizational and operational needs of the nonprofit
• long-term preparation for a permanent masjid in the region

As with many grassroots nonprofit initiatives, donations also help sustain the ongoing work required to grow and maintain the mission, including outreach, travel, program development, and the time required to build and organize the community.

Our goal is to continue strengthening the foundation of Masjid Appalachia so that a permanent and sustainable masjid can eventually be established in this region without fragile rental arrangements or financial instability.

Looking Toward the Future

Masjid Appalachia is more than a building project.

It is a long-term effort to bring faith, brotherhood, and community to a region where many Muslims have lived spiritually isolated for far too long.

With your support, we are building the groundwork for something that can serve Muslims across Appalachia for generations to come.

May Allah reward everyone who has supported this effort and continues to help this mission grow.


**Update 02/13/2026** - Masjid Appalachia is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donation receipts are automatically issued by GoFundMe.

HELP ME START THE FIRST MASJID IN OUR FORGOTTEN TOWN

As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullah,
My name is Ibrahim, and I live deep in the American South—right in the heart of the Bible Belt. In my town, there’s a church on every corner… but not a single masjid. Not a Qur’an center. Not a single place for a Muslim to pray in congregation. We are few in number, but we carry the light of faith in our hearts—and that light needs a home.

I’m launching this campaign to raise $9,000 to $15,000 to create a humble but sacred space—a trailer masjid that will serve as the first Islamic center in our area.

After researching the options:
• $9,000 would allow us to rent a small trailer for one full year
• $15,000 would allow us to purchase a used trailer outright, turning it into a permanent prayer space

Either option would give us a place for salah, learning, brotherhood, and da’wah—in a town that has never had any of it.

A Masjid in a Trailer: A Spark of Hope

I’m starting this campaign with a simple, powerful dream:
To rent a small trailer and convert it into a masjid for the pleasure of Allah (SWT).
It won’t be fancy. It won’t have marble floors or chandeliers.
But it will have:
• A place to make sujood in peace
• A Qur’an on the shelf, always open
• A safe space for reverts, travelers, and born Muslims alike
• A center for da’wah in a place that’s never seen Islam up close


Why This Matters

Where I live, many people have never even met a Muslim. Our children grow up without a community. New reverts feel isolated. Brothers and sisters die without Janazah prayer. Jummah is a livestream or nothing. Ramadan is spent alone. Eid feels like any other day. There’s no adhan, no Friday khutbah, no nightly Taraweeh, no Islamic learning.

I want to change that. Even if it starts small—even if it’s just a trailer—we must plant the seed.


What the Funds Will Cover

The funds raised will go directly toward:
• Renting a clean, usable portable trailer or small space
• Covering utilities and basic maintenance
• Prayer rugs, Qur’ans, shelves, wudu supplies
• Local advertising and outreach
• Possibly hosting small Jumu’ah, Taraweeh, Qur’an circles, and da’wah events

I have no overhead, no staff, and no other goal but to serve Allah and provide a space for Muslims to gather and grow in faith.


A Call to My Ummah

The Prophet ﷺ said:

“Whoever builds a mosque for Allah, Allah will build for him a house like it in Paradise.” (Bukhari & Muslim)

Even a trailer masjid can be a house of Allah. Even one salah made in jama’ah. Even one convert feeling less alone. Even one child hearing the Qur’an in their town for the first time.

Please give whatever you can.
Share this.
Be part of planting the first masjid in a land where no one else has.

May Allah reward you with a house in Jannah. Ameen.

— Your brother in Islam,
Ibrahim

Organizer

Ibrahim Sokolov
Organizer
Morristown, TN
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