Muslims and Mosques are Putting Down Roots

July 5, 2007

Author: Marc Parry

Source: The Times Union

http://www.timesunion.com/ASPStories/Story.asp?StoryID=603427&Category=REGION&LinkFrom=RSS

TROY -- The mosque, a converted funeral home, is so small it can't accommodate worshipers for the best-attended prayers of the week. On Fridays, they pray in the basement of a nearby college athletic center instead. They also borrow space for marriage ceremonies. And interfaith meetings. And holidays. "It's time the community gets its own place," said Abdulkadir Elmi, a trustee and ex-president of Troy's Masjid al-Hidaya.

That should start to happen at the end of this month, with a groundbreaking expected for a proper mosque with a dome and two minarets on more than 12 acres in Latham.

It's a small story about one mosque, but it also reflects a bigger picture of Muslim growth in the area, where you can still count all the mosques on one hand.