Why this Funeral Facility?
Welcome to the Mustafa Center Funeral Facility Project
The Almighty Allah says in the Holy Quran:
“Those who spend their wealth (in Allah’s way) by night and by day, in secret and in public, they shall have their
reward with their Lord. On them shall be no fear nor shall they grieve.”
(Al-Baqarah Verse: 274)
History
Prompted by the community’s growing needs for Islamic funeral services, Mustafa Center (MC) initiated a project to meet that important need. To that end, MC set aside some neighboring land that it had purchased in 2012 for this purpose. The land is located across from the Center at 6839 Braddock Rd., Annandale, VA. Once the land was purchased, the application for a funeral chapel along with an initial design for the project was submitted to Fairfax County. After a critical review, the design was forwarded to the County’s Land Use Department. This was followed by a number of hearings requested by some neighborhood residents and other interested parties. One of those hearings took place in late 2014 in which hundreds of Mustafa Center members and supporters participated in and passionately expressed their support for the construction of the chapel. Ultimately in January 2015, Fairfax County approved MC’s application for the project.
Soon after the county’s approval, the detailed technical and architectural design of the project was completed. In addition, a developer was selected and bonds were posted, which allowed the construction process to begin in earnest after a groundbreaking ceremony was held on May 4, 2019.
Fulfilling a Community Need
- Cannot have a funeral service in your own house
- Rapidly growing and diverse Muslim population in the DC Metro area
- Lack of proper Islamic funeral facilities
- A need for a standard and a well-equipped funeral facility
- Driven by these needs, Mustafa Center & Afghan Academy initiated a project to meet these important necessities
Need of Community’s Support
- We passionately call upon our Muslim brothers and sisters to generously contribute to this important cause
- Every dollar that you spend on this project will be considered a continuous reward (Sadaqah Jariah) to you and your family
- As we all wish to live a dignified life in this world, let’s prepare for a dignified death in our final journey toward our Lord, Allah The Almighty
How You Can Help
- Raise awareness and spread the message in your local communities
- Organize a joint fundraising event with Mustafa Center
- Have a fundraiser during Jummah Prayer
- Apply for grants
- Organize an online fundraiser
Our Objective
Our goal is to build a state-of-the-art funeral facility that is compliant with Sharia based Islamic traditions and provide supportive services to our growing Muslim communities.
The funeral facility will be located across from the Mustafa Center at 6839 Braddock Rd., Annandale, VA.
Cannot have a funeral service in your own house.
Fast growing of the Muslim population in DC Metro area.
Lack of proper Islamic funeral facilities.
A need for a standard and a well-equipped funeral facility.
Driven by these needs, Mustafa Center & Afghan Academy initiated a project to meet those important necessities.
Fulfilling a Community Need
For years, Northern Virginia which is home to more than 300,000 Muslims has lacked a standard and well-equipped funeral chapel for its Muslim inhabitants. In recent years, many mosques and houses of worship have been built by various Muslim communities in Northern Virginia; unfortunately the construction of a funeral chapel has largely been neglected in the region.
As we have witnessed, when death occurs, the grieving Muslim families desperately search for a funeral home to keep the remains of their loved ones cooled until the funeral and burial services are prepared. While in shock and occasionally paying hefty prices, they end up keeping their deceased relatives in traditional non-Muslim funeral homes with varying cleaning, bathing and clothing services that are non-compliant with Sharia based Islamic traditions. This has left many families psychologically scarred as they wished to prepare their loved ones for burial in accordance with Islamic injunctions.
We are sensitive to the very special needs of Muslims during bereavement and are knowledgeable about the unique requirements of Islamic funerals. Therefore, we will ensure that the clear and precise rules regarding the preparation of the body, prayer, and burial will be followed appropriately. We also understand that those rites and rituals should be conducted promptly and in a dignified manner in order to relieve any stress that families might experience during this traumatic time.