PEORIA MAGAZINE October 2023

COVER STORY

‘THE WILL OF ALLAH’ ‘Whatever he tells us to do, we do it,’ says the imam at Peoria’s growing Islamic Center

BY THOMAS BRUCH PHOTOS BY RON JOHNSON

He’s aware of at least 15 families that have moved to Peoria for their children to attend the school. Daarul Uloom is “ranked as one of the best private schools in Peoria, if not all of Illinois,” proclaimed Alrefai, and its reputation coaxes many Muslim families to give Peoria a try. Contributing to the foot traffic at the Center that evening were those emerg ing from the Quran memorization session, taught daily by Alrefai, and those concluding evening prayers from the Masjid, or mosque, the worship space also located within the building. The Islamic Center acts as a daily hub for the Muslim community of Peoria. It has been “a fascinating journey,” Alrefai said. “I would say it was nothing short of a miracle.” The origins of the Islamic Center of Peoria began in a small church building in central Peoria, across the street from Peoria High School, that was converted into a mosque in 1995. While the modest worship space suit ed the community at that time, the Cen ter’s leaders already were discussing a mosque expansion to serve the area’s Muslim youth. Islam is a religion with a heavy empha sis on traditional family values, Alrefai explained, and that means preparing the FIRST A SCHOOL, THEN A MOSQUE

children of the community to be highly successful individuals in adulthood — future government leaders, CEOs, entrepreneurs, etc. “So what can we do in order for the youth to succeed? And when I say suc ceed, I mean secularly speaking as well as religiously,” Alrefai said. “They go hand in hand.” Ultimately, the Islamic Center’s orig inal location didn’t fit the ambitious concepts its leaders had in mind. In the mid-2000s, there was a significant push from a few “visionaries” to pur chase a parcel of land off Charter Oak Road, said Alrefai. The Center bought the undeveloped property in Northwest Peoria in 2008 with the goal of building a school and gym, with hopes that a new mosque would soon follow. Many at the time doubted that such a costly construction project could be pulled off, said Alrefai. But Peoria’s Mus lims proved generous. The vast majority of the fundraising done on behalf of the building project came directly from the Center’s families, he said. And the giving has continued. Sometimes, a hefty bill would arrive when the Center was low on funds. “All of the sudden, we’d get the money, and it’s just the right amount for the bill itself to be paid,” Alrefai said. The new building housing the school and gym officially opened in late 2010, with the mosque transitioning to the space in 2015.

D uring a sweltering Thursday evening amid a mid-August heat wave, the Islamic Center of Peoria hummed with activity. It was Orientation Night for the up coming year at Daarul Uloom School, the private Islamic school housed within the Center. Parents held their children’s hands and walked through the halls, peering into classrooms and meeting their teachers. Osama Alrefai, the Center’s imam, stood just within the front doors in the middle of the flurry. He warmly greet ed parents in Arabic with an extended handshake and addressed the children by name. It’s easy for Alrefai to spot a new fam ily arriving at the Center, as he knows just about everyone in the community. Imam Osama Alrefai at the Islamic Center of Peoria on Charter Oak Road

46 OCTOBER 2023 PEORIA MAGAZINE