'I am very proud': Son of man who started mosque in St. John's opens one in N.S.

When Hussein El-Tahan came to St. John's from Egypt in 1975, there was no mosque for him and the other few Muslims in town to pray in. So, they'd lay out prayer mats and form lines of worship in living rooms and empty rooms at Memorial University.

After years of meetings and fundraising, he helped open the doors to Newfoundland and Labrador's first mosque in 1990.

"The big challenge was really the money," he said, estimating the cost of the mosque was about $500,000.

Now, almost three decades later, his son is following suit, and is launching another mosque in Atlantic Canada.

"The experience I had with my father and the rest of the community in St. John's really helped shape what was going to happen here 30 years later," said Tahmir El-Tahan, a physician who moved to Pictou County, N.S., seven years ago.

When Tahmir moved to Pictou County, there were about 15 Muslim families in the area.

Recently, though, more than 50 Syrian refugees arrived, meaning crowded conditions while praying in living rooms and basements, he said.

Inspired by his father's experience, Tahmir became the president of the local Muslim association and the group made it a priority to secure a place of worship.

'When you build it, they will come'

The building in Trenton, N.S., is not your typical mosque. Instead of a crescent moon and minaret, it has a steeple and bell.

Through community fundraising and help from the Islamic Association of Nova Scotia, the Muslim community purchased the former Christ the King Catholic Church.

The church, which hadn't been filled with worshipers in two years, was given new life when it opened as the Pictou County Islamic Centre last week.

"Like my dad said, when you build it, they will come — [that] is the hope."

The best piece of advice Tahmir got from his father was to think about the future.

"A lot people thought this building will be too big for us," said Tahmir.

The building can hold about 300 people, but there are only about 30 people who regularly attend prayers.

"I was very adamant because of the experience that we'd had in St. John's," said Tahmir. "We needed to have a bigger space that would allow for that growth."

Outgrown mosque

"People were telling us, if you just start a mosque here, people will come, don't worry, a lot of people will come, and that actually happened," said Hussein, reflecting back to the late 1980s.

The mosque that Hussein El-Taham helped start in St. John's has grown so much, it's too small for the community demand.

Instead of celebrating religious holidays like Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha at the mosque, the St. John's area Muslim community rents large buildings like stadiums to hold morning prayers.

Knowing this, Tahmir wanted to look ahead and ensure the Trenton area doesn't grow out of its mosque.

"Despite the fact that it seems quite large at this time, moving forward, we're hoping to fill it as they did in St. John's."

When asked how he feels about his son following in his footsteps, Hussein repeats how he's amazed by it all.

"Overwhelming, because we came here and started something and many people thought it would be difficult to do and it was amazing."

Tahmir said while his father's inspiration was helpful, his engineering experience will also come in handy.

"He promised that if we needed help with renovations, he'd come and oversee things and so, I'm going to hold him up to that," said Tahmir.

Hussein has already seen the building, and plans to visit soon to help with the renovations.

Fear of cultural clashes

Back in 1975, when Hussein arrived in St. John's as a PhD student, he remembers the concerns he had about raising his family in a non-Muslim and not a particularly diverse city.

Passing on his cultural and religious practices was important to him.

"This was a big concern," said Hussein.

"Actually, it is really overwhelming because when you come here you don't know what will happen to your children and their children."

But seeing how their lives panned out, Hussein feels a sense of accomplishment.

"I am very proud of what has happened."

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