Please support the Talha ibn Ubaidillah Center in achieving its short and long term goals. Likewise, support it in maintaining what has currently been achieved by Allah’s permission.
Scan the QR code for Zelle donations or manually through Zelle and PayPal with the email address as the recipient: tislamicministry@gmail.com. Donations can also be mailed via check or money order made payable to “Talha Islamic Ministry” and mailed to 1026 Cosby Ave, Cambridge, MD 21613. Bank Transfers are accepted as well after direct contact with us. An email is the starting point for this action.
How your donations support the Center? Currently it supports:
- Daily operations for the facility i.e., furnishings, equipment, utilities, and all operations expenses.
- Outreach and or da’wah efforts especially with regards to da’wah materials.
- Repaying of two loans essential in establishing the Center i.e. $8,400 and $16,800.
What we hope to establish as short term goals by Allah’s permission:
Food Distribution Program
The Talha ibn Ubaidillah Center is working to establish a community food distribution program to help address food insecurity and economic hardship among individuals and families in Cambridge and the surrounding area inshā Allah.
The need for such an effort is significant. Census data indicates that approximately 26% of Cambridge residents live below the poverty line, a rate substantially higher than both the Maryland and national averages. The impact is particularly concerning among children, with estimates indicating that nearly half of Cambridge residents under the age of 18 live in households below the poverty line. Local household incomes also remain considerably below statewide levels.
These economic realities can make it difficult for individuals and families to consistently obtain sufficient nutritious food while also meeting essential expenses such as housing, utilities, transportation, clothing, and healthcare.
In response to this need, the Talha ibn Ubaidillah Center seeks to establish a food distribution program that will provide groceries and other essential food items to individuals and families experiencing hardship inshā Allah. The program is intended to serve the broader Cambridge community without regard to religious affiliation, reflecting our belief that service to one’s neighbors and assistance to those in need are important responsibilities of a Muslim community and something highly encouraged within revelation.
As the program develops, we hope to work with food banks, grocery stores, local businesses, charitable organizations, volunteers, and individual donors to obtain and distribute food on a regular basis. Our goal is not to duplicate the work of organizations already serving Cambridge, but to increase the community’s overall capacity to address food insecurity and reach additional households in need.
Financial contributions to this initiative will assist with the acquisition, transportation, storage, and distribution of food and with the equipment and supplies necessary to operate the program safely and effectively, by Allah’s permission.
Through this effort, we hope that the Talha ibn Ubaidillah Center will become not only a place of worship and Islamic education, but also a reliable source of service and benefit to the community in which it resides inshā Allah.
Community Garden
The Talha ibn Ubaidillah Center plans to establish a community garden operated with the involvement of local residents inshā Allah. The garden will help address food insecurity by producing fresh vegetables, fruits, herbs, and other produce that can supplement our food distribution efforts and assist families in need.
The garden will also provide opportunities for community involvement, youth education, and practical skills development. Residents will be encouraged to participate in planting, maintaining, and harvesting the garden while learning about gardening, nutrition, responsibility, and teamwork.
As the program grows and funding becomes available, we hope to create paid employment and seasonal job opportunities for members of the local community, including opportunities for young people to gain valuable work experience.
Donations will help provide seeds, plants, soil, gardening tools, raised beds, fencing, irrigation equipment, and other materials needed to establish and maintain the garden inshā’ Allah. Our goal is to create a sustainable community resource that provides food, develops skills, creates employment opportunities, and strengthens the Cambridge community, by Allah’s permission.
Business Literacy Program
The Talha ibn Ubaidillah Center plans to develop a Business Literacy and Entrepreneurship Education Program to provide local residents with practical business knowledge that is often not covered in traditional public-school education.
The program will introduce participants to the fundamentals of starting and operating a business, including sole proprietorships, partnerships, LLCs, S corporations and C corporations; business registration and licensing; EINs; business banking and credit; bookkeeping and taxes; contracts; insurance; marketing; and basic financial management. Participants will also learn about different sources of business funding, including personal financing, loans (i.e., its dangers and its alternatives), grants, investors, and other available resources, as well as how to develop a basic business plan and prepare to seek financing.
The goal is to help residents better understand entrepreneurship, business ownership, financial responsibility, and the steps involved in turning a business idea into an operating enterprise. As the program develops, the Center hopes to involve experienced business owners, accountants, attorneys, financial professionals, and other qualified individuals -that the broader Islamic community is not short of- who can provide workshops and practical instruction.
Donations will help support educational materials, workshops, guest instructors, technology, and other resources necessary to provide this training. Through this initiative, the Center hopes to -by Allah’s permission- increase business literacy, encourage entrepreneurship, develop greater economic self-sufficiency, and create pathways toward business ownership and employment within the Cambridge community.
LONG TERM GOAL:
A Campus Style Islamic Center
As a long-term goal, the Talha ibn Ubaidillah Center aspires, in shāʾ Allāh, to develop a comprehensive campus-style Islamic center capable of addressing the religious, educational, social, and developmental needs of Muslims while also providing beneficial services to the broader community.
The envisioned campus would include a masjid as its spiritual center; an Islamic library for study and research; separate boys’ and girls’ school buildings dedicated to Islamic and academic education; separate transitional homes for men and women who need temporary assistance in establishing stability and independence; and a large cafeteria and multipurpose dining facility capable of accommodating community ifṭārs, weddings, banquets, and other social gatherings.
The vision also includes an athletic and recreational facility where youth and adults can participate in sports, physical fitness, and organized activities in an appropriate environment, along with additional facilities and programs as the needs of the community develop.
Our long-term objective is to establish more than a masjid building. We envision, inshāʾ Allāh, an Islamic campus where worship, education, family and youth development, community service, recreation, and assistance to those in need can exist together in one environment—an institution capable of serving the present community while building something of lasting benefit for future generations.
Achieving a vision of this magnitude will require substantial financial resources, careful planning, community participation, and long-term support. Donations made toward the continued growth of the Center can help lay the foundation for what we hope will one day become a permanent and comprehensive Islamic institution serving Cambridge and the surrounding region.