Eid Mubarak!
Eid Mubarak!
We pray all your fasting and worship during Ramadan is accepted and that your Eid celebrations are joyful and blessed. This Eid, as we all gather together in the homes of friends and family, we're excited to launch the Welcome Home Initiative at Taleef.
"Taleef began in a living room." I heard this statement for years volunteering and, later, working at this organization. We'd remind each other of this whenever the work became overwhelming or we lost the plot while serving the community. Taleef is supposed to feel like home. It's a place where friends and family gather, learn, and serve together. What always kept me coming back to Taleef was knowing that this saying wasn't sentimental. It had a profound intention behind it. When people feel welcome, their hearts open up; if their hearts are open, they're ready to receive the blessings that come from gathering to mention Allah's name. Making Taleef into a second home for the community makes "taleef" happen: our hearts become reconciled to Allah and to each other.
The Welcome Home Initiative is our effort to get back to these roots. Over the coming weeks and months, we will be reopening an organization that prioritizes sincere connection between our community members and authentic learning in intimate spaces. This blog will be an important part of that effort. Taleef expanded its reach during 2020 to national and international audiences. We want to maintain these ties going forward by providing consistent content for seekers, newcomers to Islam, and returning Muslims. Eventually, we hope *Welcome Home* will form a solid basis of content that will become a resource for anyone hoping to learn more about Allah and His Messenger. Finally, the blog will be part of our effort to provide greater transparency at Taleef, a place where we post updates on updates on our community life and reports on the internal workings of the organization.
As a first step toward this goal, we are excited to announce that we are welcoming home three former staff members as full time directors.
Stara Rahmani has served the community for over 10 years. Her journey began in 2009 as the Administrative Assistant to Taleef in the Bay Area. As the organization grew she transitioned into being a liaison between the core team and the Founding Director as the Chief of Staff/ Executive Assistant until 2019. Though she took a break, Ta’leef never left her heart. Her passion for love and service led her back HOME. She will now be joining the team as the Director of Operations, where she will manage all operational functions between Taleef’s campuses in Chicago and Fremont.
Mike Swies has served the needs of the convert community in Chicago since 2007 by organizing convert-centered social gatherings and educational programs. He began his work with Ta’leef Collective in 2009 in the role of Convert Care Coordinator where he mentored those new to Islam, assisted people in embracing Islam and provided pastoral care needs specific to the convert population. He is now stepping into the role of Director of Outreach & Community Engagement where he will work with our community to develop and oversee all programming and services Ta’leef offers to focus specifically on the populations Ta’leef aims to serve.
Dr. Will Caldwell has volunteered at Taleef's Convert Care program since 2013. In 2019 he became the Taleef Chicago's Convert Care Coordinator and finally transitioned into the role of Outreach Director in early 2021. Now he is assuming the role of Director of Education, where he will create curriculum and content across Taleef's various programs.