Story behind MCNET establishment

Muslim Community of North Eastern Tennessee (MCNET) traces its origin to 1984. You might not remember that the first Apple Macintosh personal computer and 24/7 coverage of cable TV was introduced in this year. American universities also started to expand and establish computer science and other technical disciplines and entice a lot of foreign students. Even the US Diplomatic relationship with Muslim countries was also strengthened by offering the student exchange program in these areas. In response to that academic growth, five Muslim graduate students came to the Eastern Tennessee State University (ETSU). Among them, Khalid Badamere, Syed Badamere and Faisal Badamere were from Iraq; Br. Jalal (forgotten last name) was from Iran; Dr. Anwar was from Syria; Additionally, Br. Atyia Ahmed, recently graduated from the University of Memphis, TN came to Johnson City with his first job as pharmacist. 

Local people barely knew about Islam or Muslim; presence of any mosque was out of question. Such unfamiliarity was not unusual in a bible belt, but the life of those young Muslim students became unthinkable without a mosque. So they started renting an apartment at the Greenwood drive, Johnson City, Tennessee for $50 to offer for their Friday prayer and instigated the unofficial movement of MCNET establishment.

As more Muslim students enrolled in ETSU, it became a fertile campus for the MSA (Muslim Student Association) chapter. Some of the obligatory Islamic activities [i.e. Ramadan prayers and iftar (breaking Muslim fasting), Eid celebration or facilitating charity for the community] were organized by MSA but they remained confined within a small and shared room located in the Mathematics building. Meanwhile, those early pioneers had full bloomed families. The presence of Quillen College of Medicine, one of the two state sponsored residency places in TN, also welcomed several medical professional Muslim families. Occasional events at MSA failed to fulfill the comprehensive role of religion in their lives. For Muslims, faith is the primary facet to shape their families by encompassing all events from birth to marriage to funeral ceremony, and therefore the necessity of a mosque became vital.

These Muslim families didn’t come to make a quick fortune and return to their home country, but to settle down in the Johnson City. Playing an active role in society through their professions and having children enrolled in local schools fostered a quick assimilation into the mainstream. Yet they felt incomplete without the active presence of faith. So, some of the local Muslims proactively took the responsibility of establishing a mosque to bring the blessing of faith in the community. In addition to the early pioneers, Dr. Fazle Nasim Khan, Taneem Aziz, Atif Atyia and Ahemed Wattad joined with the effort. The first constitution was drafted by Dr. Khan and it officially established as a non-profit faith organization in Washington county of Johnson City in 1992. Thus, without any physical address, an Islamic center continued to develop quietly and formally. Participation grew quickly from 8-10 people to over 75 brothers and sisters on Friday prayers. A Sunday school for children was also opened in the same small room. During the holidays of the ETSU, Eid and/or Friday prayer services took place in the basement of br. Ahmed Atiya or in the racquet ball court of his complex. Different programs were undertaken to connect faith to people’s lives in all level.

While Muslim growth started to receive momentum, they lost their temporary place as the shared-small room was demolished for a parking lot. It appeared as a call of commitment and sincerity for the community. None of the activities were stopped, as they donated $8k within two days to make $14K to purchase their first prayer place on Division street in Johnson City in 1994. The original place was only 700 square feet, not enough to accommodate the growing community. So it was renovated and redesigned to a place of 1400 square feet consisting of separate prayer space for men and women and 2 class rooms for Sunday school. It became MCNET’s home base to expand its programs and community outreach in the neighbor of the bible belt till 2008. 

MCNET didn’t have to wait long to experience the benefit of their outreach initiative. When the horrific event of 9/11 took place in 2001, other faith groups and neighbors didn’t hesitate to confirm their solidarity with the local Muslim community. They invited MCNET leaders to talk on behalf of the Muslims and Islam to increase their familiarity. With joint collaboration, interfaith engagement became a day-to-day event for this community. Additionally, MCNET strives to embrace faith more spontaneously to individual piety for communal prosperity. They proactively worked on a larger vision for the community, and purchased a property of three acres on the Antioch Road in 1997. 

With due diligent, the adjacent lands were acquired for the present domicile of 8 acres area. Although they planned to build a multi-purpose community center of 3400 square feet, the growth of the community obliged them to build a place of 9600 square feet. Whether you call it a divine blessing or merely coincidence, the financial obligation for this unexpected expansion was expectedly met by its members in a very short time. The construction of the new facility began with only $116K, but the needed funds of $600K were raised within only six months. There were several anonymous donations up to $30K, not from any organization with preset agendas, but from local individuals and visitors. People contributed generously only to flourish their faith within their families and future generations. 

Currently MCNET became a part and parcel of 300 to 400 Muslims and provide services time to time for more than 500 local Muslims year around. Their increasingly new and existing programs continuously widen its outreach and manifests the teaching of sharing, sacrificing and standing by not only for the community or country, but for the entire humanity. Listed programs, service and events speak for that elevated aspiration of MCNET.