Build a New Sanctuary 30 Years Later with Cham Muslims:

After praying in a converted two bedroom apartment for nearly 30 years, the Cham community of Santa Ana have been unexpectedly presented a fortuitous opportunity to renovate an abandoned mortuary into a thriving Islamic community center. Cham Muslims had to flee the brutal regime of the Khmer Rouge during the 1980s and re-settled in Santa Ana, CA. After such atrocities, support us in creating a well deserved sanctuary for generations to come. Every dollar that was donated during Ramadan will be matched!

"New" Islamic Center

Story of Cham Muslims in Santa Ana, CA:

Many Cham migrated to neighboring countries such as Malaysia, Laos, and Cambodia after the fall of the Kingdom of Champa in the late 1400s. For those who migrated to Cambodia, they were further persecuted for practicing Islam and simply being a minority during the Khmer Rouge Regime; which resulted in a mass genocide of 2 million people, possibly more. Today, less than 10% of Cham makes up Cambodia’s population. In essence, the Cham is holding the flag bearer of Islam in Cambodia.

Cham Families arrival to America

Consequently, some Cham families who fled the Khmer Rouge re-settled in America, and in this case, in low-income neighborhoods of Santa Ana. Another battle faced by families was poverty, gangs, and violence. Cham families took refuge in Islam and prayed in a converted apartment for three decades. Given the obstacles the community have endured, this former mortuary turned Islamic center has presented the Cham Muslims a renewed sense of community.

Old prayer facility

Our Vision:

Not only do we want to build a strong community foundation, we are also including other Southeast Asian groups and Latino Muslims to partake in this momentous journey with us. We want to provide daily prayers, youth and family activities, weekend Islamic school, and community services such as food pantry to feed the homeless. But there’s a lot of work ahead of us as you can see...

            One of several rooms to be renovated in "new" facility

Our Quick Progress & Current Status:

Since the building has been acquired late last year, volunteers have been to the location almost every day. Old faces have resurfaced years later, new faces have emerged, and both young and old generations are working together in a common space for the first time in a very long time!

Everyone cleaning up

With dedicated teamwork, we are able to operate our first taraweeh prayer in this new space, Alhamdulillah! The communities have been showing up, mashAllah.

Prayer hall complete and ready for Taraweeh during Ramadan

Besides being a spiritual center, we are here to serve the community at large; in fact, we were the first Islamic Center to help pilot the “Taco Trucks at Every Mosque,” by bridging the Latino and Muslim communities together. We were even featured on the local NPR, LA Times, Fusion and CBS News!  This is the first step toward serving the communities' social and spiritual wellness.

Kickoff for 'Tacos at Every Mosque' Iftar

We even had a khutbah (sermon) given in Spanish!

And for the first time, the mosque served as a distribution center for Humanitarian Day!

Humanitarian Day - Feed the Homeless

 We have a ways to go because it has been less than one year, and things have accelerated quite fast! We must be prepared for what’s to come and give back, so we need to build a solid foundation--physically, spiritually, and socially.

How You Can Help:

The purchase price of the lot and old building was $2.65 M. We managed to provide an initial payment of $1.0 M through the generous support of other Muslim communities. We have a remaining balance of $1.65M. Whatever was donated during Ramadan will be matched, but we still need a little bit more to meet our goal and reduce costs. Every penny counts! 

1)  Spread the word:

Empower us by educating yourselves and others about the Cham and Southeast Asian Muslims in America.

2)  Give:

We humbly ask for your donation to make our vision possible and meeting the $30,000 goal. Your hard earn dollars will help establish the very foundation of Islamic community in Santa Ana, California.

3)  Join us:

This is going to be a multi-cultural Center where we serve the professional Muslims who work in the area, the Latino community, and Southeast Asian Muslims. So, come visit us and experience the Muslim multi-cultural atmosphere! Please contact asma@asmamen.com for address.

4)  Dua:

We are thankful for the quick progression, and we ask that you pray for the community to stay intentional and pure about the future of this center and the people involved.

We plan on updating the website to provide updates and programming of the new facility once we get our ducks in order: www.icsamasjid.org/