Muslims pray during sundown services after breaking their daily fast during Ramadan at the Islamic Society of Vermont in South Burlington on Sunday, Feb. 22. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger SOUTH BURLINGTON — Maryam Khan met her best friend at the local mosque she has been attending since she was born.  The Middlebury high school student was among volunteers serving fruit salad from a folding table in the gym of the Islamic Society of Vermont last weekend. “For as long as I can remember, I have helped here,” said Khan, 17, one of many local Muslim youth who attend the mosque. “Where we live, I don’t really have friends who are Muslim.” The gym in the building off Swift Street was a hubbub of activity on Sunday, transformed into a dining space for women and children as they broke fast Sunday.  That’s typical during Ramadan when Muslims fast from dawn to dusk in religious observance, often gathering socially to pray and break fast at sunset under the crescent moon that marks the start of the holy month. But this year’s rituals come amid an added threat: federal immigration enforcement. While many of the families attending services in South Burlington this month are U.S. citizens, several are refugees and asylum seekers — Afghans, Somalians, Sudanese — groups who have become targets of the Trump administration’s continued crackdown on immigration. At a time when federal attacks on these communities are at a scary high, “this Ramadan will be slightly difficult,” said Fuad Al-Amoody, chairman of the ISVT’s board of trustees. And he hopes he can help reassure them that they will be safe attending the mosque this Ramadan, which began on Feb. 18. That’s hard to do when one of their members, a Somalian man, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on New Years Day. Released recently, Hussien Noor Hussien and his family were among those who attended the ISVT. Muslims are served dinner after breaking their daily fast with dates and water during Ramadan at the Islamic Society of Vermont in South Burlington on Sunday, Feb. 22. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger Hussien’s detention shocked the community, said Al-Amoody, but also led to an outpouring of community support. Many from the mosque showed up at the courthouse Feb. 4 when Hussien was released on bail. Others helped organize mutual aid to support the family in his absence.  “I think people feel a little bit relieved knowing that we have their backs,” he said. “It is about us getting together, sticking together, providing kindness to each other, because that’s a huge need right now.” In Vermont, the ISVT is the largest mosque –  offering five prayer services daily and open to the public – with an estimated membership of about 500 families, according to Al-Amoody, who is from Kenya and lives in Colchester. The Eid celebration at the end of Ramadan could draw as many as 5,000, he said. Many who attended Sunday’s prayer service and iftar (feast after breaking fast) discussed the beauty of varying Islamic cultures, traditions and languages from across the world coming together. Nizama Sinanovic was busy carrying trays of food from the kitchen and getting the dinner table ready in the gym where women and children gathered. As is traditional, the men prayed and ate in a different section of the building.  Originally from Bosnia, Sinanovic lives in Colchester and is a regular at the masjid, or mosque. Families from Bosnia prepared the dinner on Saturday, providing dishes ranging from tortellini with beans and meat-filled pitas.  “It’s amazing how there are people here of all backgrounds, and we break bread and celebrate Ramadan together here,” she said. While Sunday’s dinner was sponsored by Helping Hand, an international relief organization, the majority of the weekend iftars are organized by different communities that attend the center, said Al-Amoody, who is originally from Kenya and lives in Colchester. All are invited and one does not have to be a Muslim to participate. Attending women and men took off their shoes at the entrance and, as is custom, separated to different sides of the building to pray and partake in the feast. Blue and gold banners in the hallway read ‘Ramadan Kareem’ and Ramadan Mubarak’ -– traditional greetings for the holy season. About 40 women gathered for evening prayers at 5:30 p.m. in a large carpeted hall, while others stayed in the gym to organize dinner and break the fast with dates and water. Hussien’s wife Runbila Aden, shared sweet Somali tea from a flask with her friends and family, sitting on a section of the gym floor covered by a black tarp. She said she is very grateful for the community support and that Hussien is back home. Maryan Maalin, a longtime friend of Hussien’s family, has attended the masjid, or mosque, for almost 20 years.  Toyib Aremu leads a call at the start of sundown services during Ramadan at the Islamic Society of Vermont in South Burlington on Sunday, Feb. 22. Photo by Glenn Russell/VTDigger “I like that it’s very diverse,” she said. “It’s where I made my friends. And of course, it’s a common place of worship for many different cultures.” Originally from India, Amtul Khan, 42, from Middlebury, recalled the humble beginnings of the center from a handful of Indian, Pakistani and Arabic families meeting in an Essex living room about 30 years ago. Members of the community bought the church building in 2020 and expanded to allow for the growing community. It houses an Islamic school, a free clinic and hosts a variety of events from weddings to funerals, according to Al-Amoody. Faiza Haider, 42, from Essex, has attended the center for about two decades.  “We grew a lot, mashallah,” she said, passing around the dessert she made, a Yemeni syrup-soaked semolina cake topped with crushed pistachios called basbousa. “It’s very multicultural, “ she said. “We speak many languages but we also speak English. We all work and help and take care of each other here, no matter what.” For Sehrish Khan, 23, a newer member, the Muslim community here isn’t quite as large or diverse as the one she knew in California, but she appreciated attending her second iftar there. “I wish it was a bit bigger,” she said.  Khan, who is from Pakistan, chatted in Hindi with Aisha Nawaz, 29, one of the newest attendees. Both hold doctorate degrees and have young families.  Nawaz came to Vermont in August and was happy to discover the mosque when a colleague got married there. She admitted she was feeling quite isolated until then.  “It is good to see faces like yourself here,” she said. Read the story on VTDigger here: Amid ICE enforcement fears, Ramadan binds local Muslims in solidarity, support. ...read more read less