Sisters’ House: Helping Revert Sisters
Most of us have read about the life of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and the close-knit community he established based on piety and benevolence.
However,… few of us have experienced anything close to it in terms of mutual love and generous support in our time.
We are living at a time when information abounds and people can gain Islamic knowledge in many ways. We could say that we are the most informed of people in history but has our access to knowledge made us better Muslims?
How often does the Ummah of Prophet Muhammad these days successfully develop a united community based on piety and benevolence?
Bayaan Grant, a revert of twelve years living in Queensland Australia, believes that Sisters’ House has achieved just that!
About Bayaan
Bayaan was raised in a non-religious household but she admits that she has always been spiritually inclined. She searched for many years to find out how to worship the Creator.
Bayaan recalls: “I tried different religions but was not satisfied. At twenty-seven years of age and a single mum, I heard about Islam. Ironically, the one who taught me about Islam at first ended up my husband!”
When Bayaan first met and befriended Muslims, all she knew about them was that they were fighting wars overseas. At that time she believed that as a woman she could handle anything. Bayaan’s soon-to-be husband, also a revert, spoke to her humbly and respectfully about Islam. She did some research herself and learned about the rights of Muslim women and how Muslims should worship the Creator in His terms. She loved it! She embraced Islam and has never looked back.
Another revert, who was a close friend of Bayaan, had embraced Islam years before, and she took Bayaan under her wing. This friend actually started the Muslim Women’s Convert Support Service in response to Bayaan and her conversion to Islam. In the beginning, monthly social gatherings and Islamic classes were held and as time passed and Bayaan established herself in Islam she took on a more active role in trying to help and meet the needs of revert sisters.
It soon became clear that revert sisters and their children had a range of needs that were not being met. There was a need for temporary housing along with resource provision and referral services. Embracing Islam and making the necessary lifestyle changes is a huge challenge and quite often the new Muslim may become confused and vulnerable.
Many reverts find that their relationship with family and friends changes and this leads them to loneliness and sometimes homelessness. Some reverts have to change their employment and they need a referral service to help them find suitable jobs. At the same time they need to learn about Islam and establish links with the Islamic community. Bayaan, and a group of like-minded Muslims, recognized the dilemma faced by reverts and decided to do something about it. Sisters’ House was beginning.
Sunny Brisbane
All this was, and is, taking place in and around Brisbane. Sisters’ House is located just a few doors down from Kuraby Mosque and this area has the largest Muslim population in south-east Queensland. The famous Gold Coast is only half an hour away. People who have come to Brisbane from Sydney and Melbourne say Brisbane is more like a big country town.
Bayaan says: “Brisbane is not so divisive and cliquey. People find it refreshing to see Muslims that just want to help. There is an easy going atmosphere here and I find the complete harmony of an Islamic community here in Brisbane.” The Muslim population has grown very quickly and has a variety of ethnicities and a huge revert population.
How Sisters’ House Developed?
Bayaan remembers: “In June 2010, we were officially handed the keys to a four-bedroom house in Kuraby by the Queensland Charity and Welfare Association (TAQCWA).”
TACQWA has been helping the Muslim community in Queensland in a variety of ways for some time. Bayaan recalls: “They wanted to help reverts and had heard that we were trying to do just that. So we had some meetings and they simply asked us what we needed to help revert sisters. We found that reverts needed their own place to learn about Islam in an environment that was welcoming; not intimidating. Sometimes they also needed a place to stay; short-term accommodation and help to make the transition into Islam in an Islamic environment. The brothers from TACQWA helped us get a four-bedroom house and they paid the rent until we established ourselves.”
Bayaan and other volunteers formed a committee and called in resources and networks to help set up the House, including counselors and psychologists already working within the Muslim community. They developed policies and procedures to run the House properly from the beginning. Within six weeks, the House was fully furnished all with generous donations from the Muslim community. Bayaan notes: “People contact the House with ideas of how to help people. We work with the full support of the Imams and much of the community.”
What Is Sisters’ House?
Two years since its inception, Sisters’ House is established and is managed and run by volunteers that make up the management committee – Sisters’ House Services Inc. The majority of the committee are reverts. With no government funding, the House is funded by donations from the Muslim community as well as contributions to rent from tenants of the House. Fundraising events are held throughout the year and it enjoys a close working relationship with a number of organizations throughout the region including the Islamic Women’s Association of Queensland.
Oftentimes, reverts find themselves in crisis and the House seeks to help them in a variety of ways; they can stay from a few days to a few weeks. Bayaan says: “Sisters only pay what they can afford. One elderly sister who embraced Islam came to stay at the House for a while and we paid her! We are now able to pay our own rent and costs.”
Just two doors down from Kuraby Mosque, the House offers spiritual, social, emotional and financial support. From the Sunshine Coast, to the Gold Coast and beyond, the House now has a growing network of Islamic organizations that mutually help and support each other. Bayaan adds: “Now the Imams refer clients to us!”
A Unique Islamic Community
Although the House offers crisis care and a variety of services to Muslim women, it is also a place for Muslim women and children to relax and socialize in an Islamic environment. It is a hub of activity; a lively place that runs with the intention of obeying God the Almighty and following the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). It does not exist on its own; inspired by the sisters, the brothers began the Ummah United Centre which seeks to cater to the needs of revert men. Already they have done significant work with the Indigenous Australian revert community and members of bikie gangs who are seeking the Straight Path.
The fact that staff and management are all volunteers lends the House an atmosphere of sisterly care that can be relied on. Sisters of all backgrounds and ethnicities have the chance to participate and work on projects together and be a part of this vital hub of the Muslim community in Brisbane.
Bayaan teaches on-going classes in the Basics of Islam and there are also classes to learn Arabic and Quran. The House organizes dinners, day trips and workshops and provides lessons in arts and crafts and cooking that are enjoyed by young and old. There are also women’s and children’s health information sessions and during Ramadan there are Iftars and Tarawih prayers. All the needs of the Muslim women and children are catered by the House.
A previous tenant of Sisters’ House says: “The House embraces a key concept of Islam; which is to help each other regardless of race or economic status. It is there for everyone. For me, living in a big city where I have no family, the House has allowed me to be a step closer to my larger Muslim family and helps bring me closer to Allah. It is my home away from home.”
Another former tenant says: “It was truly help from Allah. The house had a warm welcoming atmosphere, everything was provided for us – even delicious dinner on arrival. Sisters in the house supplied me with everything I would need. Staying at the Sisters’ House helped me tremendously in my recovery. It helped me logistically and financially. It helped me emotionally a lot as well. The house continually hosted various Islamic activities for the sisters and it felt so great to be around Muslim women and increase my knowledge in religion.”
Bayaan reminds the sisters as often as possible: “Think of the community as a garden – it needs to be cultivated and taken care of.”
Goals for the Future?
Bayaan hopes the House will be able to maintain their activities in time to come. She also hopes to develop stronger ties with other regional Islamic centers and help sisters and children to grow and form a strong and united community.
Bayaan notes: “The House is an investment in the community. I can’t imagine life without the Sister’s House.”
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