Vermont
VT Islamic group facing deadline to fund new mosque move in Burlington
One of Vermont’s few mosques is racing against the clock to purchase two new buildings its leaders say will better serve the growing Muslim community around Burlington.
The Islamic Community Center of Vermont, which currently operates out a cramped Winooski building, says it needs to raise $100,000 by April 28 to guarantee ownership of two much larger Burlington properties on Riverside Avenue.
For the approximately 300 Somali families who use the mosque’s services, the change in location would be like “moving from a one-bedroom apartment to a mansion,” center board member Mukhtar Abdullahi told the Burlington Free Press.
The mosque’s current space limits services. It can only run a few small Qur’an reading and recitation classes each day and weekend, resulting in waitlists for some classes.
“Unfortunately, we’ve had to turn people away simply because we don’t have the capacity to accommodate everyone,” Abdullahi said.
The mosque also lacks sufficient space for women and their children, who for instance must share the facility’s single bathroom with men, “which is far from ideal,” Abdullahi said.
The small size is also a safety concern.
“If something was to happen, there’s no quick exit,” he said.
The deadline is built into a purchasing agreement and financing terms from a bank, Abdullahi said. The center has paid an upfront deposit of $30,000, he said, and the remaining balance of the down payment and closings costs is due April 28.
A bigger space would allow the center to offer multiple classes for different demographics, including age and gender, giving families more flexibility. The organization would also be able to expand Qur’an instruction and provide followers with more activities.
Abdullahi especially dreams of one day cultivating a place just for local youth, which the mosque and the greater Burlington area as a whole lacks, he said.
“Regardless of religion, our youth are the future,” Abdullahi said. “We want to make sure we take care of them.”
How Islamic Community Center of Vermont came to be
The center is one of only two state-registered mosques in Vermont, according to Abdullahi. The other is the similarly named Islamic Society of Vermont, based in South Burlington.
The Islamic Society of Vermont formed in 1995. The Islamic Community Center of Vermont followed in 2011. Together, the two mosques serve the Green Mountain State’s 6,200-6,500 Muslim residents.
The main difference between the organizations is who each serves, Abdullahi said.
His center formed 15 years ago in response to a growing number Somali immigrants, many of whom do not speak English or have a car, to the greater Burlington area. The Islamic Society of Vermont’s services are offered primarily in English and its mosque is a long walk from where the majority of Somali families live, Abdullahi said.
Although the Islamic Society of Vermont has done its best to welcome and accommodate Somali attendees, “there was a need for a mosque where they could communicate easily, ask questions and feel fully understood by people who share their background,” Abdullahi said.
“This wasn’t about replacing that but about creating additional support and accessibility for our community,” he said.
The prospective location, which used to be a laundry mat and a car wash, is a 20-30 minute walk from the mosque’s current spot in Winooski.
Despite its small size, the mosque is “the heart of the community,” Abdullahi told the Free Press, adding that many Somali residents “would struggle to live our daily lives without it.”
The center performs marriages and funeral rites. It’s where people go to settle disagreements.
“We teach children how to be good citizens, how to stay away from trouble, how to read the Qur’an,” Abdullahi said. “It’s where we tell stories about back home.”
“It’s a small building that stands for and does more than what the eye sees,” Abdullahi said.
How fundraising is going
Should the religious nonprofit fail to raise enough money, it will forfeit thousands of dollars in already paid fees and must look for a different location, according to Abdullahi.
Despite the tight deadline, Abdullahi told the Free Press he feels confident the group will secure enough donations.
“We already have several committed donations and meetings lined up, and we’re continuing to connect with supporters,” he said. “Our community has always shown up in meaningful ways, and we’re hopeful that, as more people hear about this effort, they’ll contribute financially or support us in other ways as well.”
Donations will pay for the down payment and closing costs, which originally amounted to $300,000, according to Abdullahi. The center has raised $200,000, a significant amount of which came from Vermont’s non-Muslim population. It has a GoFundMe that as of April 14 had raised about $8,300.
“Regardless of where you come from, always, at the end of the day, community depends on each other,” Abdullahi said.
Real estate records show that the owners of the Riverside properties have been trying to sell them, or parts of them, for several years now.
When would the new mosque open to the public?
Should the center succeed in purchasing the two properties, the new mosque will open sometime between fall and the end of the year, Abdullahi said.
“The place needs a lot of renovations to make it a place of worship,” Abdullahi said, but “it’ll be doable.”
Just as before, people of all faiths, or people with no religious affiliation at all, are invited to visit the mosque.
“We don’t care what religion you are,” Abdullahi said. “It’s a place for the community. Anyone’s welcome.”
Megan Stewart is a government accountability reporter for the Burlington Free Press. Contact her at mstewartyounger@gannett.com.
For the fifth straight year the Burlington Free Press sports department combed through our playoff results to compile an All-Championship team for the spring high school playoffs.
With a tilt toward players that won titles this spring we created an all-star like group of softball, baseball, lacrosse, Ultimate and tennis athletes that any team would welcome in the game’s biggest moments.
Below, you’ll find our All-Championship Team for boys and girls Ultimate.
Editor’s note:
All-championship teams for baseball and softball (Wednesday), boys and girls lacrosse (Thursday) and boys and girls tennis (Friday) will be published online later this week.
On Monday, June 22, readers will be able to vote on the boys and girls MVP of the 2026 spring playoffs. The ballots include all names listed below.
ALL-CHAMPIONSHIP GIRLS ULTIMATE TEAM
Marlie Bushey, Milton High School
Bushey ended her high school career with a state championship, putting up two goals and seven assists in No. 2 Milton’s 13-9 upset win over No. 1 Champlain Valley. The senior connected with Saunders on most of her assists and excelled as the mark in the Yellowjackets’ zone defense.
Saj Saunders, Milton High School
The junior scored a game-high five goals in No. 2 Milton’s 13-9 upset win to capture the program’s first title. Saunders also added two assists with the bulk of her goals coming early in the contest.
ALL-CHAMPIONSHIP BOYS ULTIMATE TEAM
Julian Olin, Champlain Valley Union High School
The senior scored the overtime game winner for No. 2 CVU in the championship contest giving the Redhawks a 14-13 win over No. 9 Milton with a wide-open catch. Olin finished the championship with two goals helping the Redhawks win their first title. The senior contributed two goals, and one pass break up in the Redhawks 15-8 semifinals win over Mount Mansfield.
Ethan Revoir, Champlain Valley Union High School
The senior supplied a hat trick in the Redhawks 14-13 overtime win against No. 9 Milton. Revoir was a force throughout CVU’s four playoff games, which includes two goals and two assists in CVU’s 15-8 semifinals victory. He also contributed three pass breakups in the playdowns.
Will Wallace, Champlain Valley Union High School
The senior played a big role in CVU’s playoff run which ended in a 14-13 overtime win against No. 9 Milton. Wallace finished the playoffs scoring three goals, dishing out 15 assists and broke up three passes in the Redhawks playdown win.
Contact Judith Altneu at JAltneu@usatodayco.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter: @Judith_Altneu.
Poet Joanne McNeil Hayes is set to kick off the seventh season of the Words in the Woods program at Button Bay State Park in Ferrisburgh.
The event is scheduled for 11 a.m. June 20, according to a community announcement.
Hayes, who grew up in a Chicago suburb, wrote poems about Midwestern life before moving to southern Vermont. Her work has been published in Plum, ENOUGH, Crosswinds and Valley and Beyond.
Her current book of poetry, “I am the Prairie,” explores growing up in the shadow of the Illinois prairie and witnessing patterns of immigration from 1832 to 1900, when Vermont farmers moved to the fertile prairie of that state, according to the announcement.
Vermont Humanities is covering the park entrance fees for the event, allowing attendees to enjoy a full day at the park.
The full schedule is available at vermonthumanities.org/programs/attend/words-in-the-woods-events.
This story was created with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process. Learn more at cm.usatoday.com/ethical-conduct.
Vermont
Vermont Immigration Legal Defense Fund surpasses its $1 million goal year after founding – VTDigger
BURLINGTON — A year ago, the thousands of residents in Vermont seeking U.S. citizenship had just two lawyers in the state who specialized in deportation defense, leaving many to face court alone.
Today there are eight.
That’s according to the organizers of the Vermont Immigration Legal Defense Fund, who announced Monday they had topped its goal of raising $1 million in donations.
The fund has helped state legal organizations grow significantly since May 2025, State Treasurer Mike Pieciak said.
The fund was created by state officials and nonprofit leaders responding to intensified U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in the state. Federal law does not require the government to provide lawyers in immigration cases because they are civil, not criminal, leaving many of the roughly two dozen people held in Vermont prisons on immigration matters without representation. The fund was designed to close that gap.
The money was raised from thousands of Vermonters and donors across more than 30 states, according to Pieciak.
“The Vermont (Immigration) Legal Defense Fund grant arrived at a critical moment for the refugee and immigrant community we serve,” said Yacouba Jacob Bogre, executive director of the Association of Africans Living in Vermont, an organization that works with new Americans, at a Monday press conference. “As many families navigate uncertainty and changing policies, your support provided more than funding — it provided hope, stability and reaffirmation that they are valued members of our government community.”
Just three months into its launch, the fund reported raising $250,000, which was crucial after federal funding cuts impacted the budgets of organizations supporting immigrants with their legal cases.
Pieciak, alongside Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, D-Chittenden Southeast, helped launch the fund.
“Reaching this goal is a testament to what Vermonters can do when they refuse to look away,” Ram Hinsdale said in a Monday press release. “Just as important as the dollars raised is the plan we leave behind — one that ensures people facing detention or separation will not navigate it alone.”
The impact has been especially pronounced at the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project, a legal services organization that has served more than 300 asylum seekers since its founding in 2021. The number of clients it serves on asylum matters has doubled, from 50 to 100 since 2025, according to executive director Jill Martin Diaz, and the project has screened 130 people detained in Vermont prisons by ICE and secured nine temporary restraining orders.
“We are making incredible progress. We’re doubling our capacity to make sure that our dream is realized,” Diaz said.
Nathan Virag, a staff attorney for the Association of Africans Living in Vermont, said the fund allowed his organization to hire a legal intake coordinator and a legal intern, with hopes of adding another attorney to handle a growing caseload.
“The fund was necessary. Unfortunately, if we didn’t have those funds, we wouldn’t be able to do what we’re doing now,” Virag said.
In Vermont, 1,017 immigration cases remain pending, 45.7% of which have legal representation, up from the 42.8% recorded last summer, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University, based on data collected through April.
Because the fund hit its $1 million target, its fundraising work is officially complete, Pieciak said. But the five recipient organizations plan to keep working together. Those organizations include the Vermont Asylum Assistance Project, the Association of Africans Living in Vermont, Vermont Legal Aid, Vermont Afghan Alliance, The Janet S. Munt Family Room, and the Center for Justice Reform Clinic at the Vermont Law and Graduate School.
“We’ll continue to work with these organizations as we reimagine the structure and the way in which we work together into the future,” said Jesse Bridges, CEO of United Way of Northwest Vermont, the organization that helped administer the funding. “As you say, the court room is the first step in the journey.”
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