HISTORY

قُولُوا آمَنَّا بِاللَّهِ وَمَا أُنزِلَ إِلَيْنَا وَمَا أُنزِلَ إِلَىٰ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَإِسْمَاعِيلَ وَإِسْحَاقَ وَيَعْقُوبَ وَالْأَسْبَاطِ وَمَا أُوتِيَ مُوسَىٰ وَعِيسَىٰ وَمَا أُوتِيَ النَّبِيُّونَ مِن رَّبِّهِمْ لَا نُفَرِّقُ بَيْنَ أَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ وَنَحْنُ لَهُ مُسْلِمُونَ

So [you believers], say, ‘We believe in God and in what was sent down to us and what was sent down to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and what was given to Moses, Jesus, and all the prophets by their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and we devote ourselves to Him.’ (Qur'an 2:136)

Ithna-asheri Muslim Association of the Northwest ("IMAN") was incorporated in the State of Washington on August 5, 1997 to:

To pursue the religious, educational and cultural activities of the Shia Ithna-Asheri Muslim religion.
To serve as one of the centers for Shia Ithna-Asheri Muslims in Washington
To assist in performing any religious and social ceremonies such as marriage and funeral arrangements. The corporation shall endeavor to provide locations for these purposes.
To perform charitable works for needy families in the USA, Canada and elsewhere irrespective of their religious beliefs.
To create, cultivate and maintain good will among the community.
To create, receive, raise and invest funds and to buy, sell, build, own and lease properties in furtherance of the aims and objectives of the corporation.
To take such other actions, either directly or through other organizations, as are consistent with the Bylaws of the Corporation, these purposes and with its tax exempt status under Section 501(c)(3).

IMAN is a community based organization that believes societal improvement starts within the community and expands outward.

Our objective is to nurture an environment that will allow individuals to grow and contribute as they seek closeness to Allah SWT.

IMAN encourages individuals to reach out to their inner community as well as participate in larger contribution efforts, such as reaching out to the needy in the Seattle area, as well as helping groups such as Habitat for Humanity, and the local blood drives for our community.

The IMAN community serves a broad and diverse cross-section of people in the Greater Seattle Area. Natives and immigrants representing multiple ethnicity work, pray, and serve together.

Everyone is welcome to visit and participate in IMAN activities, and we highly encourage everyone to help and contribute with our efforts. An important focus group of our diversity is the youth of our community.

We take great pride in educating our youth and ensuring that they grow up to be dedicated Muslims as well as positive influences to our society. There are several activities and programs tailored for our youth, such as prayer and fasting for the younger children, as well as the principals of Hajj and Islamic philosophy to the adolescent youth. The youth also get to enjoy family movie nights at IMAN, where we show religious movies at gatherings where families and their youth can bond together.

IMAN also has weekly speakers including guest speakers from across the world, who come to lecture and provide their wisdom to the IMAN community.

Past Accomplishments

Weekend School operating since 1990
Weekly Religious Gatherings since 1997
Annual Muharram and Ramadhan Programs since 1997
Invited scores of speakers from different backgrounds and experiences to promote Islamic teachings
Aqd-Nikah (Marriage) and Funeral services to the local community since 1989
Acquired a permanent facility in 2004
Social Services Programs:
- Volunteers for monthly cooking at a homeless shelter
- Operates Food bank to help families in need
- In-kind or financial aid to those in need
- Reach out to Muslim children in the Foster Care System during Ramadhan and Eid
- Sponsorship of >130 children around the world through various programs
- Volunteers & donations to build low-income families homes
Inter-faith and intra-faith activities:
- Promote understanding of Islam, Muslims, teachings of the Ahl al Bayt
- Inter-community bridge building
- Full day seminars entitled Building Bridges to Islam attended by hundreds of people
- Various presentations on Islam at IMAN center, Churches, Synagogues, community centers
- Fund raising for relief to victims of Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Hurricane, War
Workshops on preventing domestic violence
Reached out to elected representatives on issues of concern to Muslims.
Interacted with members of the newsprint & TV media on world events & mosque struggle
Supported various capital projects around North America
Contributed to the activities of umbrella organizations such as NASIMCO, UMAA, etc.
Multi-million dollar renovation project for the center which now accommodates a wide variety of classrooms, lecture halls, a central prayer room, as well as the technological infrastructure assisting our programs.