Dear Friends,

Just a message to update you on how things have gone at the Zawiya this year. Thanks to your donations during the crowdfunding campaign last summer, we were able to ensure that all of the needs of the Zawiya were met, providing tea and bread at weekly gatherings, helping with general maintenance around the buildings, supporting meals during Mawlid and other occasions, and providing the materials for the muqadam to make orange blossom water to be used during meetings. 

It was a busy year that saw more and more people passing through for gatherings, and the zawiya maintaining its reputation as a welcoming and supportive space for all, whether they be just passing through or part of the regular 'crowd'. In particular, it became a place of solace for many after the passing of the great Fassi Sheikh Sidi al-Ayaachi, where his life and incredible contribution to the spiritual lives of so many was celebrated with a very well attended gathering of dhikr and qasa'id, as well as during many other sessions where he was remembered and prayed for. 

Our intention for the coming year is to continue with the monthly donations that support the food for the attendees, with additional contributions as and when they are needed for maintenance and larger meals, as this year with our own schedules and that of the muqadam being very busy we didn't manage to provide as many couscous dinners as we had hoped! 

In addition to this, we are in the early stages of planning major refurbishment which is desperately needed, particularly fixing the roof of the zawiya, redecorating and furnishing and generally improving the basic facilities around the building. We have an excellent engineer who has agreed to take on consultation for the project for free, and we hope that meetings with her over the summer will finalise the plans. This will require us to raise extra funds at some point over the next few months, so watch this space if you would like to continue to contribute towards life at the Zawiya! 

We are also currently talking to another Zawiya in Chefchouen which is hoping to raise funds to equip their madrassa, which they intend to open to students from around the world to study religion and the traditional sciences, supported by the incredible library and other resources that they have fostered for many hundreds of years. If you are interested in finding out more about this project or contributing then do get in touch, or watch out for us posting more about it over the coming months. 

Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions or requests - we'd love to hear from you. 

Best

Miriam and Hamza

Dear Donors, asSalaamu Alaykum. 

The campaign to support the Zawiya of Sidi Ali al-Jamal has no closed, and we would like to thank you all for your generous contributions. Zawiyas like this are so important to the living tradition of Islam and your giving means a huge amount to everyone who gathers here. 

Since we raised more than we had initially hoped to, we are planning to put some of the funds towards necessary repair work taking place on the Zawiya buildings. The rest of the funds will go towards supporting the Zawiya for the next year, and if we have some left over, we will continue into the future. 

Our intention is to provide as many updates as possible to all of you who gave. This will include pictures of gatherings and meals that you have funded. We also think it is important that each of your gifts is honoured and prayer is made for each of you. If any of you would like to visit the Zawiya on a visit to Fes, please get in touch with us and we will plan to facilitate this inshaAllah.

If you have any questions or would like further updates, don't hesitate to get in touch with us. Thank you again, and may your sadaqa be blessed and accepted inshaAllah.

Miriam and Hamza

Salaam Alaykum and blessings to you all,

We want to offer you our deepest thanks for the amazing donations you have given to this campaign. In under four days we were able to source all that the Zawiya needs for the next year and beyond, by the grace of Allah, and through your very generous donations. May you all be blessed through this beautiful act of giving. 

It is our intention to keep you all informed on how the money is spent once the campaign ends. Each of you will inshaAllah be prayed for by the muqadam during the gatherings, and for those of you who donated for specific purposes, e.g. providing meals, we will send you photos and info from each of these events, inshaAllah. 

In the mean time, we intend to leave the campaign open until the end, in case more people intend on giving. Any additional funds will go towards much needed repair work and upkeep on the zawiya, first of all a new coat of paint, and then refurnishing and larger repair works. If any of you had friends or family who intended to give but weren't able to yet, please do encourage them to do so if they are able. 

If any of you have questions or would like to give feedback, please don't hesitate to do so.

Thank you again, and blessings and peace upon you all.

Miriam and Hamza