New mosque planned in memory of woman who died after converting
In a show of community solidarity and piety, a campaign has been initiated to construct a new mosque in Dubai in honour of Daria Kotsarenko, a Ukrainian expat who recently passed away days after embracing Islam.
Dar Al Ber Society, which runs the Islamic Information Centre where Daria converted to Islam and received the conversion certificate on March 25, is handling the project to build the mosque bearing her name. Her sudden demise is believed to have been caused by a heart attack.
A special link (https://contribute.daralber.ae/mosahmats/View/27033) was created to collect donations for constructing Daria Kotsarenko Mosque, which will be built on an 812 square metre plot in Dubai.
The mosque will have a floor area of 613 square metres with a prayer hall for men on the ground floor that can hold 208 worshippers. The prayer hall for women will be on the first floor, in addition to ablution rooms for women. A 170-square metre imam's residence and a men's ablution room will also be there. The minaret will have a height of 33 metres.
As of Thursday evening, April 4, about 13 per cent or Dh515,000 has been collected from the required Dh4 million construction budget.
Daria had no big family nor relatives in the UAE. But when she was laid to rest, hundreds of people — both Emiratis and expats — turned up to pay their respects.
Daria first came to Dubai three years ago. She showed a genuine curiosity about the local culture and religion. She asked questions and delved deeper into her search for knowledge about Islam. She also explored other cities and after returning to Dubai, she embraced Islam. Kotsarenko's close friend, Marwan Husam, who brought her to Dar Al Ber Society's Islamic Information Centre, told Khaleej Times: “Daria was attracted to Islam for many reasons such as modesty, uprightness, rituals, humbleness and piety”.
Khadeejah Oskombaeva, a volunteer teacher who works at the Islamic Centre, said Daria's mother and sister visited the Islamic Centre after the funeral. They were offered return tickets and cash assistance, aside from settling the hospital bill.