About us

Our Team

We are a team run entirely by volunteers – you could call this our collective passion project. We strive to improve the lives of families in Austin and are honored to serve them.

Board of Directors

  • Adnan Raja

  • Alvia Ahmed

  • Diane Kanawati

  • Moinuddin Ahmed

  • Nazia Khan

  • Nisreen Yousif

  • Saadia Larouz

  • Saleha Elias

  • Sana Yusuf

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Our Work

Muslim Community Support Services (MCSS) is a non-profit organization run entirely by volunteers since its inception in 2001. We strive to help Muslim refugees, evacuees, domestic violence survivors and impoverished families in Austin, Texas. We provide financial assistance for basic needs, primarily, food rent, and utilities. Our Board of Directors believe that by meeting the basic needs of our clients they can then focus on ways to provide for and sustain their own families.

MCSS also facilitates pathways for families to become self-sufficient, independent and an integral part of the Austin Community. No one family is the same and as the needs of our clients evolve, so does the help we provide. Here are some examples of the help MCSS has provided in the past:

  • Academic scholarships
  • Drivers Ed classes
  • Tutoring
  • ESL classes
  • Financial Literacy
  • Citizenship courses
  • Attorney fees
  • School Supplies
  • Laptops and computers
  • Internet
  • Shoes
  • Jackets and blankets
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Community Partners

Our work is not done alone, we work in partnership and collaboration with several organizations in the Austin Area. Our community partners include:

MCSS is proud to be a recipient of the 2020 Lotus Award from Asian Family Support Services of Austin.

We are pleased to be a Plus 1 Partner with Austin Energy. Serious illness, a recent job loss, or other emergencies can make it difficult for some customers to pay their utility bills. The Plus 1 fund helps by providing emergency financial aid to Austin Energy residential customers who are having a temporary problem paying their utility bills. Apply for help by filling out our Utility Assistance Form

Who We Serve

MCSS serves Muslim families in the Austin area. We primarily help:

Refugees/Asylees:

Refugees are persons living outside their country of origin who cannot return to their homes due to fear of persecution based on their race, religion, or membership in a particular social/political group. Approximately 70,000 refugees are settled in the United States each year. Austin is one of the top cities for refugee resettlement in the United States. We predominantly find ourselves assisting families from Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria. To date we have received over 1000 evacuees from Afghanistan.

To learn more click here.

Female Heads of Household, Domestic Violence Survivors:

Did you know that over half of the clients we help are domestic violence survivors? We help our survivors find shelter, pay bills, provide food, clothing and pay legal fees to keep their family safe. Oftentimes people suffering abuse do not leave because of their inability to support themselves, MCSS does what we can to help break the cycle of abuse.

To Learn more about Domestic Violence click here.

Families in Need of Financial Aid

We help families in Austin who may not fall under the category of refugee or domestic violence survivors. These may be families who have fallen on tough times and need assistance paying for classes, rent, or food. MCSS can step in and help.

To apply for financial aid click here

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Client Stories

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At MCSS we believe that education can empower our clients. That is why we spend part of our Sadaqah donations for education programs such as ACC classes, technical training and ESL Classes. In 2018 we awarded college scholarships to 5 women who needed extra help to finish their associates and bachelor’s degrees. The scholarship winners were honored at our Donor Appreciation Dinner.

Annual Reports

donations

Download 2021 Donations

Expenses

Download 2021 Expenses

accomplishments

Download 2020 Accomplishments

expenditure

Download 2020 Expenditures