No one should have to learn this faith alone.
Whether you accepted Islam yesterday, years ago, or you are returning after time away, this program gives you structured mentorship, foundational learning, and real community integration, with dignity, privacy, and care.
New here? Start small. Ask questions. Build consistency. We focus on what is essential and practical, not pressure and not perfection. Nobody is graded, nobody is rushed, and nobody is asked to perform.
Six things this program actually puts in your hands.
Accepting Islam is not just a moment. It is the beginning of a lifelong journey, and no new Muslim at GSIS should have to walk the first year of it by themselves. This is a full year of guided support that carries you from new to confident and connected. It is open to anyone in the Myrtle Beach area, including returning Muslims who want a fresh start, and it costs nothing to join.
A personal mentor
You are matched with a mentor of the same gender who checks in every week, answers the questions you would rather not ask in a crowded room, and stays with you for the full year.
- Weekly check-ins through your first month
- Background screened, and trained in confidentiality before being matched
- Reachable between sessions, including for the awkward questions
Prayer help and worship routines
Hands-on help with wudu and salah, taught in person and without an audience, plus habit building that fits a real work week rather than an ideal one.
- A hands-on wudu workshop, not a diagram
- Salah taught step by step, then practiced together
- A prayer routine built around your actual schedule
A foundations course, 24 weeks
One weekly session covering aqeedah, worship, daily life, character, and resilience. Four modules, sixteen core topics, taught plainly and with no assumption that you already know the vocabulary.
- One 90 minute session a week
- Printed handouts you keep
- The imam reviews the curriculum and joins the class monthly
Community connection
Light social time is built into every session on purpose, so that friendships form naturally instead of being arranged. This is how people stay, and it is not an afterthought.
- Ten minutes of tea and conversation every week
- Someone sits with you at your first three Jumu’ah prayers
- Invitations to iftars, dinners, and family events
Support with family and work
The hardest part of the first year is rarely the theology. It is the dinner table and the break room. We work through both with you, honestly, and without pretending it is easy.
- How and when to tell your family
- Prayer, fasting, and dress at your workplace
- Answers for the questions people will ask you
Integration and growth
By the second half of the year the question changes from what do I do to where do I belong. You choose a volunteer role, you build confidence in the community, and you finish with something real.
- A volunteer role that fits your comfort level
- An optional reading circle or study group
- A graduation dinner and certificate at month twelve
What happens in the first 48 hours.
Nothing here waits on paperwork. From the moment you say the shahada at GSIS, or the moment you first reach out to us, a short and very human sequence begins.
-
A personal phone call
Someone from the masjid calls you within 48 hours. Not a form letter and not a group text. A real conversation to say congratulations, to ask how you are doing, and to find a time to sit down.
-
A private meeting
You meet the imam or the convert coordinator in private, for as long as you need. You can ask anything, including the things you are embarrassed to ask. Nothing you say leaves that room.
-
Your welcome kit, handed over in person
You receive the kit listed here by hand, and someone walks you through what each piece is for and how to start using it that same week.
What is in the welcome kit
Every item is here because a new Muslim needs it in the first month, not because it looks good on a shelf. The kit is a gift from the community and costs you nothing.
- A clear English translation of the Qur’an
- A simple prayer guide
- A wudu and salah step card
- A Ramadan basics pamphlet
- The GSIS program guide
- A personal handwritten welcome letter
- A prayer rug
- A small dua booklet
Modest clothing assistance is quietly available if you need it. Mention it to your mentor or to the coordinator, and it is handled without a conversation and without anyone else knowing.
Three phases across twelve months.
Each phase has a clear purpose, clear next steps, and gentle accountability. The program is flexible, and it is never vague. Open any phase to see exactly what it holds.
1
Phase 1, Welcome and Stability
Days 0 to 30. Onboarding, mentor match, prayer basics, and immediate support.
What happens
- A friendly intake conversation and clear next steps within 48 hours.
- A mentor of the same gender is assigned, background screened and trained in confidentiality and sensitivity, and your first check-in is scheduled before you leave.
- A welcome orientation at the masjid so you know how everything works: where to park, where to make wudu, when to arrive, and which door is yours.
- Wudu and salah basics coached in person, practical and step by step, with nobody watching but your mentor.
Goals by day 30
- You are comfortable attending Jumu’ah and being in community spaces.
- A basic salah routine is started, even if it is imperfect.
- You know exactly who to contact for help, for questions, and for support.
- You feel seen, welcomed, and not alone.
2
Phase 2, Foundations Track
Months 1 to 6. The 24 week core course, one 90 minute session a week.
The weekly 90 minutes
- 60 minutes of teaching, clear and practical, with nothing assumed about what you already know.
- 20 minutes of open questions and answers, where nothing is too basic and nothing is off limits.
- 10 minutes of tea, snacks, and conversation, so friendships form on their own rather than by assignment.
How the course is run
- Printed handouts every week, so the material goes home with you.
- If you miss a week, your mentor catches you up one to one. The course is built so nobody falls behind quietly.
- The imam reviews the curriculum and is present in class once a month, and is available directly for sensitive questions.
- Small group support throughout, so you are learning beside people at the same stage.
The 24 weeks are organized into four modules. Foundations of Faith settles what you believe and why. Prayer Mastery makes worship a habit rather than a hurdle. Living Islam handles halal and haram, family, and the workplace. Character and Growth is where patience, doubt, mental health, and habit building are treated openly instead of avoided.
Foundations of Faith
- Who is Allah
- What Tawheed means, and why everything rests on it
- Who is Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him
- What the Qur’an is, and how to start reading it
Prayer Mastery
- A hands-on wudu workshop
- Salah step by step
- The common mistakes almost everyone makes, and how to correct them
- Developing khushu, the presence of heart that turns prayer into more than motion
Living Islam
- Halal and haram basics
- Dealing with non-Muslim family
- Islam at work, including prayer breaks, fasting, and dress
- Ramadan readiness, before your first one arrives
Character and Growth
- Patience, and what it looks like on an ordinary Tuesday
- Dealing with doubts without hiding them
- Mental health in Islam, and why asking for help is not weak faith
- Building habits that survive a hard month
3
Phase 3, Integration and Growth
Months 6 to 12. From student to community member, and a finish line that means something.
Integration pathways
- Choose a volunteer role that fits your comfort level, from events to cleaning day to youth support to a masjid project.
- Attend community events with your mentor beside you for as long as you want that.
- Optional: join a reading circle or a study group and keep learning with others.
- Optional: speak publicly or share your shahada story, only if you want to, and never because you were asked twice.
The graduation milestone
- A completion dinner with the community, at month twelve.
- A certificate that names what you finished.
- Recognition for the mentor who walked the year with you.
- An invitation to help mentor the next cohort, if you want it.
- A clear next step into continued learning at GSIS, so the year ends on a beginning.
The whole program rests on people who keep showing up.
A mentor is not a scholar and is not expected to be one. A mentor is a steady Muslim who remembers what it felt like to be new, and who will answer the phone.
What a mentor actually does
- Checks in every week through the first month, then stays reachable after that.
- Attends the first three Jumu’ah prayers together, so nobody walks in alone.
- Sits together at masjid events and makes the introductions that turn strangers into friends.
- Stays reachable between sessions for questions, including the ones nobody wants to ask in public.
- Helps with wudu, salah, and the practical basics without ever making someone feel small.
What we ask of you
- A one year commitment to one person. Consistency matters more than brilliance here.
- Confidentiality, kept strictly. What your mentee tells you stays with you.
- Program boundaries kept, including no private unsupervised meetings at anyone’s home.
- Patience and respect, especially in the weeks when progress stalls or stops.
- A background screening and a short training session before any match is made.
Mentor volunteer form
Tell us a little about yourself and how much time you can give. The program director reviews every response and will contact you about screening and training before you are matched with anyone.
Mentor expectations: maintain confidentiality, follow program boundaries, and support your mentee with patience and respect. Mentors are always matched with someone of the same gender, and female mentors serve sisters only.
The things people ask before they sign up.
Is this only for people who took their shahada at GSIS?
What if I feel overwhelmed, or behind everyone else?
How private is this program?
What does a mentor do, exactly?
Does any of this cost money?
Will my mentor be the same gender as me?
One form, and then a phone call from a real person.
Fill this out and someone from GSIS reaches out within 48 hours with your next steps and your mentor match. There is no cost, no obligation, and no test. If you would rather talk first, call the masjid and skip the form entirely.
Join Roots and Belonging
Tell us how to reach you and where you are starting from. New Muslims, returning Muslims, and anyone who wants structured foundational guidance are all welcome here.
Privacy note: your information is used only to connect you with the program and with a mentor. It is never shared publicly, never sold, and never posted anywhere. Only the program director and your assigned mentor see what you write here.
Not sure which form is yours?
Join the program if you want support. Become a mentor if you want to give it. Either choice strengthens the whole community, and the masjid needs both kinds of people in equal measure.
Questions first? Call (843) 902-2808 or email [email protected]. If you have never been inside the masjid before, New Here? walks through a first visit step by step, and you can see every program at GSIS on one page.
Want to support the program rather than join it? The welcome kits, the printed materials, and the graduation dinner are paid for by the community. Give to Sadaqah and note the convert program.