Student of the Month – December

Ribaat Student of the Month – Sophronia Spicer
December 2020

Sophronia Spicer is a retired secondary school teacher originally from Virginia who currently lives in Maryland. She is a mom of three adult children and a grandmother of three grandchildren. After receiving teaching certifications in political science, math and Spanish from Virginia’s Department of Education, she taught math for most of her professional career. Sophronia also holds a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Administration. She volunteers her time mentoring new female converts at her local mosque, knitting for an organization that provides handmade bears for distressed children, and interpreted for a lawyer who helps Spanish-speaking asylum seekers.

As a fairly new student with Ribaat, Sophronia has excelled very quickly and has been recommending the program to many others. She finds that Ribaat has helped her improve in her faith as well as expand, deepen, and enhance her knowledge.

“It has been a constant source of motivation to continue the study of the recitation of the Quran and Arabic,” shares Sophronia, who was first introduced to Rabata through the 2019 Ibadah Retreat. “I look forward to studying other Islamic subjects and eventually plan to speak with a [Ribaat] advisor to determine the path I should take.”

For Sophronia, her experience with Rabata and Ribaat has been very positive thus far. She loves the classes, the Virtual Masjid, and the Pilgrims at Home program. She finds her teachers to be caring and highly qualified and her classmates to be friendly and supportive.

“I am very grateful to be in the company of the wonderful women of this organization,, who embrace the tradition of Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) with the goal of pleasing Allah, The Most High,” Sophronia says.

In her free time, Sophronia loves to knit and cross-stitch. She also likes to bake breads and desserts. She calls herself a ‘life-long learner’ and enjoys learning new languages, Arabic being her main focus at this time.