The Islamic Cultural Center of Medford plans to open at 43 High St., a historic building that previously housed Gaffey Funeral Home.

The Islamic Cultural Center of Medford (ICCM) is less than a month away from opening in Medford Square, making history as the first mosque in the city.

The cultural center and mosque will be located at 43 High St., a three-story, historic home known as the Isaac Hall House and formerly the site of Gaffey Funeral Home.

The ICCM will provide prayer and spiritual services as well as activities and events. It will also continue the funeral home tradition of the site by offering Islamic burial services.

“We’re in the middle of contracting with a licensed mortician for that, and then we’ll also be offering a variety of other activities and programs,” said Nichole Mossalam, a Malden resident and director of the ICCM.

Other potential programming includes civic education workshops, an Islamic school for youth and a senior day program, according to the organization’s online fundraiser.

After four years of searching for and finalizing a location in Medford, the ICCM closed a deal with Gaffey Funeral Home on Nov. 29. The organization hopes that the building will be ready by the New Year, but has hit some setbacks: the building is not up to code and the heating and water system needs replacing, according to Mossalam.

A representative from Gaffey Funeral Home declined to comment about the sale of the property and did not confirm whether the funeral home would close for good or relocate. The most recent obituary on Gaffey's website was written on Sept. 12.

Gaffey was a family-owned funeral home in the Isaac Hall House for over 120 years, according to a 2015 Transcript article. ICCM was attracted to the property because of its central location and historical significance, Mossalam said.

“It’s a historical piece of Medford, which we hope to preserve and share with the community,” she explained.

The house dates to 1720 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was home to Captain Isaac Hall, a commander of the Medford Minutemen during the Revolutionary War, according to a plaque outside the property.

Residents may be familiar with the home because of the yearly Patriots Day tradition whereby an actor in colonial garb stops at the home during his reenactment of Paul Revere’s celebrated ride from Boston to Lexington.

The ICCM plans to contact the Medford Historical Society to discuss ways to renovate the building while preserving its colonial exterior.

“Basically, I think we’re going to come up with a new mosque design,” Mossalam said. “We’re going to incorporate the traditional Islamic architecture on the inside and work with the Historical Society to make sure we’re preserving the colonial aspects of the building.”

To make the center a reality, the ICCM organized a fundraising campaign that raised over $16,000, Mossalam said. Our Revolution Medford, a progressive organization, is also holding a fundraiser for the ICCM on Dec. 13 at Snappy Patty’s, from 6-9 p.m.

Jessica Farrell, an organizer with Our Revolution Medford, said the group decided to raise money for the organization to show support for a Muslim community center in Medford.

“We’re not really sure how the Medford community as a whole is going to react to this community on High Street, so we wanted to go ahead and have some positive messaging from people outside the Muslim community,” Farrell said.

She added that Our Revolution is looking forward to having another community space in Medford.

“We’re really excited for any new community to come in that can provide more of a free, open public space for people to be together and work together,” Farrell said.

Replacing the outdated and hazardous heating system and water heater is the biggest financial challenge facing the ICCM at this time, according to Mossalam.

"We now have to raise around [$25,000] within the next week. It is a very urgent matter," she said.

Once the center is ready to open, Mossalam hopes to have a ribbon-cutting ceremony with Mayor Stephanie M. Burke and members of other local clergy.

“This is going to be a beautiful step forward for American Muslims, because it’s going to be a way to take the American heritage and show that Islam is a part of this country, and we’re going to make it beautiful together,” Mossalam said.