Conversations with the Inspiring Soumaya Khalifa

Today we’d like to introduce you to Soumaya Khalifa.

Soumaya, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I was born in Alexandria, Egypt and moved to Dallas, Texas with my parents. Both my parents were doctors and my mom accepted a research position in Dallas. The whole family moved with her. I spoke French and Arabic but no English. I had to learn it fast. As part of my journey, I had several identities that of an American, Egyptian and Muslim. Growing up, the three identities were not present all the time to all people. At one point, I felt comfortable with all three identities and embraced. This is the time that I started to cover my hair.
I wanted to be able to be the bridge builder between the American Muslim communities and the wider community.

At the time, I was working full-time in corporate America. I reached out to like-minded friends and told them about the idea of starting an Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta. This is where we train people to speak about Islam and Muslim following the First Amendment guidelines of teaching and not preaching.

We had our first training on August 18, 2001. After 9/11 happened, we were stunned at the atrocity and decided to go full speed ahead with the organization.

It has been 17 years now and the ISB has grown and has impacted many lives. I have grown as well with it. I had opportunities like I would not have had. The opportunities include attending a White House Ramadan Iftar, participating in Christian Muslim Dialogue at the World Council of Churches and organizing the first ever Atlanta Mayoral iftar.

Has it been a smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. It is hard to be a woman leading an organization in the Muslim community at the beginning. I was probably the first one in Atlanta to lead an organization. Things that I think helped me and still help me include:
1. Having confidence that what I am doing needs to be done and I am the best person to do it.
2. Keep on keeping on. Don’t give up.
3. Had people who believed and what I am doing and especially my family – parents, husband and children.
4. Surrounded myself with supporters and mentors.

There were other issues in running a non-profit such as managing volunteers, fundraising, etc.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into Islamic Speakers Bureau of Atlanta (ISB) story. Tell us more about the business.
I am proud of so many things the ISB has done. To start off, training all the wonderful people through the years. On average we trained 40 people every year for 16 years. That is 640 people who were trained in public speaking, how to answer difficult questions, First Amendment and much more. Every year our speakers have in person presentations at least 3,000 thousand people. Doing the math again, that is 3,000 x 16 years = 48,000. We have done media work as well.

In addition to speaking, the ISB has had several flagship initiatives including the 100 Influential Georgia Muslims and the 40 Under Forty Georgia Muslims. These two initiatives are about providing alternative narratives about Georgia Muslims. People are surprised to see the doctors, lawyers, engineers, law enforcement, philanthropists and much more.

We also had the Making a Difference essay contest for middle and high school students. The participants pick a role model and write about why they chose them, talk about their goals and how they plan to achieve them.
In 2017, the ISB worked with the Atlanta Mayor’s office and the Mayor hosted the first ever Ramadan iftar. We invited supporters, partners, and Muslim city employees.

In 2018, we are piloting the Georgia Muslim Leadership Institute (GMLI).

I am known for the ISB as that is the first thing that comes to people’s minds. What sets the ISB apart is that we find initiatives that need to be done in addition to our regular speaking and we do them. We have a proven track record of doing that.

Who do you look up to? How have they inspired you?
I am always inspired by my mother who was a pioneer in her field of medicine. She was a strong woman that was not afraid of hard work, of doing the right things and doing all this with love and compassion.

My grandmothers also inspire me as they were born in the early 20th century and they raised very successful children.

My daughter also inspires me greatly. She is a law school graduate and has two children. Her daughter is a special needs child. Just seeing my daughter and how she deals with her daughter and her outlook on life gives me great strength.

I am also inspired by my daughter in law who is facing a very serious health challenge. She is strong and does not let that stop her from living life and giving to her children all she can.
I also have several male role models.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.isbatlanta.org
• Phone: 1-678-549-4327
• Email: Director@isbatlanta.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/isbatlanta/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ISBAtlanta/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ISBAtlanta

Image Credit:
Rene Bidez

Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.