While some have the convenience of having a church located down the street, Hamid Haji has to drive about 60 miles roundtrip from his Bremerton home to a mosque in Tacoma. And in the midst of the observance of Ramadan, that means a daily drive south.

There are no mosques in Kitsap County and as Muslims worldwide observe Ramadan — which began at the start of the month and concludes at the end of the month and includes daily fasting and prayers — Haji makes the drive with other family members to the Islamic Center of Tacoma.

“You can always pray at home,” Haji said Monday. “But it feels good to break your fast with the community and pray together.”

Born in Kurdistan, Haji, 31, has been living in Bremerton for 15 years and said the drive to Tacoma to attend mosque has just become the norm.

“We got used to it. You have to do it,” he said.

His wife, Sheelan Haji, 27, acknowledged that there are some inconveniences with the commute.

“It’s kind of hard especially with gas prices jumping — you just deal with it,” she said.

Ramadan is the Islamic month of fasting — Muslims cannot consume any food or drink including water — from dawn to sunset daily. By fasting, Muslims then have time to reflect on themselves, learn self-control and patience and strengthen their relationship with Allah, God, said Sheelan Haji.

Because Ramadan follows the Islamic calendar, which is a lunar calendar, the start date moves backward by about 10 days each year, therefore cycling through all months.

The couple contends that observing Ramadan during the summer is more difficult than the winter since there is more daylight and therefore a longer period to go without eating and drinking. The first day of Ramadan this year required an 18 hour fast.

“The first day is always hard,” Sheelan Haji said. “You get used to it. Your body gets used to it.”

During Ramadan, the Bremerton family’s day begins early.

By 3 a.m., they are awake and eating Kurdish food including homemade yogurt, bread and cheese. It is a light meal that must be consumed before 4:20 a.m. Then the family gathers together in the living room for morning prayer. A total of five prayers are spread throughout the day. They also spend time reading the Quran.

Sheelan Haji said Ramadan is a time when Muslims read the holy book from beginning to end. It is also a time when they are encouraged to give back to their community and those less fortunate.

Around 7 p.m. they prepare to leave for Tacoma to attend mosque. By 8:30 p.m., they break their fast with other members and pray. Hamid Haji said their fast is first broken by consuming a date and milk or water because that is what the Islamic prophet Muhammad ate to break his fast.

After the family returns home, they pray one last time for the day together at 10 p.m. Then they go to sleep or those who want to can eat — so long as it is done before sunrise.

There are exceptions to the fasting practices such as women who are pregnant and those who are sick or traveling. However, travelers will make up their missed fasts at a later time, Sheelan Haji said.

Children begin practicing fasting by going several hours without consuming food or drinks when they are about eight or nine years old. Once they hit puberty, they are required to fast with the adults.

Zainab Haji, one of Hamid Haji’s sisters, recalled fasting only on the weekends when she practiced for the fast as a third grader.

“I kind of felt grown up,” said Zainab Haji, now 15.

Islam is one of the fastest growing religions in the world with 1.3 billion followers, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. This makes it second only to Christianity in total population.

At the Islamic Center of Tacoma, about 300 to 400 people attend the mosque each day, said Ziad Abusamha, a board member of the center.

“It’s to capacity,” said Abusamha. “It’s beyond capacity.”

With the growing Muslim community, Abusamha said the center hopes to move to a bigger location. Aside from families that come from Kitsap, he said there are those that come from Puyallup, Kirkland, Lakewood and other surrounding areas. Besides Seattle and theirs in Tacoma, Abusamha said there are mosques in Kent and Olympia.

From 2000 to 2003, Hamid Haji said the Kitsap Muslim community rented a place near Park Avenue in Bremerton where they gathered to pray together but when the property owner decided to sell it, it ended the sole place to congregate.

Now Hamid Haji often hosts potlucks for the local families at his house or they will meet at places like the Sheridan Park Community Center, he said. There are about 10 Muslim families in Kitsap that he knows of, he added.

But he hasn’t completely given up on the idea of Kitsap having its own mosque one day.

“That’s the dream. Sometimes dreams do come true,” Hamid Haji said.