Help Give Bashir's Family Hope This Holiday

An Afghan-Syrian Refugee Family's Journey to Hope

Imagine being a young couple, full of dreams and aspirations, forced to flee your homeland due to the ravages of war. Imagine seeking refuge in a new country, only to be met with fear and discrimination. This is the story of Bashir and Wafa, an Afghan-Syrian couple who arrived in the United States with their young daughter, Maria, seeking safety and a better life.

Bashir, a caring and hardworking man, is determined to support his family, but without a car, he struggles to find stable employment. Currently, he relies on a combination of odd jobs and food pantries to make ends meet. This holiday season, we have the opportunity to make a difference in their lives by helping Bashir purchase a car, enabling him to secure a better job and provide for his family.

A Gift of Hope and Opportunity

With a car, Bashir can become an Uber driver, providing him with a reliable source of income and the flexibility to balance work with his family responsibilities. This would mean a world of difference for Bashir and Wafa, allowing them to provide a stable home for their daughter and build a brighter future.

Your Generosity Can Change Their Lives

This holiday season, let's show Bashir and Wafa that they are not alone. Every contribution, no matter how small, can bring hope and opportunity to this deserving family. Your generosity can make a real difference in their lives.

Please Donate Today

Help us reach our goal of $37,000 to purchase a car and cover taxes for Bashir. Together, we can make this holiday season one of hope and new beginnings for Bashir, Wafa, and Maria.

Thank you for your compassion and support. Please see below for the family's full story.

Bashir's family arrived in the U.S. in February after living and studying in Türkiye. Bashir is from Jawzjan, north of Kabul in Afghanistan. When he was 13 years old, his mother passed and he was responsible for his 3 younger siblings. He is a very caring, loving person which is exemplified in his wonderful treatment of his young family. He will work any job to support them, which has included moving a large piano. His wife, Wafa and her sister Huda, fled war torn Syria seven years ago to live in a refugee camp in Türkiye. They lived in a shipping container with their parents and 3 other siblings. Wafa and Huda were given dispensation by the government to travel to nearby towns to pursue their degrees at University. Bashir and Wafa met at the University, fell in love, married and had their little daughter, Maria, now 16 months old.

However, all was not well for the family Türkiye, where the women were harassed, followed and attacked for their Syrian nationality everywhere they went. For their family, the last straw was when Wafa was attacked by another woman while holding her baby daughter in their neighborhood grocery store. The woman dug and dragged her nails through the skin on Wafa's arm while yelling racial slurs at her. Not able to return to Afghanistan with his Syrian wife, the family left their extended families in AFG and Türkiye to come to the safety of the U.S. Below is their story.

"My all family live in Jawzjan now. I studied high school in Jawzjan and bachelor in Balkh. After finishing bachelor I came to Kabul for work. I worked in Parliament and I also worked in media (for Ariana television).

During my work I got a chance to work on my Masters abroad, so I came to work on my masters in Türkey.

In Türkey when I was student I met Wafa who is Syrian and we married in turkey. We have one daughter her name is Maria.

When I met with my wife she was a student and I was a student despite all of this we tried to create a life in Türkey but we couldn’t create it because in Türkey, refugees have no good life. Despite my wife and I were educated, we faced racism – they insulted us, they threatened my wife because she was Syrian, on the street, in the local bus, in super market even in the class when she was doing her masters in person. That is why we fled to the USA.

When we came to USA we came to my friend's home in Massachusetts but we could not get any benefits from government and my friend could only afford us so much time in her home, so after that we came to Virginia, we stayed in my friend's home for 5 days and 10 days more in another friends home. Finally we got an apartment, the place we live now. In Virginia we also could not get any benefits from government and I still did not have a work permit to work more to make money to support my family. We get food from food pantries and some organizations helped us with our rent. [Bashir has applied for work permit and TPS and expects to hear within a few weeks] This is our brief story."