My son Armin is a 9-year old Persian-American boy who enjoys soccer and playing guitar. He knows Afghanistan neighbors Iran, and he has many questions about what happened after he heard about the war ending and saw pictures of people fleeing. He wondered what could make someone leave their home and many friends and family behind?
While he found the situation sad, he wondered if he could do something to help.
After speaking with Sima Quraishi, Executive Director at the Muslim Women Resource Center, we were surprised to learn that MWRC is expecting between 500 - 3000 Afghan refugees by mid-October. They will literally be arriving with one suitcase each and are starting new chapters of their lives here. Armin decided he could play guitar around the town to raise money and hopefully help them in some small way to say, "Welcome to your new home."
His first "gig" was at Tocco in Winnetka . Owner Bruno Amate was a vivacious supporter, and offered Armin a chance to play during dinner on Wednesday, September 15th. Armin played for nearly two hours and raised $296!
Armin's second success came at the Winnetka Farmers Market on Saturday, September 25, where he played for nearly three hours and raised $319...plus a quarter from a young donor!
It's a joy to see the energy that Armin gives and receives from playing his guitar. In addition to restaurants, he plans on continuing to play every Saturday at the Winnetka Farmers Market until Oct 30th (weather permitting).
100% of your donations to this gofund.me and at live events, including the money Armin has already raised, will go directly to the Muslim Women Resource Center to help our Afghan refugees with a few essentials to settle into this new chapter of their lives. Stay tuned for updates about how you can fund items from personalized Amazon Wish Lists that the caring staff at MWRC are putting together as they meet the new Chicago residents!
Here is Armin playing Celeste y Blanco in March:
We appreciate your help and support!
Armin and Family