HELP MUQADAS TO COME TO THE U.S

My name is Mastoora and I am the aunt of Muqadas, the girl on the frontpage of this fundraising campaign. I reside here, in the US, together with my family and with my parents, Moqadas grandparents. My lovely niece is only 10 years old, and she is still in Kabul, Afghanistan, together with her parents and five siblings. Despite her young age, few months ago she was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a cancer of the bones, and found herself facing a very harsh battle to save her life. She had lost weight, she was in constant pain, her otherwise contagious smile gone from her face. Her dad – and my brother – had to take time off work to take care of her, giving up on the only salary that was supporting the whole family. Due to the seriousness of her conditions, Moqadas had to take several trips to specialised hospitals in Pakistan, since there is virtually no cancer care in Afghanistan. Each time a long, stressful journey by road from Kabul to Peshawar.

After undergoing a series of tests, the doctors there said there was no other option but to amputate her leg to save her life. As you can imagine, it was a very difficult decision for Moqadas and for her family, one that left them no choice but to proceed with the extensive surgery. Today she is doing much better, slowly getting back to a normal life while also undergoing regular check-ups to make sure she will remain cancer -free. But her path to full recovery and rehabilitation is still a long and arduous one, particularly in a country like Afghanistan, where girls are already severely discriminated against and even more so if they are disable. She already lost months of education due to the osteosarcoma and very soon she will no longer be able to attend school due to the ban for girls’ education beyond sixth grade. Therefore, my family and I, together with my parents, decided to engage the help of a legal firm to try and bring Moqadas and her family here to the US, to reunite with us all and to give her the best chance to live a happy and successful life despite her disability. While we were given concrete hopes that the journey from Afghanistan to the US can have a happy ending for Moqadas’ family, we cannot sustain the legal costs needed to make their case a successful one. We need your help to pay the legal fees required by the lawyers at Bretz & Coven, LLP, in New York, for a total of $ 8,100 ($3500, plus $ 575 application fee for each member of the family). I appeal to the good hearts of the community and to whoever is willing to become a part of Moqadas’ journey to the life of health, freedom, and opportunities every child deserves. Please donate whatever you can, no contribution is too small. Thank you, on behalf of Moqadas and her family.