Hi, my name is James Stroud and I met Rukhsar Habibzai through the Reston Bike Club.

Rukhsar was nearing completion of her Dental Hygiene degree in Kabul Afghanistan when she and members of her family had to flee for their lives. The Taliban took over the country and banned females from attending schools and participating in athletics. Rukhsar was physically assaulted by the Taliban and the Taliban wanted her killed for many reasons, some of which are

So she was forced to flee and lost everything. The Taliban destroyed all of her education records, her various cycling accolades, and all of her personal belongings.

She is working hourly in a dental office and currently can barely make ends meet while also being the primary caretaker for her elderly parents (who do not speak English & her mother has various health issues). She plans to attend Dental Hygiene school at Virginia Western in the Fall of 2024 with the intent to become financially independent. The US Federal government assistance for her, her parents, and other family members has ended (it lasts just a year).

This money will be used to help her and her immediate family with

Rukhsar continues to advocate for woman's rights and is an aspiring cyclist. Rukhsar and her Afghan cycling teammates were nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2016.

Here is more background on her harrowing story

Rukhsar has also given a Ted Talk about woman inequality in Afghanistan and her cycling dream and what she is overcoming.

In full discolsure there was prior go fund me set up for Rukhsar that has not been very active recently and most of the funds from this have been used already (there is just a few thousands dollars unspent). This gofundme is an attempt to obtain more funds to support Rukhsar and her family.