Turning a Refuge into a Home
Donation protected
Muhammad and Khetam are a young Syrian couple who resettled in the Washington, DC area through the US Refugee Admissions Program this summer along with their son Fouad who is now a 14-month-old toddler. They will welcome a second son in February. And they need our help.
THEIR STORY
Muhammad and Khetam are from the city of Dar'a in southern Syria, where the Syrian uprising began in 2011. They met and married in Dar'a and eventually left their families there to become refugees first in Lebanon and then in Jordan. In the spring of 2017, they got word that they had finally been accepted for resettlement in the US, and they arrived in the DC area in May, with four suitcases and a small infant in tow and without a single connection in America.
Muhammad and Khetam dreamed of prospering in the US, and they would like to one day start their own business. They are entrepreneurial and hard-working, and Khetam is a gifted cook. For now, Muhammad is working in the packaging division of an industrial bakery making $350 a week, and they can barely make ends meet. Muhammad and Khetam enjoy the small delights of their new American life -- their son Fouad dressing up as Zorro for Halloween, Fouad learning to say hello as one of his first words. But they also face anxiety about how they will provide for their growing family, amid the press of mounting bills and their first winter outside the Middle East without warm clothes.
HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT THEIR JOURNEY
We are raising $5,000 to help this family get on its feet over the six months after they welcome a baby boy in February. These funds will allow Muhammad and Khetam to cover basic living expenses for their family, including food, health, and transportation-related expenses, as Muhammad looks for a second job (75% of their income is currently devoted to rent). These funds will also cover start-up and ongoing expenses related to their new baby, such as diapers, formula, and baby equipment.
WHO WE ARE
Nini and Megan are DC-based young professionals who serve as volunteer mentors working directly with this family as their "first friends" in America through two local non-profits (Young Professionals in Foreign Policy's Refugee Assistance Program and the Ethiopian Community Development Council). Nini will directly withdraw funds from the campaign and provide monthly checks to the family to support their living costs and rent. Nini & Megan will provide regular updates to donors on the family's progress.
THEIR STORY
Muhammad and Khetam are from the city of Dar'a in southern Syria, where the Syrian uprising began in 2011. They met and married in Dar'a and eventually left their families there to become refugees first in Lebanon and then in Jordan. In the spring of 2017, they got word that they had finally been accepted for resettlement in the US, and they arrived in the DC area in May, with four suitcases and a small infant in tow and without a single connection in America.
Muhammad and Khetam dreamed of prospering in the US, and they would like to one day start their own business. They are entrepreneurial and hard-working, and Khetam is a gifted cook. For now, Muhammad is working in the packaging division of an industrial bakery making $350 a week, and they can barely make ends meet. Muhammad and Khetam enjoy the small delights of their new American life -- their son Fouad dressing up as Zorro for Halloween, Fouad learning to say hello as one of his first words. But they also face anxiety about how they will provide for their growing family, amid the press of mounting bills and their first winter outside the Middle East without warm clothes.
HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT THEIR JOURNEY
We are raising $5,000 to help this family get on its feet over the six months after they welcome a baby boy in February. These funds will allow Muhammad and Khetam to cover basic living expenses for their family, including food, health, and transportation-related expenses, as Muhammad looks for a second job (75% of their income is currently devoted to rent). These funds will also cover start-up and ongoing expenses related to their new baby, such as diapers, formula, and baby equipment.
WHO WE ARE
Nini and Megan are DC-based young professionals who serve as volunteer mentors working directly with this family as their "first friends" in America through two local non-profits (Young Professionals in Foreign Policy's Refugee Assistance Program and the Ethiopian Community Development Council). Nini will directly withdraw funds from the campaign and provide monthly checks to the family to support their living costs and rent. Nini & Megan will provide regular updates to donors on the family's progress.
Organizer
Nini Moorhead
Organizer
Washington D.C., DC
