Help The Teen's Family in Need

""Afghan teen who dreamed of being Calgary cop killed by suspectedu drunk driver
Three members of the family remain in hospital with serious injuries

Funeral was held for Shiraz Shermohammad last week, but his father and one of his sisters could not be released from hospital to attend due to their injuries .

Shiraz Shermohammad dreamed of becoming a police officer to give back to Calgary, 11 years after moving to Canada from Afghanistan with his parents and four siblings.

"Two-and-a-half weeks ago, just four days after his 19th birthday and shortly after being accepted into Bow Valley College's law enforcement program, Shiraz was killed by a suspected drunk driver."

"Honestly, the grieving process is so hard," said Tanaz Shermohammad, the oldest sibling. "My mom is very, very emotional because she was the closest person to my brother."

Shiraz, his mother, his father and one of his sisters were in the family's car just after midnight on Oct. 23 when they were hit by a Dodge Journey driven by a 28-year-old woman who failed to stop at the intersection of Country Hills Boulevard at Métis Trail N.E.

The woman was arrested at the scene but released pending the results of an investigation. Police said at the time they believe speed and alcohol may have been factors.

Shiraz's parents and his sister remain in hospital with extensive injuries.

The family was already dealing with significant hurdles — his mother recently had surgery for thyroid cancer and the injured sister has autism, requiring a significant amount of care.

Last week, a funeral was held for Shiraz but his father and sister could not leave the hospital to attend.

With her parents still in hospital and Tanaz off work to take care of the family, the Shermohammads are struggling.
"Financially we've been really on the down side," said Tanaz."

A dream of a Canadian education

When the Shermohammads moved to Canada from Afghanistan in 2005, the parents envisioned a bright future for their children.

"Education was the biggest thing; being able to study," said Tanaz of her parents' motivation in coming to this country.

"Being fortunate to be in Canada and being given that opportunity to become something and to have a career was a big deal for [Shiraz], and being a cop — he wanted to be that."

Though Tanaz is not angry with the woman who was driving the car, she said her family has been torn apart.

'His motive was to help others'


Even though Shiraz was younger, Tanaz said he was like an older brother to her.

"He was the greatest help you could find, someone who you could always go to if you had a rough day."

Shiraz wanted to finish his education debt-free so he had recently started a new job working in a warehouse to save for his school fees.

"His motive was to help others," said Tanaz. "He wanted to help the community." "

This Afghan family is in need let's help the family by reaching our goal of $8000.00 or more.

Thank you all Albertans for considering this and hope we reach our goal soon.

Friends Tragadies like this can be avoided in the future. We need to show the impact drunk driving has on the lives of innocent people. We should also put pressure on the different levels of government to enact harsher penalties on those who make the reckless decision to drive drunk and put innocent lives at risk.

I thank you all in advance for your time and showing the true value of being Canadian and helping our fellow Albertans who are in needs.

Best,

Aryan Sadat