Posts Tagged ‘Memphis’

When Nazia, her husband and three children arrived in Memphis in 2019, they came with the hope of providing a safe future for their daughters and son. 

Nazia’s husband had worked for a company that helped with different projects for the U.S. in Afghanistan, and Nazia herself had worked with the BBC/AEPO in their human resources department. As a result, their family was viewed as traitors and targeted by the Taliban. 

“In Afghanistan, I worked as a human resources administrator for 8 years, including with the BBC,” Nazia said. “My husband and I were working in Afghanistan with very great projects.” 

Yet because of threats on their life, they were forced to come to the United States on Special Immigrant Visas. Her husband sold their car, and within a short time they were arriving in Memphis, a city they had chosen based off the recommendation of a cousin. Upon arrival, Nazia and her family were welcomed by World Relief Memphis. 

“World Relief helped us a lot so we didn’t face any problems because [they] trained us in everything,” said Nazia, 31. “They trained us how we can call the emergency line, how we can go to the market like Kroger or Walmart. World Relief helped a lot with everything.” 

Each month, a case worker went to their house to check in on the family. After just five months, World Relief’s employment department had helped her husband find a job with Amazon. 

“They helped us with the resume and everything, and they also applied for us,” she explained. “We didn’t have a laptop, so [a caseworker] helped, and we are very happy with him. He helped us a lot, and he’s a very good person.” 

A year later, Nazia herself began to work with Shelby County’s Emergency Rent and Utilities Assistance Program thanks to the help of that same caseworker. One day, she would like to return to a role in human resources, but for now she loves her job. 

Thanks to the support of World Relief and the individuals who came around them, Nazia and her family have been able to begin rebuilding their lives in the U.S. Her daughters are free to pursue their dreams in safety. 

“I would love for my daughter to become a great doctor in the future, so I hope, I pray,” Nazia said, whose oldest daughter is in the 3^rd grade. “She said that she wants to be a doctor in the future, and she’s trying to learn more and more.” 

If Nazia and her family were still home, this dream might not be possible because of the Taliban regime’s treatment of women. Knowing that, she cannot help but worry for the family and country that she left behind. 

“It’s not one person, two people, not even one hundred—it’s more like a million people,” she said. “We can understand the U.S. force’s situation too, and we pray for them that they can help them.” 

Nazia, thank you for sharing your story. We are praying alongside you for the safety of your family and home country. 

If you want to help welcome our Afghan allies arriving in the coming weeks, it’s not too late. Come to a volunteer orientation, help furnish homes or perhaps buy a limited-edition t-shirt that supports their resettlement. 

For privacy, the program participant’s name has been abbreviated.

When A left Rwanda five years ago, she left behind not only her home but also her father. She, her mother, brother and sister had completed the long process of applying for refugee resettlement, but her father had not. She was being offered a chance at a new beginning, and her father would not be coming with her.  

When she arrived in the U.S., she was plagued with doubts. The language was difficult, school was different and people were unwelcoming. Yet despite the adversity that she faced, A remembered why her family had decided to leave her home and father. 

“When I first left Africa, my dad told me that the main reason we came here was to have education,” said A, now 19. “Because of that, I will work so hard so that I can get a scholarship to go even higher, not just to high school, because in my family, I’m going to be the first one to go to university.” 

New Beginnings 

So at the age of fourteen, A arrived in her new home, determined to make the most of it. Her family had been vastly shaken; her sister was pregnant with twins, and her husband had also been left behind.  

School was a refuge, but it was also filled with bullies.  

“Some of the [students] were really smart, and they motivated me to keep going—even the bullies at my school because I didn’t want to become what they were calling me,” A explained. “Some of them would say ‘Go back to Africa. You’re not going to achieve anything here.’” 

Rather than being deterred, however, A used the words of her father and those of her adversaries as motivation: “I was like ‘I’m not going to become what they are calling me. I’m going to keep going.’” 

Over the next four years, A pushed herself to learn English, to study hard and to take advantage of the opportunities presented to her. Even though school was very different—she no longer had to walk there every day, and she no longer risked receiving a “whooping” for being late—it was her chance to start over. 

“It’s just that we didn’t have a lot of opportunities [in Africa], but here students have a lot of opportunities,” said the recent Sheffield High graduate. “It’s just that some of them don’t care. Some of them don’t want to use them. That’s what makes it different.” 

Seizing opportunities 

Yet with the help of World Relief Memphis and her friends and family, A seized the opportunities in front of her. She studied hard, making good grades despite the temptation to stray like some of her fellow students. 

“I didn’t want to fit in, I didn’t want to do what they were doing because it would have affected my grades,” said A, the youngest of three. “So, I was just me.” 

As graduation approached, she had the grades to receive a scholarship to go to university, but she didn’t know how to do so. When she learned about WRM’s youth mentoring program, she decided to participate.  

“I didn’t have someone to talk about my financial aid, to choose the right school, and the right classes,” she said.  

With the help of her mentor Mary, A began to see that her fears of failure shouldn’t stop her, that college was in fact a possibility. 

A wish fulfilled 

Thanks to her support system, A will now be attending Oakwood University in the fall as an applied mathematics and engineering major. When she told her father, who is still in Rwanda, he was very happy. As for herself, she’s proud to have graduated with a good GPA that allowed her to attend university.  

Her World Relief mentor will still be in Memphis, but she plans to keep in touch and return home for the holidays. Her next goal is to prepare for college and eventually her career as an engineer, but before that, she has another one to accomplish. 

“I’ve decided to follow Jesus so I’m going to prepare myself for eternal life,” A said, who grew up in the church and is an active member of the choir. “Also, keep choosing friends that can help me with that. That’s my goal.” 

Knowing that, she hopes to one day be a mentor herself: “When you decide to walk with Jesus, that is something you have to do . . . I want to help people to build their relationship with God.” 

Already, she has begun to think of how her own experiences could allow her to help others one day. To other students coming from Africa and situations similar to hers, her advice would be to persevere. 

“I would say to the students that are coming from Africa, even the students [already] here—just keep going. You don’t have to figure everything out right away,” A encouraged. “Just be yourself and do the things that you left home to do. It’ll be hard here, but ask for help when it’s needed.” 

A, we are so proud of you and your accomplishments, and we wish you the best of luck as you begin your college career! Thank you for sharing your story with us. 

If you want to play a role in the lives of our youth like Mary did for A, come join us as a youth mentor.  

Six years ago, David Kenene was welcomed to the U.S. by World Relief Memphis. His eight children, however, had been left behind during the immigration process. After years of waiting, he was finally able to reunite with them this month. This is his story, as told to our summer intern Cierra Hunter.

I am Ugandan. I came to Memphis as a refugee. World Relief, they helped me a lot. I remember they took me to Christ Community; I went with Brother Andrew [a World Relief staff member]. When I reached Christ Community [a not-for-profit community health center] I was thinking about my family, the way I had left them and thinking about how they are doing now.

The next day we went to the World Relief office. It was my first time there. They asked, “Do you have family?” I told them yes, I have family. My problem is that I have 8 children. When I was doing my interviews with UNHCR in Nairobi I listed only 4 children when I have 8. I was told by a friend over there, “Never say that you have many kids because they don’t want people who have many kids. You will never be resettled; you will have to stay here.” That’s why I listed only 4 kids.

I didn’t eat those days because I was thinking about my family.

When I was at World Relief, I explained to them what was going on.

Katie said, “It’s okay, David. Can we pray?”

I said, “Yes, we can pray.”

Katie introduced me to Catherine, my caseworker, and Courtney, who told me, “We are going to work on this issue.”

I told them their names and how old they are. They told me, “Okay, we are going to work on it.” I was given hope that they were going to work on my concern so then I started working on what they asked me to do.

I thank God and I thank those people. They did a good job, they did a good job, they did a good job.

When asked about his hopes for his kids as they are reunited David shared: I want them to continue school.