Afghan Family Resettlement

I am thrilled to share some wonderful news.

The Board of Trustees of Congregation Har HaShem has offered our Baseline house to a family fleeing Afghanistan. We expect Najeb, Maryam and their children, Amrullah (3) and Naseebullah (2), to move in in mid-December. We’re partnering with Lutheran Family Services and a local effort to bring Afghan refugees to Boulder County. Below, I’ll tell you more and how you can help.

Here’s the background
Several months ago, Roxanne Bailin, Lauren Park and Elizabeth Freedman began exploring how we might offer safe harbor to an Afghan refugee family. They met U.S. Army Major Chris Liggett who was rescuing his Afghan interpreter from Afghanistan. Chris has resettled Matiullah and his family of ten in Lafayette. Learn more about Chris, Mattiulah, and their network of helpers here. 

Najeb worked with Chris and Mattiullah as a truck driver for the U.S. Army in Afghanistan. He and his family have been living on a military base in Indiana where they have been fully vetted by the State Department. We understand that Najeb speaks some English. Maryam and the two children do not.

Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountain will help us with the family’s initial integration, securing Social Security numbers and some benefits. 

How you can help
It will take a community effort to settle this family in their new home. Our Brotherhood and Faith Furnishings have outfitted the Baseline house, except for some baby items. Andrew Frank-Martin, our Facilities Supervisor, is fixing things up for our new residents.

We know many of you will want to get involved. To help, review our needs below and send an email with your interest to resettlement@harhashem.org.

• Orientation and Assistance
  Everything will be new to this family — from the washing machine and bus system, to self checkout and the library. We’re especially looking for families with young children who will visit the family regularly, host them for dinner in their own homes, go for walks and to the playground. We also need individuals to help them enroll in local services and programs, establish bank accounts and phone numbers, learn English and more. 
   
• Employment
  We need a small team to help Najeb obtain a Commercial Driver’s License, receive job training, and find work opportunities. 
   
• Financial Support
  We need your assistance with the family’s rent and living expenses until they have sufficient, stable income. Give to the Tikkun Olam Fund here and enter “resettlement” into the payment notes.
   
• Household Items
  We are creating and will share a registry of items you can donate or purchase. We will share a link soon. 

Welcoming Najeb and his family reflects our commitment to help the stranger, builds on our history of assisting Russian and Sudanese refugees, and expresses our desire to make the world a better place. It emerges from this summer’s conversations about our houses and our shared desire to make safe choices about our campus.  

I hope you agree with me that this work goes to the core of who we are. 

May we all have much to give thanks for and, together, return abundant light to the world this season,

Marianne Balin