Jida’s Story

My time with Amaanah began as a volunteer when it was established by helping to deliver much-needed supplies to newly resettled families. I quickly shifted my energy to support the children of the newly arrived families through mentorship and the creation of the Pink and Blue event, which ran for several years.

I didn’t fully appreciate Amaanah’s work until I took over the leadership position and saw the importance of our work here. Amaanah bridges the gaps in the community for recently arrived refugees and immigrants in ways the government cannot. Without organizations such as Amaanah, many of our beneficiaries wouldn’t get the necessary support they need to receive educational support, food, furniture, and other essentials to thrive in their new environment.

For example, when the Afghan crisis happened, and many were resettled here in Houston, there wasn’t any public support for Afghans. Amaanah, alongside other partners, fundraised and provided short-term essential support to help ease the burden of moving across the sea to a new land. Our Afghan population currently continues to face challenges without an affordable way for legalization. This means further support from private non-profits will be needed to help them until there is a way for Afghans to thrive here.

In my humble opinion, one of the most significant hurdles Amaanah has overcome in the past couple of years has been sustainability. How can the organization fundraise but also have a sustainable plan for the future to keep programs running and growing? Another hurdle is attracting the right talent to the organization to drive its mission further.

My favorite memory here at Amaanah is when we did a home transformation project for one of our single refugee mothers. She struggled. Her husband and family were killed, but she made it to Houston with her four children. It was such a pleasure to fill her home with the furniture and love from the community she desperately needed. When she saw her house turned into a home, she cried, and her children were overjoyed. The community’s impact allowed us to support her in the way she needed. I am thankful for that memory to remind myself not to take anything for granted and that what we do here impacts people.