Community welcomes Afghan family to their new home

On Saturday, November 6, 2021, members of the Cape Elizabeth community gathered with food and flowers to welcome Asadullah Mohmmand, his wife, and their four young children to their new home and new town.  Mohmmand and his family are refugees from Afghanistan following the fall to the Taliban.  Cape Elizabeth resident Mohammad Nasir Shir purchased the family's home using personal equity.  When he learned that his friend was looking for a home utilizing the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Housing Choice Voucher Program 8, he began making arrangements to offer the newly purchased property.  Shir, who worked with Mohmmand in Afghanistan from 2003 to 2011, engaged the help of family and friends to transform the former dental office into a home.  One integral person was Emily Mavodones.  Mavodones offered to help Shir by setting up a fundraising campaign called Community Helping Cape Elizabeth Afghans using the GoFundMe.com platform.

Established in mid September, the fundraiser is now more than halfway to reaching its $20,000 goal.  Half of the funds are going towards moving Mohmmand's family to Cape Elizabeth, purchasing basic home appliances, furniture, and providing rent throughout the adjustment period.  The other half of the funds raised will be used towards applying for humanitarian parole for the family members of four Cape Elizabeth families, Shir's family included, whose relatives are still in Afghanistan.  "Once the site was live," Mavodones said, "the entire Cape community stepped up."  In addition to the fundraiser, Mavodones put a call out for volunteers through a local group on Facebook called Cape POD to recruit extra resources.  Over 30 volunteers, almost exclusively from Cape Elizabeth, volunteered their time and services to prepare the home for the family's arrival.  Shir's daughter Haleema Shir and sister Shukria Wiar coordinated and inventoried donations as they came in.  Shir's sons and nephews helped pick up and deliver furniture to the home.  

At the welcoming event, Shir explained that the process of getting Mohammand and his family to Cape Elizabeth, "Took a long time and it took some special forces, and some special forces from there [pointing to the sky] to evacuate them from the airport.  Once he was [evacuated], he spent two months at the military base in Virginia.  He was in one tent among 3,000 people with his family, with simple beds, and that's about it."  Back in Cape Elizabeth, Shir added, there were, "VP's, software developers, lawyers" and many others who all helped with renovating the home, "doing really tough work."

Community members interested in learning more or finding ways to contribute should access Community Helping Cape Elizabeth Afghans.  A feature article by Kevin St. Jarre for the Cape Courier is included in the November 3 issue

From left to right, Nasir Shir, Emily Mavodones, and Asadullah Mohmmand greeting the community.

Community members listening to Shukria Wiar


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