On Wednesday this week, Mohammad Shams came to the ACC office with a special request: he wanted help from our staff to contact Congressman Jason Crow to thank him for his efforts to evacuate Afghans and bring them to safety.

Back in Afghanistan, Mohammad Shams owned his own store called, “Shams Walmart.” He had 16 employees working for him. The store was located inside an Afghan U.S. military base (FOB Shank) in the Logar province, and his customers were U.S. military personnel. His shelves were stocked with American products like Red Bull energy drinks and Nike tennis shoes. Mohammad says, “We had everything! Anything you could want, we had it at my store.”  Everyday, he was interacting with many Americans. He also worked in the Bagram Airfield and other bases as a business owner in various capacities- supplying the U.S. bases with products- for over 18 years. 

When the news of the Taliban takeover hit, Mohammad instantly knew that his association with the Americans would put him at risk and in danger. The first three nights after the Taliban took over, Mohammad did not return to his own home. Instead, he moved around each night to a new location- hoping it would decrease their chances of finding him.

On the fourth day after the takeover, he received a phone call telling him to get to the Kabul airport immediately. He says, “It was so rushed. There were a lot of problems.” There were hundreds of people on the plane trying to flee.  He boarded the huge military plane with his wife, and they were safely evacuated first to Abu Dhabi and then to the United States. 

Mohammad shares, “We went to a military base in New Jersey- we stayed there for 40 days. We were safe. They recommended us to go to Colorado, and we also liked Congressman Crow, from Colorado. So, we decided to come here. ACC picked us up at the airport, and for the first five days in Colorado, we stayed with an American woman named Cindy. Please, say thank you to Cindy! Cindy helped us a lot, and she had Afghan food, like kebabs, ready for us to eat at her house.”

“Then, we moved to our own house. ACC helped us a lot. They brought us furniture and set up the house for us.”

“Thank you to the people of Colorado. The people of Colorado are nice people and they help you. If they see you and they see you are a refugee, they will help you. I don't even tell people I need something, and people bring it. We like Colorado people.”

“First, I lost my family. After, I lost my country. My country is the same like my mother- I love her. And finally, I lost my business. And I lost my friends.” 

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Story written by ACC Development Manager, Maria Farrier