During the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, tens of thousands of Afghans, many of them children, fled their homes to escape violence and crushing poverty. Those children faced unimaginable horrors and were often left traumatized. Organizations throughout the United States have been working to help resettle these Afghans who lost their homes and everything they’ve ever known, and who now find themselves in a foreign world.
Several organizations doing this work have reached out to Heart to Heart International for help with supplies for these efforts. We have delivered hygiene kits, food and toys to organizations in Kansas, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin and New Mexico.
The latest shipment went out at the end of October and included hundreds of blankets to our longtime partner Save the Children for its work providing transit shelters for newly arrived Afghans in New Mexico. According to Save the Children, “For those Afghan refugees who have made it here to the U.S., many are arriving utterly exhausted, with not a single possession except for the clothes on their back. Not all families have made it out together. Some children are arriving without their siblings. Some even arrive alone.” The blankets will not only keep children warm in the transit centers and beyond, but also provide comfort as they adjust to their new lives.
The blankets were made by employees at Garmin, RegaloRx, and Johnson & Johnson.
We have also shipped aid to House of Charity, Catholic Charities, Team Rubicon, and Army Reserves National Guard – all organizations working to resettle Afghan refugees in communities throughout the United States.
