August 15, 2021 was not an easy day for many – especially those who had to flee their home to find safety.
Amani experienced this. As a member of the Afghanistan Air Force, this role put him and his family in particular danger. When the Taliban took control of Afghanistan on that day in August 2021, he made the hard decision to leave his family behind and find safety in the United States.
“Me and several of my colleagues, we were forced to leave Afghanistan due to our safety. It was a hard choice for us to make, to leave our family behind and to start a journey that we don’t know what is on the other side,” Amani said.
Amani now lives in Idaho Falls and is studying electrical engineering. He hopes to someday work for NASA.
Another one of his hopes is to bring his wife here to the United States. When he was escaping Afghanistan, he went several months without being able to speak to his family. Many refugees didn’t have phones because they were lost or taken by authorities. He was relieved when he arrived in the United States and they were finally able to communicate.
“It was very happy news for our families that they finally could hear from us. I think mostly it was much harder for my family because they had a terrible situation in Afghanistan and also they had the concern about me,” Amani said. “For me I had only concern about my family. I didn’t think much about myself.”
Amani is grateful for the warm welcoming he received when he came to Idaho Falls. He hopes that in the future he can help people in the same way.