Rebuilding a Hub

Many American host families step up and open their homes, to welcome displaced families into their own. One host family was shocked to find how much luggage came with the Syrian family they were taking in. "We expected them to arrive with nothing, but there were so many suitcases in the trunk." When they opened their luggage they not only found clothes but also food. The realization hit of what it must be like to relocate to a foreign country not knowing how you were going to feed your family.

Thanks to the generosity and support of these American families, the newly arriving Syrians had a safe place to call home, if only temporary. Enter in Langley Hill Friends Meeting who collectively decided they also needed to help. The Friends community helped them find jobs, get their kids enrolled in school, apply for a drivers license. Eventually they would find homes of their own.

But for many refugees settled all over the US transportation remains a problem. Buying a car is often out of reach for many Syrians for months after arriving in the States. This limits the type of jobs they can apply for depending on where they live and the means they have to commute. Many refugees often wind up walking to work and to run family errands.

Najla Drooby, of Langley Hill, recognized this early and approached Bikes for the World. She also identified a young man named Mouneer who had some bike mechanic skills and asked if he could join us in the warehouse. After just one week in the warehouse, Mouneer​ earned a couple bikes and spare parts for fellow refugees to use for work. He returned the following week, with friends.

Nathan, one of our veteran volunteer mechanics worked with Mouneer​ and Maher showing them some of the tricks of the trade. They were unfamiliar with some of the specialized bike tools unavailable to them back home. Nathan reported that communication proved to be no barrier when dealing with tools and parts...it's a universal, understood language. Adham spent most of his time assisting Keith loading the containers helping other people around the world.

This Syrian crew joined us in our last days at Pentagon City helping us load containers, prepare bikes and parts to ship overseas and also earned bikes to take home, something we don't normally allow at Bikes for the World. But this was a unique situation. This cause aligned with our mission. We identified some road bikes that are harder to place in our rural projects around the world and put them to good use here in our backyard. It was a small resource we could spare that had a huge impact in our community.

Our bikes were helping these new Maryland families go to work, the library, and run errands. The goal was to help them succeed and to do that be independent again. We hoped to help these families return to the self-sufficient life many of them left behind.