Basam and Hanan have been married for 19 years, and have been in the United States since 2010. Persecuted in their home country of Iraq, they fled and lived in Syria for four years before they were able to legally immigrate to America. Basam considers this to be his biggest accomplishment – moving his
June 10, 2019 San Diego Business Journal San Diego Union-Tribune To the Editor: A safe home. Nutritious food. Health care. Access to good schools. Reliable transportation. Which would you choose? One in 6 U.S. families are forced to make this decision every day, often paying more than half of their income on rent or
Alexis is a single mother of two beautiful children, Avery (6) and Aviana (4). She filed for bankruptcy with her ex-husband, and since then has gotten back on track to financial stability. Alexis has worked for the County of San Diego as an administrative assistant for the past 6 years. She is up for
Reyneil is a proud veteran, who served in the U.S. Navy for four years. He received many accolades and awards for his exemplary service and dedication. After serving our Country, Reyneil went on to further his education using his GI Bill educational benefits to improve his life and redefine his vocation and future path.
Mohamoud fled Africa and came to the United States as a refugee in 1994. Since arriving in San Diego, he has graduated as valedictorian from Mesa College with an Associate of Arts in Economics, and earned a Liberal Arts and Sciences Degree from San Diego City College. In 1996, Mohamoud was diagnosed with an
Ali and Afrah have been married for 10 years and have three beautiful children - Ahmed (8), Maryam (5), and little Jacob (2). The children already love math and reading books, Ahmed even won a science award last year. Ali wants to give his children the best education possible. Usually found playing soccer, dancing,
Michelle and Cesar both work at nonprofit organizations and are active members of the community. They first learned about Comm22 when a friend posted about it on Facebook. After attending a first time homebuyer class and realizing it would be mathematically impossible to purchase a home in San Diego with two nonprofit salaries and
Olympia and Brent have been community activists for many years, supporting organizations and groups who offer assistance to marginalized communities. With housing prices and rent steadily increasing, they are legitimately concerned about being priced out of their own neighborhood. Olympia has worked at Scripps Memorial Hospital monitoring pre and post-intervention heart rhythms for the
Gabriel, Mercedes, Angel (16) and Alfredo (14) live in an extremely small one-bedroom apartment in Logan Heights. The neighborhood has a high crime rate; police activity is a regular occurrence. Gabriel and Mercedes would give anything to move the boys into a safer community, so that the boys can focus on what they truly
Aurelio, Elizabeth, and Zoey (3) have lived in a mobile home rental for the past two years. It is very old and the landlord allows it to be in perpetual disrepair. Part of Aurelio and Elizabeth’s bedroom floor is caving in, and the ground beneath is closing in. The roof leaks, the home is
