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Resettlement support for 8 people arriving in Bakersfield

The Okonkwo family are rebuilding in Bakersfield after leaving Iraq; your gift pays for housing basics.

🇺🇸 United States1,146 views
Mackenzie Howard
Email verifiedPhoto verified
Bakersfield
My family left Iraq 8 months ago after our home was destroyed. We spent time in a camp before we were resettled in Bakersfield. We're a family of eight and we're safe, but we arrived with very little. Our resettlement agency has provided 3 months of rent, and that support ends in November. I was an electrician in Iraq, and I'm studying the language every evening. Our daughter and son have started school and are doing well. We want nothing more than to be self-sufficient. This fund will help us through the first six months. All purchases will be documented and photos shared (with the family's consent). Where the $4,650 goes: • Rent deposit and first month: $2,100 • Winter clothing and school supplies: $810 • Beds, table and basic furniture: $1,500 • Phone and internet for school and job search: $240 I hope life is good to you.

Updates from Mackenzie

  1. Update from Bakersfield: we've booked the dates and paid the deposit. We're at 10% of the goal. Thank you for believing in us.

  2. Update from Bakersfield: we've started the first stage. We're at 15% of the goal. Thank you for believing in us.

  • Ezekiel E. Stone 🇺🇸 · $10

    “Be well. Gave what I could this week. - Salem”

  • Sun-hee Seo-yeon Ha 🇰🇷 · $30

    “You got this. Small amount but sent with love. - Seongnam”

  • Nur Tuğba Şahin 🇹🇷 · $50

    “Wish I could do more. Thought of Mackenzie all day after reading this. - Istanbul”

  • Vusi H. Petersen 🇿🇦 · $100
  • Greyson H. McCoy 🇨🇦 · $30
  • Anonymous 🇬🇧 · $30
  • Ayanda W. Coetzee 🇿🇦 · $100

    “Stay strong. Been where you're, it gets better. - Soweto”

  • Rose M. Ocampo 🇺🇸 · $100
  • Ryota Satoshi Yokoyama 🇯🇵 · $20

    “All the best. Hope this covers a bit of it. - Tokyo”

  • Tamanna Bose 🇧🇩 · $5

    “From my family to yours. - Comilla”

  • Bennett W. Prescott 🇦🇺 · $10
  • Raimundo Raimundo Santana 🇧🇷 · $50
  • Carolina Bruna Xavier 🇧🇷 · $50

    “All the best. Saw your post and had to give. - Belo Horizonte”

  • Natalia W. Sims 🇺🇸 · $10

    “Keep your head up - New York”

  • Sebastian C. Spencer 🇨🇦 · $30
  • Njoroge Victor Juma 🇹🇿 · $50
  • Danielle P. Norwood 🇳🇿 · $25
  • Harold D. Lamb 🇬🇧 · $25
  • Dennis R. Mills 🇺🇸 · $10

    “Wish I could do more. Only $10 but hope it helps. - St. Petersburg”

  • Axel K. Salazar 🇦🇺 · $53

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  • Beth HollandPhoto verified

    Thanks for sharing this. Your post was clear and honest. I went through something like this 14 years ago and strangers helped me out. All the best!

    • Sending strength, Mackenzie. It takes guts to ask. Well done. Don't give up. Love from Berlin

      • Wishing you peace. Shared this with my family. Greetings from San Cristóbal de las Casas

        • Hope things get better soon. This could happen to any of us. Put this on a community board in Salvador this morning. Blessings.

          • Wishing you the best, Mackenzie. Everyone deserves a bit of help sometimes. After 26 years in nursing I know how hard it's to ask for anything.

            • keep going. It takes guts to ask. Well done. My late mom used to say help given quietly counts double. Blessings.

              • Thinking of you. Reading this made my day a bit heavier but I'm glad I did. I went through something like this 10 years ago and strangers helped me out. God bless

                • hope things get better soon, Mackenzie. Shared this with my family. Blessings.

                  $1,101 raised of $4,650

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