Local Catholic communities support refugee family

Like Mary and Joseph with the baby Jesus, the Ibrahim family – Ahmed, Sana and their children Faizan, Ayra and Zara – found themselves fleeing their homeland under threat of violence. (All names have been changed.) 

According to Ahmed, in the spring of 2024, Sana was preparing students for final exams in their native Pakistan when a question about the prophet Muhammad’s first wife arose. She answered the question factually, that this was one of many wives of the prophet. Two preteen Muslim girls, offended by the answer, went home and told their mother.  

A mob descended on the family home that evening, accusing Sana of blasphemy. Some neighbors were able to temporarily deescalate the situation, but they advised the family to leave their home. For the next 10 days, they stayed with family, but, instead of calming down, the situation intensified. 

Word reached the Ibrahims that men had come to their house seeking them. Articles in the local media accused them of trying to teach Christianity. Political party Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan got involved and issued a fatwa calling for the deaths of the family members. 

Within the next week, having obtained visas, they entered the United States with nothing but each other and the clothes on their backs. They lived in a garage for the next six months. 

Ahmed describes their ordeal as “terrifying and traumatizing, but I believe that God has sent angels to help us.” 

Those angels include local Catholic faith communities, beginning at St. Anthony in Oakley, and nonprofit organizations that have provided funds for necessities such as rent and utilities and connected them with services like the local food banks. The Life & Social Justice Ministry of the Diocese of Oakland has a Lyft account that helped the family get to medical appointments, church and Christmas shopping. “It gave us a lot of hope,” Ahmed said. 

Their asylum case is now filed and pending, but it can take years before they get a court hearing. “The important part was to file, get work permits, and begin to rebuild our life in the United States,” Ahmed said. “We will take it as it comes. We are not in a hurry.”  

An anonymous donor paid the deposit and first month’s rent that allowed the family to move into an apartment. St. Isidore Parish in Danville, St. Vincent de Paul of Contra Costa County (SVdP) and Catholic Charities East Bay (CCEB) have all contributed financial support. SVdP also helped with furnishings.  

Work permits for the parents and oldest son (Faizan, 19), were approved in late April, five months after the paperwork was filed, a minor miracle. Ahmed has part-time restaurant work that allows him to cover phone, Internet and food expenses for his family.  

“I would love to have a job,” he said, noting that it is his greatest need at present. “This is the thing that’s bothering me.” Ahmed owned his own business in Pakistan and has experience in operations, marketing, sales, logistics, customer service and management. He hopes to upgrade his project or ecommerce management skills in the future once he has more stability.  

Ahmed has a California driver’s license and, thanks to the generosity of a Bishop O’Dowd family, has a car.  

Sana is seeking a position as a caregiver. She would like to improve her English language proficiency and enroll in a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) program to increase her skills. 

Faizan, the oldest, completed his A-levels in Pakistan, the equivalent of a high school education in the United States. He hopes to further his education at one of the local community colleges. His interests are math and physics, and he would like to pursue a career in data science. The daughters, Zara and Ayra, will both attend high school in the fall, within walking distance of their apartment.  

“I want to have a reliable income not only for my family but to help others in need as my family has been helped,” Ahmed said. “I am grateful to everyone who has contributed.” 

Kiona Media, coordinator of the Oakland Diocese’s Life & Social Justice Ministry, hopes that the efforts to help the Ibrahim family can become a blueprint for future cooperation. “We want to not just support this family but to be connected as a system of support,” she said.  

“All of the threads are being put together,” Ahmed said. “It is God’s will to help us survive and thrive in this country.” 

Ways to help

• Employment opportunities and direct financial support: contact Kiona Medina [email protected] 

• Donate to Catholic Charities East Bay

• Donate money or goods to St. Vincent de Paul of Contra Costa County  

• Donate to the Bishop’s Ministries Appeal, which supports the diocesan Life & Social Justice Ministry