Her name is Somaia. She is a promise kept.

Meet Somaia.

She came to Nashville from Afghanistan with her six-year-old sister, Nilab, and her two aunts when she was just four years old. 

For two and a half years — between the ages of four and seven — Somaia lived in this country without her parents. No one planned for it. But that's what happened. 

We couldn’t close the distance between Somaia and her parents. But we could love her in the waiting.

Jonathan and I met her in her apartment while delivering food. There was something about her family that immediately drew us in — like our lives had somehow already been knit together. From that day on, we celebrated birthdays, went out for ice cream, played hide and seek, went to doctor’s visits, and read books side by side. She taught me words in Dari while I taught her words in English. Somaia and Nilab became regulars at the after-school program, and their fifteen-year-old aunt, Brishna, became a StreetLeader. While the rest of their family was halfway around the world, they found themselves woven into a community that deeply loved and welcomed them.

Every night, Somaia FaceTimed with her mom and dad. I remember the first time I met her mom, Saida, on one of those nightly calls. We both cried as I told her I would do everything I could to help take care of her girls. I asked God countless times to bring her parents here. It seemed impossible. Then, in February of 2024, He did. It was one of the most significant answered prayers of my life.

The reunion did not undo the two and a half years. That’s a long time for a child to

be separated from their parents.

And yet, Somaia has remained full of light. And she's wise beyond her years. 

Somaia is nine now. Her favorite English word is butterfly, which feels fitting. Last week, she drew one on her paper and told the room she wants to become a StreetLeader like her older sister when she grows up.

She is just as full of joy as the day I met her. Maybe even more now that her family is together again.

She did not need to be rescued. What she needed was to be welcomed and loved by a community that would hold her story with tenderness for those two and a half years — and long after.

That kind of presence is what UPN exists to offer. That is what your gift funds.

Watch Somaia's story here: https://youtube.com/shorts/Uzm9O4D4rEk

HELP UPN KEEP SHOWING UP