"I didn't even know that this term exists."
- Jun 18
- 3 min read
Today, we'd like you to meet Shamsia.
Shamsia is 17 years old. She was born and raised in Kabul, Afghanistan.
In her words:
"After 2021, life gotten much harder in Afghanistan — for me, for my family, especially for females in my family. We didn't have any access to education, to work, to their rights. So my parents decided to move to the US for a better future for their children."
She and her immediate family arrived in Nashville in August 2024.
She did not grow up dreaming of coming to America. She loved where she was from.
"I really love my country. I have a lot of family and friends, and my grandma and my cousins — they're all still there, and I miss them so much."
It's hard to overstate how unexpected this journey has been for her.
"I never thought I would move out of Afghanistan. Living in another country, immigrating — that was not even in my vocabulary. I didn't even know that this term exists."
That's the 15 year old who walked through our door. Not a statistic. A girl who loved her home, lost her access to a future there, and had to leave it all behind to start a life she never asked for.
She became a StreetLeader almost immediately after arriving in Nashville. In fact, UPN was the very first community she was part of in the United States—before she was even enrolled in school or went to Walmart. Her introduction to UPN was a night spent setting up tents in a backyard, eating hot dogs, and roasting s'mores around a campfire. It was a pretty great way to be welcomed to Tennessee.
Since then, she has been learning a new language, a new city, and a new culture while helping younger students do the same. She arrived in Nashville carrying grief. What she found was a community that welcomed her, listened to her, and made room for her to belong. Before long, she was doing the same for others. Last fall, her fellow StreetLeaders elected her to serve as StreetLeader Captain—a reflection of the trust, respect, and leadership they see in her.
When we asked what is something that she's learned through being a StreetLeader and part of UPN, she said:
"I can listen to them the way I was listened to. I can love them the way I was loved. When I was back home I didn't even know that I was able to do this thing. Now it's like, I'm growing. I'm flying."
That's what we see in Shamsia every day. The care she received is becoming the care she now gives away. The encouragement she once needed is now flowing through her to younger students and her fellow StreetLeaders. She is growing into exactly who God created her to be.
With World Refugee Day approaching, we asked Shamsia if there was anyone she wanted to honor. She didn't name herself. Instead, she said:
"I honor all refugees, and all of my friends here."
Then she started listing her fellow StreetLeaders by name because she didn't want to leave anyone out.
That's who Shamsia is. And it's why we're so grateful she is part of this community.
Earlier this week, we celebrated surpassing our $50,000 birthday goal. We're blown away by the generosity of this community.
The campaign doesn't end until this Saturday, World Refugee Day, and we're eager to see what God might do through these final few days.
For five years, we've watched God keep His promises in the lives of young people across Nashville. Every gift given now helps ensure that more children and teenagers will have the chance to experience that same story—to be welcomed, known, equipped, and empowered to become the leaders our world needs.
With so much gratitude,
Shawna and Jonathan
P.S. If you haven't watched any of our videos so far, we invite you to watch this one. Shamsia's perspective on loss, belonging, and starting over is one we think everyone could learn from.
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