KANSAS CITY, Mo. — “My wife was delivering my son in the hospital," said Faisal Almousa as he remembers the fear his family lived through 13 years ago in Syria. "The hospital was destroyed. A bomb. My son lost oxygen to his brain."
Almousa speaks English, but chose to have an interpreter during my interview with him to help him communicate his feelings. Khadija Alexander translated for Almousa.
“I was worried and scared. I wished that I was with them inside,” said Almousa.
His family fled the war in Syria and moved to Jordan, but their life didn’t get much better.
Almousa said they dealt with xenophobia and other challenges
“It was very hard,” he said.
In 2016, they applied for refugee status in the United States.
Attorney Clare Murphy Shaw works with immigrants and knows how difficult it is to deal with the bureaucratic process.
“They have to have a fear of returning to their home country, and it must be based on a protected ground,” Murphy Shaw said. “It’s a very prolonged and difficult process to establish refugee status.”
Many refugees arrive in the United States with very little.
“We brought with us just a few clothes," Almousa said. "We left everything else behind."
He came with his wife, three kids, mother, and brother.
It took seven years for the Almousa family to land in Kansas City. The destination was destiny.
He didn’t choose Kansas City, but wouldn’t change a thing.
“If they gave me a choice now, with my experience, I would choose Kansas City,” Almousa said.
He and his family were received by Jewish Vocational Service in 2023. The organization helps refugees settling in the metro area.
“I think it's critically important to be a welcoming community," Hilary Cohen Singer, executive director of Jewish Vocational Services. "Because it’s the right thing to do, and also because it makes us better."
But even with all the support, refugees have to deal with more paperwork and more waiting.
They arrive with lawful status.
After a year, they can apply to become lawful residents. About five years later, they apply for citizenship.
Almousa and his family received their green cards a month ago.
They are focusing on the mission they’ve found for themselves.
“We want to give back to America,” Almousa said.
They donate blood as often as possible and volunteer their time to help other refugees.
“This is a little bit of what we can give back because we’re happy here,” Almousa said.
Almousa finally feels like it’s home.
"The people treat me like a citizen," he said. "There’s no prejudice. There is no 'You’re from here or there,' we are all the same,"' Almousa said.
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