In the summer of 2023, when I arrived in New York City with my family my wife, my elderly mother, and my six children we were placed in one of the Manhattan shelters where nearly five thousand migrants were being housed. At that time, everything was unfamiliar to us: the environment, the people, the language, the food, the city, and the culture. Everything felt foreign and overwhelming.

Every Christmas for the past many years, these kind people have come to give gifts to me and other families in my community.

For as long as I can remember, Shahin, Christine and Sandra have been part of my Christmases.