An Afghan refugee journalist's US journey continues in San Diego with new jobs and new goals

I first met Sayed Sadat in December 2021 in Coronado at the home of his benefactor Mary Danaher. He had just arrived in San Diego after fleeing Afghanistan in September of that year. With her help and sponsorship, he came here after living for three months at Fort Pickett, an Army National Guard base in Virginia. He arrived before Christmas and began his new life here.

This country and culture were still new to him, but with the help of his kind sponsor, he learned to adapt to life here. This included getting around Coronado on a donated bike and later getting his California driver's license. When I first interviewed him for a story, I asked him what his goals were for the future. He replied that his goals were to improve his English, find a job and get a master's degree. Almost three years later, I decided to check in with him to see how he was doing.

He was and is very adept at finding work. In addition to his journalistic work in Afghanistan, he also did a lot of charitable work there, and his desire to help others remained here too.

In his first assignment, he worked as a part-time Youth Care Coordinator at PANA from February 2022 to December 2022. He then worked as a part-time Health Worker for the United Women of East Africa Support Team from January 2023 to April 2024. During this time, he also worked as a Family Counselor for the International Rescue Committee from April 2023 to June 2024. He is currently working as a Crisis Counselor for the United Women of East Africa Support Team from July 2024.

He told me that he felt he could continue to grow there and hoped to have a significant impact.

To have that significant impact, he also founded a nonprofit organization in June 2024. He explained that to do so, he had to take several steps, including obtaining a license for his nonprofit. First, he focused on finding people to serve on the board, seeking out like-minded professionals who shared his passion. This included two of his trusted friends, Coronado musician and artist Joe Kane as his chairman and Irv Kass, who was formerly news director at NBC News and now owns a media consulting firm. Once the team was assembled, he devoted himself to selecting a name that accurately reflected the organization's purpose and values.

The name he came up with was Independent Cooperation for Change Organization – ICCO. He then worked on developing a clear and compelling vision, mission statement and services that would define the work. Finally, he developed a comprehensive policy framework that would guide the activities.

Although he is still in the early stages, he sees a future where his nonprofit helps refugees by providing them with access to vital resources, promoting seamless integration into American society, and fostering cross-cultural understanding. He wants this nonprofit to create a platform where refugees can engage in their new community, discover shared values ​​and traditions, and build bridges between their diverse cultural backgrounds and American culture.

Ultimately, the mission is to advocate for equality and dignity for refugees and to ensure that they have the opportunity to thrive and reach their full potential, free from barriers and discrimination, so that they can in turn make a meaningful contribution to their new home. Of course, these goals are not always so easy to implement in everyday life, but one has to admire the vision and determination.

In order to pursue a master's degree and improve his English, he took several ESL courses at San Diego Community College Continuing Education and his English has improved quite a bit. He is also in the process of applying for his master's degree at San Jose State University, but first he needs to get his bachelor's degree from Afghanistan evaluated. He wants to pursue a degree in social work.

His other good friends, Ben and Gina Jacobs, helped him with the application process. Sayed has known Ben since he arrived, as Ben and the group he works with, Welcome Home, provided him with his first bike so he could explore Coronado, and their friendship has grown.

Speaking of friendships, in my first article I mentioned two Afghan women with whom he originally fled Afghanistan. They arrived in San Diego in January 2022 and were picked up at the airport by Sayed and Mary. The two women have also thrived since arriving here and their friendship with Sayed is still strong.

Finally, I asked Joe Kane how Sayed has developed since arriving in San Diego and he replied, “When Sayed first arrived here, he was still trying to understand what the new culture was like, what the city was like, what the social environment was like and where he could find help and friendship and all the other things we need to survive. And now he has come on leaps and bounds in those areas. He now speaks English much more competently and confidently and knows his way around the city.”

“He knows where to find resources and information. In addition, he has also grown as a person. He has taken on a lot of responsibility and wants to make a difference in the community. I see him accomplishing more in a day than most people do in a week. He works hard and does everything he can to improve his life and the lives of the people he helps. It's a big task, but he's up for the challenge. It's been a difficult and amazing journey and I'm very happy to be working with him.”