Community Corner
Fundraiser Kicks Off To Replace Stolen Trailer Filled With Donations For Afghan Families
A fundraising campaign hopes to replace donations for Afghan families in the D.C. area, along with a trailer, that were stolen last weekend.
WASHINGTON, DC — When journalist and documentary photographer Hailey Sadler learned that her friend, who collects donations for Afghan families, had her trailer stolen, she knew something had to be done to make up for the loss.
Sadler decided to create a fundraiser for her Afghan-American friend, Manizha, who has been volunteering all of her time in recent weeks to helping Afghan families as they resettle in the D.C. area.
Manizha drives her husband's pickup truck to collect and deliver donations to families. Last weekend, the trailer where Manizha keeps her donations was stolen, which means dozens of families lost the donations they were counting on. And Manizha has also lost her ability to store future donations.
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Sadler's GoFundMe fundraising campaign aims to replace Manizha’s trailer and the donations that were inside the trailer when it was stolen.
“Her days are spent driving her husband's big army-green pickup truck back and forth connecting with families, learning their individual needs, finding and picking up donations, and delivering them,” Sadler said. “When she can't find the right item, she often pays out of her own pocket.”
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In the trailer, Manizha kept carefully curated donations — furniture, clothes, shoes, rugs, lightbulbs, sewing machines, toys, etc. — for specific families.
Sadler said she is trying to raise $7,000 to replace each of the items needed by the families that she was preparing to deliver this week as well as to purchase a new trailer for storage. The funds will go directly to Manizha.
“Please consider donating to support Manizha and her incredible work on behalf of refugee families here in the DMV area,” Sadler said. “She really is a super hero and is making a tangible, individualized difference for families amidst the trauma of displacement.”
Visit the GoFundMe page to help Manizha replace the donations for the Afghan families and pay for a new trailer.
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