About Danial’s Family
Danial’s family is a Kurdish Syrian family of 7. The father, Mostafa, owned a house and a successful business in Raqa. In 2013, ISIS conquered Raqa and claimed it as their capital. The family escaped during the brutal takeover and fled to neighboring Turkey, where they waited for nearly four years. As Kurds, they were ethnically ostracized by the Turkish government, often discriminated against at work, school, and on the street. The family was finally resettled in Chicago by the U.S. State Department and RefugeeOne in June 2017.
Mostafa, Roza (the mother) and their daughters (Sivin, 22, and Rosheen, 21) have been applying and interviewing for jobs. Mostafa is driving for Uber. This is currently their sole source of income.
Rodi (18), Valantina (10) and Danial (9) are in school. Danial and Valantina have flourished in school and speak beautiful English.
About Danial and his Soccer Opportunity
Danial is a polite boy with a sweet nature. He is a dedicated student and enjoys soccer. He tried out and was selected to join a respected youth soccer program that emphasizes player development by focusing on the values of Heart, Humility, Effort, Ambition and Respect (HEART).
Before the pandemic, Danial’s father had been faithfully driving him to practice and games. The soccer program’s director describes Danial as great kid that is quickly building rapport with his teammates. He has good behavior on the field and always shows respect and humility. Danial says that he enjoys playing soccer because the team is a great group of friends. Danial also believes that soccer gives him more energy at school and that working with his coach and teammates is teaching him to work as a team.
All Kids Play is proudly supporting Danial’s soccer experience.