Noor

SAFE Client

Back in Afghanistan, Noor was an aircraft commander and an instructor pilot. As his classes continued to grow, the Afghan government collapsed in August 2021, leaving him no choice but to leave his family and his country for his safety. Shortly after, Noor found a new home in Phoenix, Arizona, where he was able to find employment at Panera Bread to make ends meet. He felt that this employment is only temporary and searched for a better-paying job, or a car to start working for Uber and Lyft. Noor got connected to the financial capability program at IRC Phoenix where he worked with a financial coach to take advantage of CEO’s 0% interest SAFE loans to purchase his first car (Toyota Corolla 2018) and started building his credit by using CEO’s credit building loans.

While working with a coach, Noor was very eager to learn about all the Economic Empowerment programs including IDA and small business development. Noor was so pleased with the financial capability programming he was receiving at IRC that he encouraged over 100 Afghan new arrivals in his community to seek the same services.

With the help of Noor, the financial coach was able to coordinate workshops and schedule appointments to serve Noor’s community. Noor has been a vital part of IRC’s success to reach as many Afghan arrivals as possible during a very short time. IRC Phoenix is currently in the process of hiring Noor as a full-time employee to help him reach his full potential. IRC Phoenix believes that Noor has what it takes to excel in the role because of his familiarity with the programming and his dedication to showing his newly arrived community a path to self-sufficiency so that they can meet and exceed beyond their basic needs. Noor was just granted Asylum and is looking forward to bringing his whole family to the US once he can apply for them.