Syrian refugee Nashat Aljerwan, his wife Muna Aljerwan and five of their six children were set to arrive in the U.S. in February as part of a U.S. State Department resettlement program. But days before their travel date, President Donald Trump issued an executive order that suspended refugee resettlement.
“This situation is very hard, being stuck waiting,” Aljerwan said. “We've put off so much because we've anticipated that we were set to travel.”
St. Louis resident Anne Ross was devastated to hear the family’s plans were dashed. Since 2023, she and nine other volunteers have worked to bring the Aljerwans to St. Louis through Welcome Corps. They helped the family file paperwork, collected furniture and raised well over the $17,000 required for the resettlement process.
Since February, Ross has pushed for the Aljerwans to receive an exception to the executive order. She’s communicated with Sen. Josh Hawley’s office — but, so far, it’s unclear whether he has submitted a request on her behalf to the State Department.
Hawley's office did not reply to a request for comment by Tuesday afternoon.
“We do not have any additional information to share about U.S. Refugee Admissions Program case processing or Welcome Corps applications at this time,” said a congressional liaison with the State Department in an email to Hawley staffer Shawn Cowing.
Aljerwan has not given up hope that his wife, Muna, and their children will one day be able to realize their dream of living in the U.S. In the meantime, life at the Za'atari refugee camp in Jordan is difficult — and the family is struggling to regain job opportunities, school enrollment and resources that they let go of in anticipation of their move.
“We left our house. We sold our furniture. We also lost our refugee privileges of the camp, including health care,” he said. “It is very hard to find joy in the refugee camp with the harsh living conditions and the desert-like living conditions out here.”
Aljerwan’s family has lived in the camp since they fled their home in Syria 12 years ago. He said that when the opportunity came to join his wife’s family in St. Louis, it was a reminder of what joy felt like.
“We can't wait to be part of and contribute to the St. Louis community,” he said. “I know there’s going to be an amazing future for us in St. Louis, and I pray to God that we're able to be reunited with our family there. I thank everyone who is helping us try to get to that reality.”
In recent weeks, some refugee processing has resumed under court order. On July 10, “Pacito,” the plaintiff in a lawsuit challenging the suspension of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, arrived with his family in North Carolina under a court order exempting him and other refugees from the refugee ban. The International Refugee Assistance Project said several other refugee families are scheduled to arrive in the coming days.
However, Welcome Corps cases are not included in those currently being processed, and the Welcome Corps resettlement program continues to be suspended.
In the meantime, Ross and her fellow volunteers continue to hold furniture and resources for the Aljerwan family in a storage locker. She said she won’t stop pursuing the case to bring them to St. Louis.
“I cannot wait for [them] to get off that plane at Lambert Air Force Base and to give [them] a big hug,” she said.
Anne Ross and Nashat Aljerwan joined St. Louis on the Air to share their respective journeys, their work together on his family’s case and their hopes for meeting in person when resettlement in St. Louis finally becomes a reality. Listen to the conversation on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or click the play button below.
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Darrious Varner is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.
