FREMONT, Calif. (KGO) -- Resettling in a strange new world can feel like a daunting task. Even harder for those fleeing warzones, often left without the chance to bring over all their possessions. Thankfully for Afghan refugees in the Bay Area, organizations like the Afghan Coalition have worked on rebuilding community ties. In partnering with San Francisco clothing maker Everlane, they helped deliver truckloads of new surplus casual wear to Afghan refugees.
"I just came with only one shirt and one pant, like sleeping clothes," says Shabana Wakilih an Afghan immigrant currently in the Bay Area. "So that's why it was so bad for us."
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Organizers believe that new clothes help with feelings of renewal, adjustment, and acceptance, especially helpful when adjusting to a new place.
"Really nice clothes that are beautifully made (and) very stylish, can really improve people's lives and just make them feel like special and that people really care about them," says Lee Whitman from Everlane.
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Afghan Coalition also helps with temporary housing and job fairs. While some of the immigrants have relatives here for support, Rona Popal Executive Director of the Afghan Coalition says acclimation is a long and strenuous process. Therefore, kindhearted days like this one can hopefully be one of many.