Former Teacher

Masooma Esmaelzada, a newly evacuated Afghan young lady, has been teaching English for over 10 years in her homeland, Herat, Afghanistan. Getting her BA in English Literature enabled her to work at international organizations as well as Herat University in educating university students and staff. She was previously a volunteer bilingual interpreter and English instructor at Ramstein Air Base in Germany where her expertise, patience and dedication were a key to the U.S. Air Force caring for 3,400 persons in transit to the United States.

She is currently working as a community health worker at La Maestra Community Health Centers which is a Federally qualified health center with comprehensive medical, dental, mental health and social services. Her main responsibility is to help people applying for governmental benefits, and connect them to the County of San Diego.

Masooma's life has been a series of paradoxes; ups vs downs, happiness vs sadness, and helpfulness vs helplessness. Even though fears and trauma she experienced pushed her back, they were as platforms where she was launched toward success.