To the editor:

One of my favorite memories of my eight years in active duty Army was the Friday ritual of my 1SG. The grizzled grouch with six deployments would stand at the head of the formation, with his Kentucky drawl, and call a soldier in front of the unit to say the Soldier’s Creed, and then lead us all in the Pledge of Allegiance.

He knew exactly what he was doing when he’d call up – as he often did – an immigrant with a heavy accent. It got me every time. I would get a knot in my throat, and a tear in my eye. How deeply grateful I remain, to this day, for the service of people who weren’t born here, but who were literally fighting for their place here. According to the Census, only 7% of US citizens are veterans, and about 1% served in Iraq or Afghanistan. Only 15% of high school seniors, on average, even meet the eligibility standards to join the military. Yet, I served with first-gen immigrants from Poland, Bosnia, Rwanda, China, Turkmenistan…The story of the immigrant soldier is sorely undertold, and I consider it a great gift of my service to have heard it.

For the last week, I have participated in the Digital Dunkirk, coordinating the resources necessary to move heaven and earth for one little Afghan family. Their story is one of deep loyalty to a free and prosperous Afghanistan. As such, all three brothers in the family have spent their entire adult lives in service to multiple U.S. military and aid agency projects. They are software engineers and construction foremen and architects. Their mother and father served alongside US Soldiers as interpreters. Since the fall of Afghanistan nearly two weeks ago, now, I have heard quite a few people say things like, “Well, we can’t fight for them if they don’t want to fight for themselves.” Clearly, these people have never seen an unarmed Afghan run over a ridge to retrieve a wounded US Soldier. I tended to the Soldier injured in that battle, and it was all he could talk about. You need to know they did fight. I saw it. They fought with us for twenty years, while an overwhelming majority of Americans did nothing.

I don’t think any serious person could argue that the war in Afghanistan needed to continue, but man…did it have to end this way? The only way to preserve our dignity, and our standing in the world as people on the side of justice and freedom, is to take care of our allies. I challenge each of you who sat on the couch or strolled the aisles of Target, while others fought to make the world safe from another 9/11, to find a way to welcome these brave and brilliant, yet destitute and terrified people. You can donate to No One Left Behind, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services, or look into signing up as an Airbnb host so that you can be connected with an Afghan family or individual who needs short term housing.

The wild and beautiful place has been the new home for several waves of migrants. Many of us who live here are so very proud of our immigrant heritage, We love to tell the story of their toil in the mines and in forests around the peninsula. If you’ve ever wondered what your Finn mummo’s eyes looked like, the first time she saw Lake Superior, now is your chance. You will see that awe and respect in the eyes of Afghans, should we welcome some here. I hope we do.