Minnesota Soldier, Iraqi Interpreter Form Unusual Bond

I still maintain a friendship with my interpreter from Afghanistan, who I helped gain his Visa to the US back in 2014. He is working hard to earn a degree in Computer Science, he has a good job, and he's a productive immigrant trying to earn his citizenship. We keep in touch all the time, I check in on him to see how things are going, and I'm proud of what he's already accomplished in a very short amount of time.

Of course, before he got the Visa, I told him I better not learn he's working for minimum wage in a McDonald's, isolated in some Afghan community within the US, and to make sure he keeps going to school. I couldn't be more proud.

I am familiar with this story. The Brauns live about a mile away from me.
They are not kidding about the amount of red tape involved.
I was involved in trying to get one of my former terps a visa, and it was ridiculous. Then you look at how we handle folks fleeing Syria, and shake your head.

Great read, thank you for the share!