23, inches of snow covering the family’s new front yard. Matie answers the door at his family’s home in Wausau on Jan. 'I came from small America to the larger America' Six children - three daughters and three sons between 3 and 16 years old, Matiullah and his wife, whose name is being withheld to protect her safety. And there still would have been people disappointed.”Īmong those who did get out were the Maties. But I think if we stayed another 10 days, we would not get everybody out that we wanted to get out. 30, “We did not get everybody out that we wanted to get out. Central Command, told a Pentagon news conference after the last plane left the airport just before midnight on Aug. Marine General Kenneth "Frank" McKenzie, the head of U.S. service members were killed when a bomb planted by ISIS-K, a regional affiliate of the Islamic State, exploded outside the airport. Matie had started the journey in a very different way at the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, one of thousands who fled the country after American troops pulled out following a 20-year occupation, and the capital city quickly fell to the Taliban’s fighters.Īt one stage, seven people were killed in the chaos surrounding an evacuation as people clung to a plane that was taking off. It was such a celebration that, "I told them I'm feeling like this is my wedding," said Matie, 40, an Afghan businessman and father of six who, along with his wife and children, was among the first of about 85 people from Afghanistan set to resettle in Wausau in the coming months.Īdam VanNoord, the head of the Multicultural Community Center, said 55 had arrived in Wausau as of Jan. Among them, members of Wausau's First United Methodist Church and staff of the Multicultural Community Center, both of which had aided in the arrival of the Matie family from Afghanistan, and Wausau Mayor Katie Rosenberg. WAUSAU – Their plane touched down at Central Wisconsin Airport in Mosinee just before the new year, snow on the ground and freezing weather outside.Ī journey across four countries and almost 7,000 miles ended inside the terminal of the two-runway airport, as Matiullah Matie and his family were greeted by a crowd of people. Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the office Lt.
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