The last of seven families with students from the Cajon Valley School District in El Cajon who were trapped in Afghanistan are on their way home.
The news spread through the East County community like one of those wildfires that have happened in the area in the past. But this was very welcome news.
El Cajon over the last three decades has become home to tens of thousands of people who have moved and refugees who have escaped from their home countries of Iraq, Iran and even Afghanistan. Many of them, who tell stories of what it was like, still have family members who are still there.
And because El Cajon has become their home in America, with the city having the most Iraqi Chaldeans than any other city but Detroit, they share not only a community but also a bond. And schools.
The families with kids in the Cajon Valley schools who are now out of Afghanistan were on special visas for the U.S. military service and the Dept of Defense considers them allies.
So when all the American troops withdrew in late August, efforts began by the school district and 50th district congressman Darrell Issa and others to get them home. And now they are.
And their tense but safe return to their homes in El Cajon, is something that a lot of others in the region can especially appreciate as we prepare to celebrate the uniquely American holiday of Thanksgiving.
(Photo City of El Cajon)