Family of 10 calls Windsor home after fleeing Afghanistan

From Afghanistan to Windsor A local refugee family talks to CTV News about their journey from war-torn Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover. Travis Fortnum reports.

Though they’ve only called Windsor home for a matter of months, the Frotan family is happy to do so after fleeing Afghanistan amid Taliban takeover.

The family of eight arrived in the city in January, after patriarch Ghosuddin Frotan says chaos consumed their home country.

“We never expected such chaos,” he says.

“When I was at the Kabul airport leaving the country, it was a sad moment. I saw the collapse of my nation, my country, with my eyes.”

Now, the family is settling into a new kind of chaos.

Five of the Frotan children scream with glee in the backyard as Ghosuddin’s wife, Fatima, prepares dinner in the kitchen.

Ghosuddin says they have the generosity of Windsorites to thank for the speed at which they’ve settled in.

“We were surprised,” he says.

“They were very nice, very kind. We’ve decided to stay here – and day-by-day we’ve found our community here and now everyone is in school and they’re so happy.”

The family consists of Ghosuddin, Fatima, six daughters and two sons.

Ghosuddin, who founded an English language school back in Kandahar, Afghanistan, says it would’ve been much harder for his daughters to get the education they’ll get here in Canada back in Afghanistan – especially under Taliban rule.

“I’m sure they will have a bright future,” he says.

He says other Afghan refugees warned him moving to Windsor wasn’t as good an idea as opting for a bigger city like Toronto, Ottawa or Vancouver.

Now though, he says it’s the perfect place and wants others to see that.

“One of my friends who was in Toronto, he was settled there, I called him every day and said come to Windsor, you’ll like it,” explains Ghosuddin.

“Finally he came to Windsor and liked it. Then he moved to Windsor, now he’s here.”

Back in Afghanistan, Ghosuddin was a journalist by trade on top of the education work he did.

Now, he’s stepped into a role helping other refugees get settled in the city.

According to the Multicultural Council of Windsor and Essex County, a plane carrying 132 more Afghan refugees arrived earlier in September.

Ghosuddin looks forward to helping them get settled, as he and his family have.