Khyber Alam

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Khyber Alam spent part of his early life as a refugee in Pakistan, his family having fled the Soviet-Afghan war. They returned to Afghanistan in 1999 and started school - 'under a tree or in a tent'. The family again fled Afghanistan, where things were untenable for them. “My grandfather was assassinated and at his funeral seven people were killed and 40 injured. I was there. I smelled the bodies burning. It’s something you never forget." He came to Australia in 2007 at the age of 13 and learned English. Khyber changed from being a disengaged child to one who wanted to learn and give back to community. Khyber’s Academic journey; started school from Year 9, completed VCE, graduated from Masters of Optometry in 2016. He currently is a PhD Candidate (Scholarship Holder) at the School of Medicine, Faculty of Health, Deakin University. Khyber’s special interests are in neurodegenerative ocular diseases. "Within his first year of practice, Khyber had travelled to India with Equal Health and Mt Isa with OneSight." He now works at the Academic, School of Medicine, Faculty of Health, Deakin University Khyber gives back to community in many ways. He has been on medical tours to India (2017), Bangladesh (2018), rural Australian Aboriginal communities through OneSight (2017). “When I was a kid I was really close to orphans and I saw a lot of kids in need. I want to give them the childhood I didn’t have, so I’m working on building an orphanage in Khost in Afghanistan. This is something I promised I’d do when I got my first job and so I’ve already raised the money, from my own salary, and with help from friends, to buy the land. My father went back to Afghanistan to find the land and he found old friends and family who were willing to help get it up and running. We have already started building the infrastructure and I’ll go over at the end of this year to ensure things are running smoothly… it sounds difficult from the other side of the world but when you do things from the heart things fall into place.” The orphanage has now been built in Khost, Afghanistan. The purposes of the orphanage are to help advance health, education, social and public welfare through the following: 1. Empowerment through knowledge 2. Providing them with shelter, clothes, food and access to healthcare 3. Teach them life skills/ & leadership skills This humble young man, with a challenging life story, has chosen peace building, utilising his skills and talents to bring new life to many. Here is a detailed article about Khyber's life story. https://www.mivision.com.au/2017/05/crossing-borders-to-save-lives/