Neptune’s Story - Understanding the Journey

My name is Neptune Hashimi, and I am a Business Management graduate with a concentration in Management. I was born and raised as an immigrant with  no rights  Quetta, Pakistan, as an undocumented refugee legal identity, or basic rights.

After high school, I couldn’t continue my education in Pakistan due to my status. I moved to Afghanistan and joined the American University of Afghanistan on a full scholarship. But after two semesters, the government collapsed, and everything fell apart again. I had to return to Pakistan, and then I was evacuated to Kyrgyzstan—a country I had never even heard of. I didn’t know the language, the people, or how I would survive there. But I had no other option.

I studied at the American University of Central Asia (AUCA) in Bishkek for two years. The feeling of being displaced never left me. I used to think, we're a lost generation—people like me, caught between borders, carrying pain and memories, and not knowing where we belong.

My family is everywhere, some in Pakistan, some in Kyrgyzstan, some in Australia. And me? I kept moving forward. After two years in Kyrgyzstan, I moved to Florida in the U.S., trying to continue my education. I had to study online with an 11-hour time difference. I stayed up all night for classes and worked long, physically demanding jobs during the day just to survive.

It took months before I found a job. Everything I did, I did on my own. There were no support systems - just me, trying to hold it all together. But I didn’t quit. And on May 24th, I had my graduation ceremony held in Bard College. That day meant everything. It wasn’t just a degree. 

Now I live in Kentucky, working as a Workforce Administrative Assistant at Refuge BG, an organization that helps immigrants and refugees.

 I love this work because I know what it feels like to be a refugee. I understand the fear, the loneliness, the exhaustion of starting over from scratch. I know what it means to fight for a life you’re not sure you’ll ever be allowed to have.

At Refuge BG, we help people find jobs and rebuild their lives. I see myself in so many of the people who walk through our doors. And helping them helps me heal, too.

Even now, I’m still figuring out what “home” means. I have moved so many times that I stopped counting. But maybe home isn’t a place anymore. Maybe it’s the people we help, the communities we build, and the moments we choose not to give up, no matter how hard things get.

This journey has never been easy. But I’m still here. Still growing. Still fighting for a future I believe in.