Melak, a 16-year-old junior at Bishop Maginn High School, wants to thank you. And she also wants to tell her story. She was born the day the Iraq war broke out; it got much worse. She and her family fled to Syria just before the Civil War there.

I am fortunate that Melak has signed up for my Writing Workshop at Bishop Maginn, which begins next Wednesday, and runs for eight weeks.

I went to Bishop Maginn High School in Albany today to prepare for the workshop and to sit down and talk with Melak, the remarkably poised and charismatic 16-year-old  whose tuition we (the Army Of Good) raised last week so she can be safe and secure for the next two years at the school.

She wanted to express gratitude for the tuition support you gave her, but our talk ranged much more broadly than that.

Melak is an amazing person, and I felt great admiration for her bravery and sensitivity. She tends to smile when she is the most troubled or frightened, her defense against a life framed in death and deprivation.

She says her mother gave her the strength and words to stay strong and survive. “She always told me to be strong and stick up for myself,” she said.

Melak was born on the day the United States invaded Iraq, and she and her family fled to Syria just before the horrific civil war broke out there and ravaged the country. She was a refugee not once, but twice, living in the most dangerous real estate on the earth.

She talks about nearly being shot many times in her life, about being forced to stay inside her home for a full month because stepping outside meant almost certain death. She talks about bombs dropping so close to her house that it cracked the walls. She lived with violence and fear every day of her life. Amidst all of the horror, she said, she and friends always managed to find some joy.

And there is joy in her eyes.

Melak talked about her family, waiting four years to get permission to come to America, something that would be impossible today. She spoke of the fear and hostility directed towards her, refugee children and students, and families that practiced the Islamic faith.

Her troubles did not end when she came to America. In a way, she faced a tougher struggle, one for her identity and place in a strange land.

Melak is gracious, funny, and idealistic. She wants to become a lawyer so she can help others fight for their rights. If you watch the video, you will see that she will undoubtedly end up doing just that.

They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, Melak is strong and sure of herself. She faces few challenges that can top what she has already endured and survived.

Hers was a world of assassination, bombing, indiscriminate killing danger, and sudden death. I’ve read about it, but when Melak talks about a bullet whizzing inches past her head on a playground, it takes on a new meaning.

Her life is the stuff of movies; she bears witness to things children should not ever have to see, day after day for years.

Her description of the life of a new refugee student in American public schools is poignant, disturbing, and inspiring.

Melak wants to write a story about identity and acceptance, one that reflects the struggles refugee children have in our country, where acclimation can be lonely, painful, and challenging. I am eager to read it.

She may set the story in a haunted house; we’ll talk about that in class. At the end of the workshop, I hope to get these stories published in a paperback book.

Melak talks in the video of the helplessness she felt being the only Arabic student in a school with 3,000 students. Without language, she was helpless to defend herself or ask for help from the constant taunting, harassment, and threats she received in the school.

“Learning to speak English gave me a way of fighting back,” she said, “I could talk to the teachers, explain myself to the other kids. When I spoke English, I began making friends.” But the harassment did not stop until she got to Bishop Maginn.

She talks about the pain of being labeled a terrorist or danger to this country, which she loves and for which she feels gratitude and loyalty. Anyone who believes that the refugees in our country are terrorists or are here to harm us ought to watch this video.

I asked Melak what was special about Bishop Maginn. “No one makes fun of you here, and everyone supports me. It is very different at this school. I feel safe here; I have many friends here. I never have to defend myself or feel afraid here. The teachers always ask if they can help me.”

I told Melak I wish to help her as well. I know her family has little, her father is away, and her mother is sick and can’t work. I asked what she needs, and she smiled shyly and said nothing. I told her I didn’t believe her. I said I would stay with her, and help if she asked.

Come and watch the video for a powerful experience. Please take the time to listen to the story of a child who grew up in Hell and has found a safe and meaningful place in which to grow and learn and live.