Five years ago, I had just about given up on helping the refugee children pouring into Albany. The refugee groups I encountered were hostile, xenophobic, and in some cases, just unabashedly anti-semitic. They were also losing almost all of their funding.

Before giving up, and on the suggestion of a private school teacher who helped, I phoned Bishop Maginn High School, known for admitting new refugee kids even if they had no money to pay the full tuition.

Mike Tolan, the principal, answered my phone call (this was shocking in itself) and said he would love to come to the school with a therapy dog and work to help the refugee children who were new to America and were struggling with language issues, poverty, and extreme trauma.

I was exploring the idea of turning the blog into good and being part of a refugee family myself; my heart was in it.

He introduced me to Sue Silverstein, who taught many of these children and was passionately devoted to helping them. We clicked and became instant friends and set out to help as many as possible., first with tuition help.

I knew I had found what I was seeking, a place that was smart enough to know me and need me and use me.

Mike and Sue didn’t mess around with bureaucracy or budges; they just got to work. They loved the therapy dog idea, but even more, they were desperate to help these kids. Nobody else was.

I remember the first students I met – BeSaPaw and Nilar Way; they were fresh from Mynamar and the horrors of the Karen persecutions and genocide. They spoke little English, and their families, or what was left of them, had little money for clothes, blankets, or food.

We jumped right in.  Mike was desperately working to keep the refugee kids in the school, hardly any of them could pay their tuition, and the Trump administration had cut just about all of their benefits.

The newly formed Army Of Good got them laptops, clothes, blankets, extra food, grocery store coupons, and dresses and jackets for winter. These were the first children I helped; I wasn’t even taking photos then.

We paid their tuition and received food and clothing certificates at Wal-Mart and local grocery stores. We got them a book on how to learn English.

These two – courteous, soft-spoken, hard-working – introduced me to this heartrending but beautiful world. They opened the doors for me. I remember interviewing them and being stunned by their grace, forgiveness, and hope.

They had come out of refugee camps, lost their homes and members of their families, and endured hunger and abuse of many kinds. I never heard one word of complaint or self-pity come from them.

I lost touch with these two when they went off to college. I always leave them alone after we help them.  Sue had done a fantastic job of seeing that they had learned English and had what they needed.

Today I got a text from Sue Silverstein, a hero, and angel. She knew I had some surgery yesterday and said she had a message that would “make you feel good. NiLar Way and BeSa Paw from that first group of refugees we had at Bishop Maginn are graduating from college today.”

They both graduated from the same college Sage, in Troy, N.Y.

She added: “You’ve done some good things.” I appreciated that, but no one has done more good things or worked harder for these children than Sue Silverstein herself. I thanked her for understanding what I was trying to do and how I was trying to do it and for supporting me.

I thank her for loving these children and walking the walk, not just talking about it.  I thank her for letting me help and listening to my ideas about it – the importance of photographs and the possibilities of the blog.

This is a momentous and joyous day for her. She did all of the actual work. I rolled along behind her. She made all of our work possible and still does.

But yes, it sure did make me feel good. Good luck out in the world, Nilar Way and BeSaPaw. You are what America is all about; we are still a great country with a big heart.

You are most welcome here.