Jenks Students Share Stories Of Immigrating To America

A group of 6th graders in Jenks got the chance to tell their stories of immigrating to the United States.

These kids show that it takes a lot of courage to revisit some of those experiences.

11-year-old Maamoun fled with his family from Syria to Jordan during the war.

He's been in the United States for a year.

“In Jordan, I miss my sister in Syria I miss my house,” Maamoun said.  

He and 8 siblings are here, but his sister couldn't come with them.

“It is sad.  We really want her to be with us and she really wants to be with us,” he said. 

6th-grade social studies and science teacher Sarah Miller came up with the idea for the discussion.

“My students starting sharing stories and it was powerful.  I was struck by their bravery and family stories of how they got here who they left behind,” Miller said.  

They each shared with their classmates their reasons for coming to America.

“My mom was pregnant and in Venezuela, you can't find baby food so she said 'I want to go to any country where I can give food to my baby’,” said Rafael Orozco. 

While some of the experiences were hard to share and eye-opening to listen to, the students remained transfixed.

“I think everyone needs to be able to relate to somebody and to have somebody else have your story. I think it makes you feel safer and more at home where you are,” Miller said. 

And for Maamoun , though the journey to get here was difficult, he couldn't be happier to be in this country.

“We wanted to come here and we came here,” he said.