From A State Of Strife To A Place Of Peace
MICHAEL ALEXANDER, Staff Photographer
Published: July 5, 2007
DECATUR—Summertime is here and school is out once again, but for three students leaving the sixth grade, their lives will always remain inextricably intertwined. Muslim boys Haroon Sangar of Afghanistan and Paywand Sofy of Iraq and Patience Karnanue, a Christian girl from Liberia, come from places of upheaval and strife.
For the last few years the International Community School, Decatur, has been their educational refuge and their place of peace. William Moon, a parishioner at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Atlanta, is the school’s principal and founder. Moon opened the school (K-6) nearly five years ago and said, “Our stated mission is to serve children and families who come from war-torn countries, as well as local American children in approximately equal numbers.”
Haroon, Paywand and Patience are just three of the approximately 330 children from over 40 different countries at the school. While attempting to provide an academically challenging and nurturing environment, Moon stated, “Our vision and emphasis is on building and creating a true community spirit amid all this wonderful diversity. Our vision is to create the ‘Beloved Community’ that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke so eloquently about.” Moon said the International Community School also places an emphasis on understanding others and developing appropriate responses to conflict and problems.
For these students the key to their success has been an ability to not only learn from the other students around them but to learn about them—their cultures, their history and their religions. Next school year Haroon will move on to The Lovett School, Paywand will attend Freedom Middle School and Patience will go to Clarkston Junior High School. Hopefully they can take what they have learned from the International Community School into their new and future environments and grow up to be adults who are tolerant of other adults with differences. Even as children they hold the potential to help make this world a better place.
The accompanying photos were captured as the students attended fifth and sixth grade at the International Community School. For more information about the school call (404) 499-8969 or visit www.intcomschool.org.
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Haroon Sangar, 11, wears the traditional dress of his home country, Afghanistan, during the International Community School’s annual United Nations Day. Over 300 of Haroon’s fellow students from more than 40 different countries participate in the event. Many of the school’s students have the attitude that if they can get along, the world should be able to do the same. (Photos by Michael Alexander)
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Thirteen-year-old Paywand Sofy, center, came to the United States in 2000. He likes soccer and American football. Paywand wants to attend the University of Southern California and desires to be a scientist, unless he becomes a professional soccer player.
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Patience Karnanue had a hard time adapting to American culture. Because of the teasing she faced about her clothes and physical appearance at her previous school, she came to the International Community School more guarded and less trusting of others. Eventually she conveyed signs of caring and understanding, and periodically she breaks out in a smile or laugh.
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Haroon says science is his favorite class and aspires to attend Harvard University. He also follows American football and is a fan of the Green Bay Packers. In June he returned to Afghanistan for a visit with his mother and older siblings. Upon his return to Stone Mountain he wants to go see “The Simpsons Movie” and “Transformers.”
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Using as many as possible of the 111 new words he learned in language arts class over the year, Paywand writes a letter to the sixth-grade class coming behind him. When asked what he likes most about the U.S. he said, “It is not as dangerous as my country was. Our house in Iraq was bombed, and my uncle was injured by gunfire.” His plans for the summer include playing soccer and going to Tennessee to visit relatives.
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Patience, 14, works on an art project of handmade ceramic pots and bowls with assistant art teacher Tam Hoang Nguyen. She enjoys reading, writing and going to the movies. One of her favorite movies is “Big Mama’s House.” Patience said she would like to be a medical doctor and practice medicine in her native country of Liberia.
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Paywand receives a certificate of recognition from his teacher Claire Hamilton during a year-end awards program. Hamilton said, “Paywand takes pride in his Kurdish heritage. These students need to feel good about where they come from, and they should have a chance to share their past and their cultures. They are in between two cultures and they need to be given the tools to navigate both.”
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