The kindness of strangers

On Monday evening members of the Pipers community were privileged to participate in a truly inspirational evening - an opportunity to hear first-hand testimony about the harrowing reality of life as a Syrian refugee and how hope can triumph over despair.

At the evening, which was supported by, and planned with, Amnesty International of High Wycombe, The Wycombe Refugee Partnership, and our own girls’ Amnesty group, we were joined by two families who have recently arrived in High Wycombe from the war-torn Syrian cities of Aleppo and Damascus. Representatives from the local charities who have been working to welcome and support them were also present to take part in a question and answer session.

There was also an exhibition of work by Year 9 pupils who have completed research projects on either a figure from history or a member of their own family who had to leave their home country because of war or persecution. 

The first speaker was Ahmad, a Syrian Kurd, who grew up in Aleppo, before studying English Literature at University. He married Isha in 2012 but only two weeks after the wedding they were separated when Aleppo was being heavily bombed. Ahmad and his family and friends witnessed many atrocities as their home turned into a war zone.

As a Kurd, Ahmad felt his life was in danger and moved to the Kurdish region of Iraq where he worked for UNICEF in refugee camps for Yazidis and Kurds. When the situation in Iraq also worsened Ahmad felt that Europe was the only place he and his family would be safe. So began his journey to the UK, travelling from Iraq to Turkey, to Greece, France and eventually arriving in the UK. Ahmad’s journey was perilous, travelling in tankers, lorries and a dinghy, and he feared for quite a long time that he would never reach a place in which he would feel safe.

Today, with the help of Wycombe Refugee Partnership Ahmad has been reunited with his wife and children, has a safe place to live, and refugee status which means he can work and start to give something back to the community that has welcomed him.

We also heard the story of father and daughter, Imad and Dana. Dana, who is 13 and has been in the UK for seven months, spoke about her life before in her home town of Damascus. She described how there were bombs falling around the family home and the terrifying time when men armed with guns and other weapons came to her front door and ordered the family to leave or be killed. Dana’s father, Imad, took the decision to try and reach the UK so that he get his family to a place of safety. Again, with the help of Wycombe Refugee Partnership, the family is now thriving in High Wycombe. Dana has enrolled in School and in her own words is “grasping every opportunity to learn” after having endured a year in which she was unable to go to school as it had been destroyed in the conflict. Her aspiration for the future is to become a lawyer and return to Syria to help the people living there. Imad, who owned three restaurants in Syria, is working to set up pop up restaurants here in the UK so that he can support his family. People attending the presentation were lucky enough to sample Syrian food as part of the event on Monday evening.

All three of the speakers talked about the feeling of being surrounded by kindness in the UK and how grateful and humbled they had been by the support they had received. They also all spoke with passion about their desire to give something back to their adopted country.

The final speaker for the evening was Toni Brodell, an activist for democracy and human rights in Syria. Toni is a member of the House of Lords task group on Syria and refugees and advises the All Party Parliamentary Groups on Syria, particularly in relation to besieged communities. She also sits on the Council for Christian-Muslim Relations and is a founding trustee of Wycombe Refugee Partnership. Toni spoke about the work of the Wycombe Refugee Partnership and about how all of us can make a difference. She focused on her belief that positive individual acts have the power to completely transform our world and that everyone can do something to help whether that be through acts of volunteering, fundraising or simply awareness raising of issues.

Mr Gifford, Head of English at Pipers, who organised the event said, “When I first saw grainy photographs of the faces in the rafts on the Mediterranean, I wondered what on earth would happen if our girls and community could meet and talk with those clinging to their lives. And how could a meeting ever practically be possible? Tonight we found out: hugs and tears, greater understanding, an inspiration to act and make a difference in whatever field, and, on both sides, the Kindness of Strangers.”