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closeIraqi family safe in Gig Harbor
Church, community leaders come together to help al Janabis
Hugh McMillan
Special to th Gateway
Hanaa al Janabi knows what it’s like to be forced to leave her homeland in fear for her life while still grieving for a murdered husband and father. She knows what it’s like to arrive in a different country, with only the clothes on her back. There was a language barrier, and she didn’t know how to provide for her children.
With help of a Gig Harbor church, al Janabi and her family also know what it’s like to be safe.
Watching the fall of Baghdad, Americans saw exploding bombs and Iraqis cheer as the statue of Saddam Hussein was pulled down. Few understand the impact the violent period has had on a single Iraqi family, what it was like for al Janabi as she fled with her children along a tortuously difficult path through fear and frustration.
Al Janabi’s Army officer husband, Khaled al Janabi, fell out of favor with Saddam but escaped with his family to Jordan to obtain political refugee status. As the United States prepared to invade Iraq, he volunteered as a translator and cultural adviser to the U.S. Army. During the invasion, he returned to Baghdad, embedded with the American forces.
There, while his wife was visiting him, he was recognized and killed on the street in front of her.
Not only had al Janabi lost her country and the love of her life, she was a widow with six children and no means of support. Within a short period of time, her brother-in-law also was murdered, and her parents both were killed during the bombing of Baghdad.
In Jordan, al Janabi’s teenage boys worked at odd jobs to help the family get by as it waited with thousands of other Iraqis. They flooded into Jordan and Syria to escape the violence and turmoil in Iraq.
The family struggled through five years of bureaucratic tangles and state department background checks until applications to immigrate to America were accepted.
As the al Janabi family waited, an adult Sunday school group at Gig Harbor United Methodist Church learned of the need for help in resettling Iraqi refugees. Its pastor, Jim Head-Corliss, led a church delegation to meet with Church World Service in Seattle to offer help resettling Iraqi refugees in Gig Harbor.
Later, CWS called about the al Janabi family, which hoped to relocate to western Washington to be near family members.
Deanie Adams, co-chair of the GHUMC’s resettlement committee, said: “We were fully cognizant that we were involved in a humanitarian effort and were not proselytizing; we were just excited to realize we were finally going to get to help a family coming from Iraq.”
With all the difficulties involved, Lynne DeMichele, GHUMC’s communications chair, asked: “Why would a Christian church commit to help a Muslim family come to this community? According to Head-Corliss, ‘Hospitality is the heart of our faith. This resettlement project is a chance for our congregation to live out the ancient call to hospitality.’ ”
The Rev. David Richardson (Ret.), co-chair of the church’s refugee committee, affirmed that they “understood the enormity of the challenge; the cultural, linguistic and emotional test these refugees faced,” and the task ahead for the GHUMC to assist them.
Volunteer sub-committees focused on needs: education, transportation, housing, furnishing, medical, finance management, employment, tutoring — even bureaucracy management.
Affordable housing was found in an old Methodist parsonage, large enough for the nine-member al Janabi family, including two sets of twins, and eventually al Janabi’s oldest daughter, her husband and new baby.
Virtually all church members contributed: money, household goods and furniture, plus other items.
Among the volunteers were John and Andrea Jewell, retired educators who focused on education concerns and arranged enrollment of the children in local schools. Flora Gillette organized volunteer drivers to take family members shopping and to school. Other volunteers painted the house interior, making it ready for the family to move in, and planted a new yard.
They found a source of information and training for immigrants at Tacoma Community House. Al Janabi and her older children receive training there in English as a second language and learn skills to get jobs.
“We have been delighted with the warm reception the al Janabis have received here in Gig Harbor,” Adams said. “Everywhere we go, people have been warm, welcoming and helpful. The YMCA has been generous and kind, as have all the parents and coaches who are involved with after-school sports programs at Goodman Middle School.
“With a supportive community, one very committed church group has shown that the nearly 7,000 miles between Gig Harbor and Baghdad can be bridged with goodwill and determination. In the end, everybody benefits.”
Al Janabi’s sister, Ahlam al Janabi, recently arrived from a refugee camp in Syria. Her 8-year-old son, Abdullah, arrived with her.
Ahlam was widowed in 2007 when her husband, who was embedded with the Americans — much like al Janabi’s husband — was killed in Baghdad in violence against the American presence.
Ahlam recently discovered she has breast cancer; she will need assistance getting to and from medical appointments.
“We are all moving rapidly to obtain medical assistance for her,” Adams said. “Several members of Agnus Dei Lutheran Church have shown an interest in volunteering to help. We are looking for more volunteers to assist her to appointments and befriend her and her son, and help them learn English and adjust to life in America.”
Al Janabi has a bachelor’s degree in Arabic literature and is certified in hotel and hospitality management. Omar, the oldest son, plays guitar, sings folk songs and seeks work. Mohammad, one of the twins, is a marathon runner and a soccer player. He wants to go to college and hopes to become a doctor. He ran the Tacoma Half Marathon and placed third.
Mohammad’s twin sister, Nagham, her husband, and 6-month-old son are in Jordan awaiting travel permits.
Saja has appointed herself house manager, keeps everyone in line and makes sure they get off to school in the morning. She hopes to go to college to study nursing.
The 13-year-old twins, Ali and Zainab, have made friends easily at Goodman Middle School.
The al Janabis are adjusting well to life in America.
“As the family’s ability to speak English unfolds,” Adams said, “we learn more about the difficult times they have been through and marvel at their resiliency.”
For more information, call DeMichele at 253-858-2354, e-mail Lynne@axiomfusion.com, or call Adams at 253-853-4171 or e-mail deaniea47@comcast.net.