I was excited to go and watch the young woman who started as our "host" daughter and quickly became our "real" daughter graduate from Sterling High School. My kids and I arrived early to help make sure that we got a great seat to take pictures. While waiting at the door to enter my husband pulled up with Nina: our daughter. He was going to drop her off with the rest of her graduating class and then join us. It was at this time that I heard your family say "There's that foreigner. She got over $300,000 in scholarships. Maybe it came from her home country?" Then you spoke up and said "They'll give money to a foreigner and let us starve!" It was at this point that I could no longer stand by silently and listen to the hatred that was being spoken about my daughter. I chimed in to let you know that she was my daughter and she EARNED every dollar of her scholarships.
Our daughter, Nina, comes from Azerbaijan. It is a post Soviet country. She applied for a FLEX Exchange Student Scholarship, along with many others in her home country. She interviewed, wrote essays, maintained exceptional grades, and completed high levels of community service. This is why she was chosen as one of the few top students to come to America for her senior year through the FLEX program. The premise of FLEX is for students from post Soviet countries to come to America and learn more about democracy. Guess the good comes with the bad. She was able to see first hand the peaceful teacher walk out in Oklahoma City. Men, women, and children all came together to exercise their freedom of speech. Then, last night, I witnessed you exercising your freedom of speech as well. Yet your speech was not kind; it was not respectful; and it did not show value to the young woman who worked hard for what she earned.
Nina is not taking money, jobs, or food from you and your family. The Presidential and Honors College scholarships that she was offered from four different universities are available to upstanding American students as well. In fact, American students received the same scholarships that she was offered. Nina and her family have sacrificed greatly to receive those scholarships. Her parents sacrificed financially to pay for tutors so that Nina could stand out above the rest in academics. She studied tirelessly to pass exams and score high on the SAT. She gave from the kind and loving heart that she has to serve her community year round through community service.
If your child, or my child, would like the same scholarships that Nina received, they simply need to work for it and earn it.
My heart is grieved...I am grieved that you would judge someone so quickly, based on their ethnicity. As a friend pointed out to me: we were once foreigners. Our families sailed here years ago in hopes of a better and brighter future. Nina is more like you and your child than you realize.
Your family missed out on getting to know one of the most amazing people to ever walk the halls of Sterling High School.
It is my prayer that you will come to a place where your heart will be softened and become more kind to those who are not like you.
It is my prayer that my generation, and my children' s generation, will stand together for peace and equality. Our ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and age do not make us unworthy of scholarships and a great life. We are all fearfully and wonderfully created in the eyes of our Father God. We all get the opportunity to CREATE A GREAT LIFE. This is exactly what we encourage Nina and our other children to do.
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