The Impact of Knoxville Internationals Network - KIN - KIN - CONNECT

So We All Belong

4/25/2022

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As an elementary school principal, Ms. Harrison wants all the families in her school to feel like they belong: like the school belongs to them, they belong to the community, and everyone has a part in educating the children. But at the beginning of the school year, ten percent of the families at West Hills Elementary had an extra hurdle to cross before they could feel like they belonged. Why? Because their first language is something other than English.

The Small Things are Big

3/24/2022

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Dan thought KIN’s Embrace Initiative would be a good outreach project and a way for his men’s group to experience community mission work and grow closer. One of the young men in the group thought, “This is going to be fun, just hanging out and building relationships.” So KIN representatives met the 7 men on a Saturday morning, walked them through a not-so-short orientation, and introduced “their” international family.

Watching From Afar

2/2/2022

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With over 1 million people of Ukrainian descent (reference) and an estimated 344,000 current Ukrainian immigrants (reference) in the United States, it’s not surprising that we have Ukrainian friends and neighbors here in metro Knoxville. KIN reached out to two Ukrainian-American women to see how things were going for them. Both have been in the United States for close to a decade, and both are married to men of Ukrainian descent as well. We withheld their identity for privacy and security reasons. Their answers have been edited for length and clarity.

Giving Good Words

10/11/2021

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Nate* could have chosen any city when he immigrated to the USA, but he chose Knoxville. He had friends, he says, who were “giving me good words about Knoxville.” They said his children would have a good future if he moved here, and the cost of living was reasonable.

Three years later, Nate is “giving good words” about Knoxville himself! He wants to buy a house and see his children grow into adulthood here.

But getting to Knoxville wasn’t easy.

Hospitality Means More Than Food

5/11/2021

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In Clair’s first tutoring relationship through KIN, she helped a middle school boy learn to use his new hearing aids, which helped him excel in school. As much as Clair liked the family—and they liked her—eventually, they didn’t need a tutor anymore. Clair stays in touch, but since then, she has worked with two other new-to-Knoxville families.

In the first, an elementary-age girl needed help with math. Clair has coached her up so that she rarely needs tutoring now. Instead, Clair visits them as friends, including an iftar meal this past month to break their Ramadan fast. (Yum!)

The Nations at the Lunch Table

3/25/2021

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You wouldn't notice if you passed them in the courtyard, but their outdoor lunch table is a study in cross-cultural acceptance. These Iraqis and Americans see nothing strange about sharing a meal every weekday. (The one time in the school day, by the way, when they take off their masks.) Some of them have been friends for years and some have joined the table in the last few months.

The Nations Next Door - Literally

2/9/2021

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When Bobbie Jo pulls into her driveway, her two-year-old doesn’t look toward his own house but toward the one next door. If the neighbors’ garage door is open, he’ll say, “Heather* home. See Heather.” That’s the special relationship Silas has with his nine-year-old neighbor, Heather.

In a time when many people don’t know their neighbors, Heather’s parents, Gustavo and Maria, made a point of welcoming Chris and Bobbie Jo to their neighborhood several years ago.

Smart Girls and Smoke Detectors

1/22/2021

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Celia heard the beep as soon as she entered the apartment. Using Google translate, she asked Sada, “What is that noise?” But Sada didn’t know, so Celia followed the sound to the smoke detector in the hallway. She showed Sada and tried to explain that they needed to change the battery.

Sada and her husband, Abe, fled their home after Abe’s life was threatened because of his work with the US military.

ELL: Much More Than a School Subject

11/30/2020

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What keeps you going to work every day?

For Emma,* an ELL (English Language Learner) teacher, it’s the other teachers at her school and the kids in her classroom. Emma has been teaching at a local middle school for seven years now.

In ELL, Emma has the same students across several years, often until they test out of ELL services. That means she gets to know them and their families personally.

An Eagle Scout and an Elder Stateman

11/9/2020

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It sounds like the beginning of a joke: An Eagle Scout and an elder stateman walk into a used bookstore…

But it’s not a joke. It’s the kind of thing that happens often in KIN’s LaMP program.

From Bully to Friend: A Middle School Story

10/5/2020

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When our culture instructor surveyed her class about possible topics to discuss, two mothers—one from Iraq and one from Thailand—asked about bullying. The Iraqi mother said that before they fled Iraq, they had many enemies, but they thought things would be different here in America. Now her middle-schooler dreaded going to school because some kids bullied him constantly because of his race. Both mothers were discouraged and hurting for their children.

The Books Are Free!

9/7/2020

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Where is the one place you can—for free—find books:

to help your children with math,
to learn how to cook something new,
to improve your English skills,
and to entertain your children for a few minutes?

“It’s the library, of course,” you say. But what if you had never seen a library?

More Alike Than Different

8/3/2020

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Sarah’s purple hair catches many by surprise, so she walked into her KIN interview willing to change the color if Jani, KIN’s Volunteer Outreach Coordinator, thought she should. But Jani loved it, and Sarah began her internship with KIN a couple of days later.

As a college senior, Sarah already knew she wanted a career helping those without a voice in society.

Green Cards and Blue Passports

6/30/2020

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With their lives threatened back at home, Quincy, Katie,* and their two boys arrived in Knoxville six years ago carrying passports from Iraq. Quincy’s English was fairly good, but Katie didn’t speak any English until she began attending English classes near her home. They didn’t travel much with just US Green Cards.

In 2019, after the required five years of residency, Quincy took and passed the US citizenship test at his first opportunity.

A Man With No Country

6/16/2020

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Tim* and his family walked away from their home when he was eleven. The Sunni and Shia sects of Islam were killing each other, and Christian families like Tim’s were caught in the middle. His father sold the factory he owned, they packed their most precious belongings in a few suitcases, they locked up their house, and they moved to the northern part of Iraq. Tim’s mother knew they would never go back.

They settled in a Kurdish city in northern Iraq—a place very different from their home city. Tim was the only Christian in his high school classes of forty students or more. Other kids would ask him and his sister, “Why don’t you convert to Islam?” After seven years, the pressure became too much.

Let's Buy a Home!

6/2/2020

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For two years, O and H dreamed of owning a home. They talked about it while they were engaged and began saving as soon as they married. Even a move to the US and the expenses of a new baby didn’t thwart their plan. So, when their apartment lease was nearly up in 2019, they began searching for suitable property.

Like anyone else looking for a home, the search took awhile.

When Unprecedented is Good

5/19/2020

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Twice a week, Mrs. W logs into an online meeting platform and connects with a family across town. The three siblings are lined up, ready to work with her for about 20 minutes each. Their father is there, too. He follows along, encouraging the children, but he usually learns a few new things himself, too.

The Encourager Professor

4/21/2020

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With over 300 active volunteers, KIN representatives serve the international population of metro Knoxville in many ways. Only a few of those have changed since we began facing COVID-19. For example, while it may look a little different, one-on-one conversation and pronunciation practice continues. For example, Diane* began volunteering with KIN last fall.

One Chinese Story

3/24/2020

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Mei* walked onto American soil two and a half years ago, the bride of a life-long Knoxville resident. She came from China. Here’s an interview with her, edited for length.

1. Briefly explain why you immigrated.
I met my now-husband on the internet. After a few months, we fell in love. He quit his job and moved to China to be with me. Occasionally, we had a hard time understanding each other due to the language barrier, but our relationship grew fast as we shared everyday life together.

The Van Was Loaded Down

2/25/2020

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The back of FBC Concord’s 18-passenger van was loaded down with framed prints, floor rugs, linens, kitchen utensils, pottery, even a small statue. On a rainy November afternoon, all the talking fogged up the windows, too, providing a great “whiteboard” for an Arabic lesson.

That’s what happens when six Arab women (and two children) join four American women for a trip to the Great Smokies Flea Market!

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Photos used under Creative Commons from shixart1985, shixart1985