Pen Pen, James, and Peter

Refugees escape some of the worst conditions known to mankind. They flee famine, drought, political oppression, ethnic conflict, violence, persecution, and so many unspeakable horrors. Then, if they are lucky enough to escape and be resettled, they arrive in a foreign land, with no language skills and no money. They receive scarce resources from agencies, but for the most part, they are completely on their own to figure out their life and make it the best it can be. Rationally speaking, there is not a lot of hope for them. However, despite all odds being against them, refugees don’t stop. They keep going and hold on to hope that they can make their lives better. This is what a learned from spending time with Pen Pen and her two sons, James and Peter.

Pen Pen and her family come from the Chin people of Burma (Myanmar), a country that is currently experiencing the longest ongoing civil war in history. Pen Pen and her husband knew their family was not safe and decided to leave their home in search of security and peace. Pen Pen’s husband left first and went to Malaysia to begin the long process of applying for refugee status. Three years later, Pen Pen and her six year old and 4 year old sons were able to join him. The family stayed there for a year, and then came to Phoenix in 2010.

The first years were difficult for the family, especially because Pen Pen has extensive surgery in 2012. Pen Pen said that the most difficult part of her resettlement, however, was the language barrier. Still today, she is not very confident in her English. During the interview, she was shy at first, answering questions very basically. But as the interview went on and she shared all the triumphs and victories of her family, Pen Pen transformed; she was beaming with joy, radiating confidence, and her English was nearly perfect.

One of these victories was that in 2014, the family became homeowners. But the most amazing accomplishment is that the family has become leaders in the Burmese Chin community, both in Arizona and in the United States. Pen Pen is the Women’s Leader of the Burmese Chin community. Under her leadership, the women of this community have held meetings, planned retreats, and even attended women empowerment conferences, all for the benefit of the Burmese community in the United States. Pen Pen’s role as Women’s Leader is one of the highest honors in her community, and she works very hard to ensure the wellbeing of the Burmese women and her culture.

Aside from her leadership role, Pen Pen is also a talented cook, singer, and seamstress. She cooks for almost every community event, sings at her church, and makes most of the clothes she wears. Her husband is the Church treasurer. They attended a Burmese church in Phoenix, which is very important to their family and the overall community. Their eldest son, James, helps with the audio/visual production of the church service and sometimes sings and plays instruments during worship. This is a new position for James, and from his smiles and stories, it is clear that he loves participating in his community in this way.

Pen Pen’s sons are smart, well spoken, and clearly ambitious. James (14 years old) is going into 9th grade and loves social studies, math, and soccer. He speaks seriously and sincerely. In the future, he sees himself becoming a doctor, but his real dream is to play soccer in college and hopefully go pro. Peter (11 years old) is going into 6th grade and appears to be the more mischievous brother. Many smirks accompanied his witty replies, and he made funny faces and struck silly poses as I tried to take portraits of the family. Peter loves sports and math, and his hobbies are origami and soccer (James assures me he is better at soccer, though). When he grows up, Peter says he wants to be an archaeologist or a sniper in the army (a response that provoked quizzical looks from his mother). Peter was also just accepted into the prestigious Loyola Academy, an amazing middle school that provides high quality college prep curriculum on a full scholarship to high achieving students from lower income families. Peter will start this program in the fall, and then continue on a full scholarship to Brophy College Prep for high school.

This is an incredible accomplishment not only for Peter, but for his entire family and community. His admission to Loyola is a beautiful story that represents the persistence and drive of refugees. The odds were not in this family’s favor, but they rose above their circumstances and wrote their own story. This hope and determination seems to be a common thread woven through the entire refugee community, and these aspects are what make refugees a vibrant addition to American society.

The family asked me to include these photos at the end of my post. It's a full family portrait with Pen Pen's husband, Pen Pen, and the boys at church. They also sent me a sweet picture of James dressed really nice for church, and James helping lead music.