LYNN — Coming to the United States as a child or a teenager and learning a new language, culture and school can be daunting. But for 12 students at English High, it was worth the struggle.
The 12 students — Paola Bakwatwena, who is a native of the Congo; Angel Gonzalez (Guatemala); Katheryn Gravenhorst (Colombia); Annie Joseph (Haiti); Dena Khedr (Egypt); Kawtar Ould (Morocco); Leslie Parada (El Salvador), Tae Thaw (Thailand); Melvin Velasquez (El Salvador); Vayurol Abreau (Dominican Republic); Waking Joseph (Haiti) and Yuleisy Abad (Dominican Republic) — shared their experiences Tuesday night at English by way of short videos depicting what their lives were like in their native countries vs. what things have been like in the United States.
The presentation was called “Living in Two Worlds.”
Tuesday’s production was actually supposed to be shown last year. However, the COVID-19 pandemic made that impossible. Even Tuesday, attendance at the English auditorium was sparse because the school system is still strictly observing COVID protocols.
“These kids have worked very, very hard to get to where they’ve come,” said Ginny Keenan, who directs the program with fellow teacher Tiffany McFarlane.
“When they get here (to the United States), they put their heads down and stay focused,” Keenan said. “When they get into our program, and start working on their videos, the first time they see them a lot of them cry, even though they’ve provided the material. It allows them to see how far they’ve progressed.”
“I think the common theme is opportunity,” said McFarlane. “And for me, what I get out of it is the happiness we can bring to them, that they might not have had in their native lands.”
Keenan said that currently at English there are 55 countries represented and more than 30 languages spoken.
Each video lasted roughly three minutes, with students sharing often-poignant tales of their struggles, both before and after coming to the U.S.
Khedr recalled feeling awkward when she got to the U.S., even though she knew English.
“I was afraid to speak,” she said.
Gonzalez said that he left Guatemala to come to the U.S. himself, often seeking out buses, and on one occasion, a bus terminal, to sleep at night. He eventually came to live with his uncle in Lynn.
At English, he joined the Junior ROTC program under the direction of Sgt. Major Kenneth Oswald.
“I admire him for what he’s done for me,” Gonzalez said. “Someday, I want to join the service.”
Ould moved back and forth from Morocco to the U.S. as a child, and learned to channel her feelings of displacement into her studies. Finally, at 15, she came to the country permanently.
“I am happy at English,” said Ould, who is studying piano and wants to be a piano player.
Gravenhorst, who arrived in the U.S. two years ago, said “one of the things I like best about America is all the libraries. I love to read.”
Abad said that the land she left was so tough she wonders every day whether her parents will make it through to the next day. Her neighborhood, she said, was one of the worst in the Dominican Republic.
Here, she said, she lives in a small apartment — but it has heat, running water and electricity.
Abreau said he took English lessons in the Dominican Republic, but when he got to the U.S. it didn’t even sound like the same language. He also didn’t understand any of the things he heard in classes.
“I knew I’d have to learn English quickly,” he said.
But he found a few friends, and from there, things clicked.
Thaw’s parents came from Myanmar, formerly Burma, and their existence was treacherous. She moved to the U.S. when she was 8, and said her first sight of Boston was scary. She also recalls being thrilled to see snow for the first time.
Waking Joseph lost his mother when he was 12. Five years later, his family was approved to emigrate to the U.S.
“It’s important to focus on what’s important in life,” he said.
Velasquez always loved to learn about science, and his goal is to return to El Salvador to teach it.
Parada said that she often thinks of herself as “the student no one knows,” because she had such a tough time adjusting to life in the U.S.; she said she especially missed her grandparents, who raised her in El Salvador. After living in Everett for a few years, her family bought a house in Lynn. She says English “is a good fit” for her.
Annie Joseph said she was abused as a child. Also, she said, she was 10 years old when her part of Haiti was hit with a massive earthquake.
“I just kept running, as fast as I could,” she said.
She finally made it here in 2016, and is now a sophomore at English, “and I’m getting good marks.”
Bakwatwena said it was tough for her father, a veterinarian, to make a good living in the Congo, and that once the family moved to the U.S. she felt extremely homesick. She took one English class at North Shore Community College to prepare her for high school, and is now taking a dual high school/college class at NSCC.