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METRO DETROIT CHALDEAN COMMUNITY VOL. 20 ISSUE VII <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong><br />
Fight<br />
or Flight<br />
THE WAR OVER<br />
THE FAITHFUL<br />
IN IRAQ<br />
Featuring:<br />
Iraq Medical Mission<br />
The School Mindset<br />
Chaldean Kitchen
LINCOLN OF TROY<br />
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CONTACT<br />
ELIE MALOUF<br />
LINCOLN<br />
PRODUCT<br />
SPECIALIST<br />
248-530-4710
America’s largest arab<br />
and Chaldean law firm.<br />
أكبر مكتب محاماة عربي وكلداني في<br />
الواليات المتحدة االمريكية<br />
مكتب المحامي قاجي<br />
اتصل بنا على رقم<br />
877-525-9227<br />
Getting You Back to You.<br />
it’s Why We Care.<br />
نعيدك الى ماكنت عليه<br />
هذا هو سبب اهتمامنا<br />
Lawrence Kajy<br />
Attorney at Law<br />
املحامي لورنس قاجي<br />
877-KAJY-CARES / kajylaw.com<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 3
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4 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
METRO DETROIT CHALDEAN COMMUNITY | <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> | VOL. 20 ISSUE VII<br />
ON THE COVER<br />
20 Fight or Flight<br />
The War Over the Faithful in Iraq<br />
By Sarah Kittle<br />
DEPARTMENTS<br />
6 From the Editor<br />
Diving Deeper<br />
By Sarah Kittle<br />
8 Guest Column<br />
N. Peter Antone<br />
Identifying Options for Our Students<br />
10 Foundation Update<br />
Karam Bahnam, Job Fair,<br />
Sports Programs, Talk‘n the Beat<br />
12 Noteworthy<br />
Denha Family Gift to Brother Rice,<br />
Dr. Sabah Abro & Savvy Sliders in TX<br />
14 Chaldean Digest<br />
Ankawa Youth, Ataturk on<br />
Disney+, Legal Group<br />
16 Iraq Today<br />
Protests Over Water Shutoff<br />
18 In Memoriam<br />
22 Culture & History<br />
Cardinal Sako Stands<br />
By Dr. Adhid Miri<br />
26 Chaldean Story<br />
Chaldean Cultural Roots<br />
By Sarah Kittle<br />
34 Economics and Enterprise<br />
Christina Roki:<br />
Motor City’s Media Maven<br />
By Cal Abbo<br />
38 Chaldean Kitchen<br />
Samira Cholagh: Food as Art<br />
By Z.Z. Dawod<br />
40 Sports<br />
Terrific Tennis Trio<br />
By Steve Stein<br />
42 New Americans<br />
Theoni Balasi<br />
By Susan Smith<br />
44 Family Time<br />
Beat the Heat<br />
By Valene Ayar<br />
46 Dr. Is In<br />
Candida Auris: Fungal<br />
infection in the news<br />
By Dr. Renee Jiddou<br />
50 Event<br />
Father Namir Narra’s Ordination<br />
Photos by Chaldean Diocese<br />
20<br />
FEATURES<br />
28 Getting Back into<br />
the School Mindset<br />
By Crystal Kassab Jabiro<br />
30 Beyond Borders<br />
Reflections from a<br />
Transformative Iraq Mission Trip<br />
By Dr. Rena Daiza<br />
32 On Martyrs Day<br />
Remembering Seyfo<br />
By Chris Salem<br />
48 7 Mile’s Kabob King<br />
Tribute to Bahi Jarbo<br />
By Crystal Kassab Jabiro<br />
30<br />
38<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 5
FROM THE EDITOR<br />
PUBLISHED BY<br />
Chaldean News, LLC<br />
Chaldean Community Foundation<br />
Martin Manna<br />
EDITORIAL<br />
EDITOR IN CHIEF<br />
Sarah Kittle<br />
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS<br />
Cal Abbo<br />
N. Peter Antone<br />
Valene Ayar<br />
Dr. Rena Daiza<br />
Z.Z. Dawod<br />
Crystal Kassab Jabiro<br />
Dr. Renee Jiddou<br />
Sarah Kittle<br />
Dr. Adhid Miri<br />
Chris Salem<br />
Susan Smith<br />
Steve Stein<br />
ART & PRODUCTION<br />
CREATIVE DIRECTOR<br />
Alex Lumelsky with SKY Creative<br />
GRAPHIC DESIGNER<br />
Zina Lumelsky with SKY Creative<br />
PHOTOGRAPHERS<br />
Alex Lumelsky<br />
Wilson Sarkis<br />
SALES<br />
Interlink Media<br />
Sana Navarrette<br />
CLASSIFIEDS<br />
Sana Navarrette<br />
Subscriptions: $35 per year<br />
CONTACT INFORMATION<br />
Story ideas: edit@chaldeannews.com<br />
Advertisements: ads@chaldeannews.com<br />
Subscription and all other inquiries:<br />
info@chaldeannews.com<br />
Chaldean News<br />
30095 Northwestern Hwy, Suite 101<br />
Farmington Hills, MI 48334<br />
www.chaldeannews.com<br />
Phone: (248) 851-8600<br />
Publication: The Chaldean News (P-6);<br />
Published monthly; Issue Date: <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong><br />
Subscriptions: 12 months, $35.<br />
Publication Address:<br />
30095 Northwestern Hwy., Suite 101,<br />
Farmington Hills, MI 48334;<br />
Permit to mail at periodicals postage rates<br />
is on file at Farmington Hills Post Office<br />
Postmaster: Send address changes to<br />
“The Chaldean News 30095 Northwestern<br />
Hwy., Suite 101, Farmington Hills, MI 48334”<br />
Diving Deeper<br />
Startling news out of Iraq<br />
caught many off-guard<br />
mid-July; the Chaldean<br />
patriarch has removed himself<br />
from the capital of Baghdad<br />
and is now in a monastery in<br />
northern Iraq. Tensions had<br />
been brewing between Cardinal<br />
Louis Sako and the military<br />
leader who goes by Rayan<br />
al-Kildani for months, but the<br />
latest move by none other<br />
than the president of Iraq, Abdul Latif<br />
Rashid, threatens to strip the patriarch<br />
of any power over the Church’s holdings<br />
in the country. It is such a big story<br />
that all major international news outlets<br />
have covered it in depth, and so have we.<br />
Dr. Adhid Miri goes into detail on the<br />
history of al-Kildani and why the patriarch<br />
so strongly opposes any connection<br />
of Rayan to the Chaldean Church<br />
in his Culture & History article, “Cardinal<br />
Sako Stands Against Conquest<br />
and Confiscation.” Unfortunately, that<br />
struggle is not the only one facing Iraqis<br />
currently, as water supplies are shutoff<br />
despite unbearable heat due to climate<br />
change. Read about it in Iraq Today.<br />
We also explore Chaldean cultural<br />
roots in our inaugural piece for the<br />
“Chaldean Story,” a brand-new series<br />
made possible by a grant from Michigan<br />
Humanities Grants’ “Great Michigan<br />
Stories” initiative. This first story in the<br />
series stretches back to ancient Mesopotamia,<br />
where many of civilization’s<br />
‘firsts’ were recorded. Look for follow-up<br />
stories on Chaldean entrepreneurship,<br />
culture, and spirituality in future issues.<br />
SARAH KITTLE<br />
EDITOR<br />
IN CHIEF<br />
Speaking of spirituality,<br />
on our Event page, we bring<br />
you photos of the recent ordination<br />
of Father Namir Narra,<br />
courtesy of the Chaldean<br />
Catholic Diocese. And on<br />
this 90th anniversary of the<br />
Semele Massacre, we mourn<br />
those that lost their lives<br />
to this undeniable tragedy.<br />
Chris Salem pens a heartfelt<br />
plea that we remember this<br />
historical event and gives a framework<br />
to the treasure of stories that was likely<br />
lost in its aftermath.<br />
In Chaldean Digest, we report on a<br />
youth group meeting in Ankawa and<br />
on protests regarding a film scheduled<br />
to run on Disney+ about the founder<br />
of modern-day Turkey, Mustafa Kemal<br />
Ataturk. Protesters say he is portrayed<br />
in the film as a hero, while to the Greeks,<br />
Armenians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Aramaeans,<br />
Maronites, and other Christians<br />
of his time, he was anything but.<br />
Previously, we brought you stories<br />
of Chaldean Town, the stretch of 7 Mile<br />
that was an early home to the community.<br />
On the passing of Bahi Jarbo, the “Kabob<br />
King,” Crystal Kassab Jabiro paints a<br />
beautiful picture of a life well lived.<br />
In “Beyond Borders,” Dr. Rena Daiza<br />
blesses us with her own personal account<br />
leading a recent medical mission<br />
trip to Iraq, which was, in the author’s<br />
own words, “transformative.” The purpose<br />
of the visit was not only to give<br />
medical care to the needy in Iraq, but to<br />
educate people about the importance of<br />
obtaining proper care, including dental<br />
care and mental health checkups, and<br />
how crucial it is to follow a healthy diet.<br />
The team from the U.S. met with government<br />
officials and health ministers<br />
and toured medical schools and universities,<br />
all the while feeling a connection<br />
to the land as well as the people.<br />
In the next installment of Chaldean<br />
Kitchen, reporter Z. Z. Dawod takes us<br />
into the kitchen of Samira Cholagh as<br />
she prepares Pikota Habbia Kashka, a<br />
traditional cooked barley dish. Samira<br />
is a food artist, however, and her take<br />
on the dish is anything but traditional.<br />
Also earning the label ‘untraditional’<br />
is Christina Roki, a young woman<br />
who has made a name for herself as an<br />
influencer on social media in the niche<br />
market of automotive engineering and<br />
aesthetics, as reported by Cal Abbo in<br />
our Economics & Enterprise section.<br />
Fittingly, this first-generation Chaldean<br />
American dynamo taught herself about<br />
cars by watching videos on You Tube.<br />
Rounding out our August issue, we<br />
have articles on gearing up for school<br />
(“Getting Back in the School Mindset”<br />
and “Identifying Options for Our<br />
Students”), a terrific story about three<br />
terrific tennis players (“Terrific Tennis<br />
Trio”), a short piece about a 90-yearold<br />
who recently gained citizenship<br />
through the Chaldean Community<br />
Foundation (“New Americans”), and<br />
tips on beating the late-summer heat<br />
(“Family Time”).<br />
We hope you enjoy this latest edition<br />
as much as we enjoyed putting it<br />
together for you.<br />
Sarah Kittle<br />
Editor in Chief<br />
CONNECT WITH YOUR COMMUNITY.<br />
SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHALDEAN NEWS<br />
AND FOLLOW CN ON SOCIAL MEDIA.<br />
6 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
PUBLISHER'S CIRCLE<br />
Join the<br />
Publishers Circle<br />
As the publication of record for Michigan’s<br />
Chaldean community, the mission of the<br />
Chaldean News is to preserve and archive<br />
Chaldean heritage and history, and to tell the<br />
ongoing story of Chaldean contributions to the<br />
communities in which we live and work — in Michigan<br />
and around the world.<br />
Since being acquired by the Chaldean Community<br />
Foundation in 2019, the Chaldean News has substantially<br />
increased its readership and social media following,<br />
introduced new digital and website content, and expanded<br />
storytelling with the help of small grant funding.<br />
The Publisher’s Circle initiative empowers community members<br />
to provide major support for the Chaldean News and its<br />
important mission. With the generous help of individuals and<br />
organizations, together, we can ensure that this vital resource<br />
continues to educate and connect the community, while<br />
evolving to meet the needs of future generations.<br />
The Chaldean News has ambitious plans which include<br />
launching a CN app and continuing to expand into new<br />
media such as radio and TV, all with the goal of preserving<br />
our culture and telling the story of our people. You<br />
can take part in helping to preserve your Chaldean<br />
heritage by joining the Publisher’s Circle today.<br />
Jibran “Jim” Manna<br />
Martin and Tamara Manna<br />
We are grateful for the generous and<br />
continuing support of our community.<br />
To learn more, visit chaldeannews.com<br />
or contact us at 248-851-8600<br />
Let’s grow the circle.<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 7
GUEST COLUMN<br />
Chaldean News is proud to present the first-ever<br />
Chaldeans Rising: Young Writers Challenge,<br />
a writing competition that invites bright young<br />
minds between the ages 14-25 to write a unique<br />
essay about their perspective on the Chaldean<br />
community and share their visionary ideas for<br />
the future. Through this competition, we aim to<br />
inspire imagination, spur critical thinking, and<br />
create unity within our community.<br />
CATEGORIES:<br />
Teens (age range 14-18 at time of submission)<br />
Young Adults (age range 19-25 at time of submission)<br />
GUIDELINES:<br />
Essays should be between 500 and 1500 words and<br />
may be written on any topic related to our community.<br />
Visit chaldeannews.com/writingcontest (QR code below)<br />
for topic suggestions and prompts.<br />
WRITING PROMPTS AND SUBMISSION FORM:<br />
chaldeannews.com/writingcontest<br />
DEADLINE:<br />
October 31, <strong>2023</strong><br />
PRIZES<br />
1. $500 cash for top entry in each category<br />
2. Select essays placed in a time capsule, to be opened in 2073<br />
3. Top essayists to be profiled in the Chaldean News<br />
4. Opportunity to contribute to community projects<br />
5. All contributors celebrated on CN social media channels<br />
Prizes will be distributed after the winners<br />
are announced in December of <strong>2023</strong>.<br />
SCAN THE CODE FOR MORE<br />
INFORMATION AND TO<br />
SUBMIT YOUR ENTRY<br />
CHALDEANS<br />
RISING<br />
Young writers<br />
challenge<br />
WIN<br />
$100!<br />
$500!<br />
Identifying Options<br />
for Our Students<br />
N. PETER<br />
ANTONE<br />
SPECIAL TO<br />
THE CHALDEAN<br />
NEWS<br />
With the school year<br />
about to begin, the<br />
Chaldean News decided<br />
to explore the issue of<br />
whether our Chaldean kids<br />
are making the best of the opportunities<br />
offered to them in<br />
school. To assist us in this endeavor,<br />
we sought the opinion<br />
of two prominent educators.<br />
One is Crystal Jabiro, a certified<br />
teacher at West Bloomfield<br />
Middle School who possesses<br />
a master’s degree and<br />
is working toward obtaining her Doctorate<br />
Degree in Education. Crystal<br />
is focusing on issues related to Chaldean<br />
and Assyrian students—exploring<br />
education<br />
gaps, diversity, and<br />
social justice. The other<br />
educator, Andrew Najor,<br />
is a Teacher-of-the-Year<br />
award winner at Key’s<br />
Grace Academy in Madison<br />
Heights.<br />
Both educators emphasized<br />
the importance<br />
of parents’ involvement<br />
in their kids’ student careers.<br />
Many schools offer<br />
an abundance of opportunities,<br />
such as afterschool<br />
tutoring, career<br />
pathways, college application<br />
assistance, afterschool<br />
activities, sports, and student<br />
clubs, among others.<br />
Our Chaldean kids might not be<br />
aware of all these options available to<br />
them or might not have thought of getting<br />
involved in any of them. Parental<br />
involvement could not only help make<br />
kids aware of the available opportunities,<br />
it could also encourage them to<br />
be more involved in and to take advantage<br />
of these opportunities.<br />
Schools are meant to prepare our<br />
kids for the future once they graduate.<br />
While America is already a melting pot<br />
of many different cultures, our society<br />
is becoming more diverse in terms of<br />
national background, culture, and<br />
race, and is becoming more accepting<br />
of non-traditional sexual<br />
orientations and gender<br />
identities.<br />
It will be important for<br />
our kids to be able to communicate,<br />
work, and interact<br />
with such diverse groups of<br />
individuals. Schools offer an<br />
opportunity for such interaction<br />
and enable our kids<br />
to understand others who<br />
might be different from them.<br />
Parents could encourage<br />
their kids to be more involved<br />
and to interact with others and should<br />
resist the temptation to have their kids<br />
befriend only other Chaldeans.<br />
While it is natural for our kids<br />
to befriend other Chaldeans due to<br />
shared culture, it is important for both<br />
parents and kids to avoid isolating<br />
themselves from others who might be<br />
different from them.<br />
Both educators with whom we<br />
spoke explained that many Chaldean<br />
parents are not as involved in their<br />
kids’ schools as they can or should be.<br />
Mr. Najor explained that many Chaldean<br />
kids in his school are excelling<br />
in their involvement in such activities<br />
as student council, and after school<br />
clubs. Still, others need the continuous<br />
support, involvement, and encouragement<br />
of their parents. It is a<br />
topic worth discussing.<br />
8 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 9
FOUNDATION UPDATE<br />
Ball ’N Out<br />
This year, the CCF is pleased to offer two separate<br />
programs two afternoons each week for<br />
both boys and girls.<br />
Through generous support from the Good<br />
Sports Foundation, girls in our community<br />
are learning basic volleyball skills. The Good<br />
Sports Foundation donated over twenty-six<br />
pairs of shoes and outfits, volleyballs, and nets.<br />
Each participant in the program received a new<br />
pair of gym shoes and a complete volleyball<br />
outfit, to help the girls feel more like a team.<br />
The goal is to make a very real impact on the<br />
empowerment, self-esteem, and self-respect of<br />
teen girls through mindful movement and creative<br />
expression.<br />
The Good Sports Foundation did not forget<br />
boys, either. Over thirty middle school boys are<br />
learning more about the game of basketball, including<br />
basic skills and teamwork. They’ve also<br />
Above: The boys’ basketball program.<br />
Top of page: Girls playing volleyball.<br />
discovered a place to make new friends! We are<br />
grateful for the additional support of the Good<br />
Sports Foundation to outfit the boys and update<br />
the basketball equipment. This year’s basketball<br />
program includes participants from last year<br />
and many boys that are new to the sport. With<br />
all the same basketball coaches having returned<br />
from last summer, parents feel comfortable, and<br />
the program has doubled in size.<br />
Talk’n the Beat<br />
with the Sterling<br />
Heights Police<br />
Department<br />
Stacy Bahri, Strategic Initiatives<br />
Manager at the Chaldean Community<br />
Foundation, joined Officers Larry<br />
Reynolds and Kevin Coates of the<br />
Sterling Heights Police Department<br />
on their fourth episode of the Talk’n<br />
the Beat podcast. Scan the QR code<br />
below to learn more about the Chaldean<br />
community’s journey to Southeast<br />
Michigan, entrepreneurship, and<br />
the support provided to more than<br />
40,000 individuals annually through<br />
the Chaldean Community Foundation.<br />
CCF to Honor Karam<br />
Bahnam at this Year’s<br />
5th Annual Awards Gala<br />
The Chaldean Community Foundation is happy<br />
to announce that it will honor the achievements<br />
of Karam Bahnam at the 5th Annual<br />
Awards Gala on Friday, September 22 at the<br />
Palazzo Grande. Karam is a successful entrepreneur<br />
who has devoted his life to inspiring<br />
others to deepen their faith. He is a founding<br />
member of the Eastern Catholic Re-Evangelization<br />
Center (ECRC), an organization spearheaded<br />
by the Chaldean Catholic Diocese. His<br />
dedication to ECRC and other charitable endeavors has made a<br />
large impact on the Chaldean Catholic and broader communities.<br />
For gala sponsorship inquires, visit www. chaldeanfoundation.org<br />
or call Jubilee Jackson at 586.722.7253.<br />
Safie Specialty<br />
Foods Job Fair<br />
Looking for a job, or looking for employees? We can help! The<br />
Chaldean Community Foundation hosted a job fair for Safie Specialty<br />
Foods on Wednesday, July 5. Guests were encouraged to try<br />
Safie’s delicious food items ranging from pickles and asparagus<br />
to carrots and their famous beets, all while learning about the<br />
company’s culture. With the CCF’s help, twenty-eight job seekers<br />
filled out applications and some even interviewed with Safie<br />
Foods’ HR management. Three people from that event have already<br />
been hired.<br />
For more information regarding future job fairs at the Chaldean<br />
Community Foundation, contact Elias Kattoula at 586-722-7253.<br />
Upcoming Events<br />
Karam Bahnam<br />
is the CCF’s<br />
<strong>2023</strong> Honoree.<br />
Safie Specialty Foods products are displayed at the CCF job<br />
fair on July 5.<br />
CCF’s Stacy Bahri with officers Reynolds and Coates<br />
from the Sterling Heights Police Department.<br />
August 10 - Warren Consolidated Schools Back to School Event<br />
August 17 - Utica Community Schools Back to School Event<br />
September 22 – 5th Annual Awards Gala<br />
September 27 - Community Job Fair<br />
10 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 11
NOTEWORTHY<br />
Denhas Make Generous Gift to Brother Rice<br />
It is with great appreciation for the living example of their parents that John (Class of ‘87), Jeff (Class of ‘89), and Chris (Class of<br />
‘90) have made a magnanimous $500,000 gift to Brother Rice High School in honor of their parents, Mike and Nedal Denha. This is<br />
evidence of the commitment of the Denha Family to the community and their investment in the future of Brother Rice High School.<br />
The Denha Family at the<br />
2022 Chaldean American<br />
Chamber of Commerce<br />
Awards Dinner, where Mike<br />
was honored as Businessperson<br />
of the Year.<br />
Dr. Sabah<br />
Abro named<br />
Chair at<br />
Lawrence<br />
Technological<br />
University<br />
Dr. Sabah Abro<br />
A search committee established to hire a<br />
chairperson for the department of Engineering<br />
Technology in the College of Engineering<br />
at Lawrence Technological University has concluded<br />
the search. After going through over<br />
a dozen applicants from all over the United<br />
States, Dr. Sabah Abro was offered and accepted<br />
the position.<br />
Dr. Abro has five degrees and certifications<br />
from five different countries: a bachelor’s<br />
degree from Baghdad University; a master’s<br />
degree from the United Nations Institute in<br />
Kuwait; a master’s from University of Wales<br />
in the UK; and a Ph.D. from The Catholic University<br />
of Louvain in Belgium. He also has a<br />
Master Black Belt certification in Six Sigma<br />
Engineering Quality from the US.<br />
Dr. Abro has taught in positions at several<br />
universities in the Middle East and the United<br />
States. He has been working full time at LTU<br />
since 2000.<br />
Savvy Sliders in Texas<br />
Happy Asker and Steve<br />
Kherkher open the first<br />
Savvy Sliders in San Antonio,<br />
Texas on June 22.<br />
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slider should be. In 2018, he opened his first Savvy Sliders location in Commerce Township, Michigan. Today,<br />
Savvy Sliders has 35 locations in Metro Detroit with 30 more in development in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Tennessee,<br />
Florida, and Texas. The growth of the company has made it the fastest growing slider brand in America.<br />
A recent San Antonio opening—the brand’s first location in the Lone Star State—witnessed the highest-volume<br />
debut in the company’s five-year history.<br />
12 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 13
CHALDEAN DIGEST<br />
American<br />
Armenians Call<br />
for Cancelation<br />
of Disney’s<br />
Upcoming<br />
Ataturk Series<br />
Ankawa Youth Meeting<br />
The annual Ankawa Youth Meeting in<br />
Iraq ended with a captivating Divine<br />
Liturgy led by Chaldean Archbishop<br />
of Erbil, Bashar Warda, alongside participating<br />
clergy.<br />
Recognized as the largest gathering<br />
of Chaldean–Syriac–Assyrian<br />
youth, this year’s event took place at<br />
the esteemed Mor Elijah Chaldean<br />
Shrine. Over a thousand young men<br />
and women from various Chaldean<br />
archdioceses in Iraq eagerly participated.<br />
The meeting featured enlightening<br />
speeches by clergy, engaging interventions,<br />
and thought-provoking dialogue<br />
sessions among the youth. In addition,<br />
the vibrant talents of the youth from<br />
different parishes were showcased,<br />
along with a variety of enjoyable entertainment<br />
activities.<br />
Concluding the event, Chaldean<br />
Archbishop Bashar Warda delivered<br />
Chaldean Youth of Erbil<br />
an impassioned speech, expressing<br />
heartfelt gratitude to all those<br />
who contributed to the success of<br />
the meeting. He emphasized the<br />
vital role of the youth in Christian<br />
upbringing, underscoring their significance<br />
in shaping the future of the<br />
faith community. Archbishop Warda<br />
concluded, “Our Church will always<br />
be strong and alive.”<br />
– Syriac Press<br />
The Armenian National Committee of<br />
America (ANCA) has called on Disney<br />
to cancel its upcoming series about<br />
the life of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the<br />
founding father of the modern Turkish<br />
state, according to Greek Reporter.<br />
The ANCA accused<br />
Disney of glorifying<br />
a “dictator and<br />
genocide killer.” The<br />
series is scheduled<br />
for release on October<br />
29 this year, to coincide<br />
with the 100th<br />
anniversary of the<br />
Republic of Turkey. Mustafa Kemal<br />
Disney has made Atatürk, c. 1918.<br />
no indication that it<br />
will consider canceling the series.<br />
“Calling on Disney Plus to cancel<br />
its series glorifying Mustafa Kemal<br />
Ataturk – a Turkish dictator and genocide<br />
killer with the blood of millions of<br />
Greek, Armenian, Assyrian, Chaldean,<br />
Syriac, Aramean, Maronite, and other<br />
Christian martyrs on his hands,” the<br />
ANCA wrote on Twitter.<br />
– News.am<br />
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS<br />
Inaugural<br />
Gathering<br />
of Arab and<br />
Chaldean<br />
Legal Group<br />
In May, a group of more than 20 Michigan<br />
judges of Arab and Chaldean descent<br />
got together for an inaugural<br />
meeting of the Arab-American Judges<br />
Association of Michigan (AAJAM). The<br />
AAJAM is the result of an effort to bring<br />
together judges of Arab American and<br />
Chaldean ancestry, according to founders<br />
of the organization. Its mission is to<br />
promote diverse judicial leadership and<br />
foster social, professional, and personal<br />
development among members. Relatedly,<br />
the AAJOM hopes to encourage Arab<br />
Americans and Chaldeans to pursue<br />
legal careers and organize education,<br />
mentorship, and outreach programs.<br />
– LegalNews.com<br />
Pictured in the front row, l-r, are Wayne County Circuit Judges Charlene Elder and Yvonna Abraham, Michigan Administrative<br />
Law Judge Zainab Beydoun, and Magistrate Rula Aoun of the 19th District Court. Appearing (l-r) in the back<br />
are Judge Michael Hatty of the 44th District Court, Wayne County Circuit Judge Adel Harb, U.S. District Judge Hala<br />
Jarbou, Magistrate Mona Fadlallah of the 20th District Court, Judge Diane D’Agostini of the 48th District Court, Wayne<br />
Court Circuit Judge Susan Dabaja, Judge Gene Hunt of the 19th District Court, Oakland County Circuit Judge Yasmine<br />
Poles, Judge Sam Salamey of the 19th District Court, retired U.S. Magistrate Mona Majzoub, Judge David Turfe, Oakland<br />
County Probate Chief Judge Linda Hallmark, Wayne County Circuit Judge David Allen, Judge Alyia Hakim of the<br />
39th District Court, Wayne County Circuit Judge Helal Fahat, Macomb County Circuit Judge Tracey Yokich, Magistrate<br />
Ali Hammoud of the 19th District Court, and Wayne County Circuit Judge Edward Joseph.<br />
14 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 15
IRAQ TODAY<br />
PHOTO BY HADI MIZBAN/AP<br />
A protest against the cutting of Iraq’s water supplies outside the Turkish Embassy in the Green Zone, Tuesday, July 18, <strong>2023</strong>, in Baghdad, Iraq.<br />
Sun-baked Iraqis Protest Water<br />
and Electricity Shortages<br />
France24.com<br />
Baghdad (AFP) – Despite punishingly<br />
high temperatures, dozens of Iraqis<br />
took to the streets of Baghdad on July<br />
18 to protest water and electricity<br />
shortages, and to blame Turkey for reduced<br />
flow of rivers.<br />
Designated by the United Nations<br />
as one of the five countries in the world<br />
most touched by some effects of climate<br />
change, Iraq is experiencing its fourth<br />
consecutive summer of drought.<br />
“We have come to peacefully protest<br />
and demand water from the government<br />
and the source countries,”<br />
Najeh Jawda Khalil told AFP around<br />
midday as temperatures neared 50 degrees<br />
Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit).<br />
“The agricultural regions and<br />
marshes are gone,” said Khalil, who<br />
travelled to the Iraqi capital from the<br />
central province of Babylon for the<br />
march. “There is neither electricity<br />
nor water.”<br />
In addition to declining rainfall<br />
and rising temperatures, Iraqi authorities<br />
say upstream dam construction by<br />
Turkey and Iran has affected the volume<br />
of water in the Tigris and Euphrates<br />
rivers through Iraq. “If the Turkish<br />
government continues to deprive<br />
Iraqis of water, we will move towards<br />
internationalizing the water problem<br />
and boycotting Turkish products,”<br />
read a sign at the demonstration.<br />
Summer in Iraq is a prime example<br />
of the convergence of multiple crises<br />
weighing down the lives of the 43-million<br />
strong population: rising temperatures,<br />
severe water shortages and<br />
a dilapidated electricity sector -- exacerbated<br />
by rampant corruption and<br />
public mismanagement.<br />
“Twenty years and the electricity<br />
crisis repeats itself every year,” read<br />
another banner, referring to the time<br />
passed since the fall of dictator Saddam<br />
Hussein in a US-led invasion.<br />
In addition to<br />
declining rainfall and<br />
rising temperatures,<br />
Iraqi authorities<br />
say upstream dam<br />
construction by<br />
Turkey and Iran has<br />
affected the volume<br />
of water in the Tigris<br />
and Euphrates rivers<br />
through Iraq.<br />
Ravaged by decades of conflict, oilrich<br />
Iraq relies on Iranian gas imports<br />
for a third of its energy needs.<br />
Generally, power cuts can last up to<br />
10 hours a day. But every summer when<br />
the thermometer climbs, the supply of<br />
public electricity worsens. Only those<br />
who can afford it are able to connect<br />
their houses to neighborhood generators<br />
to make up for the poor supply.<br />
Water shortages have fueled tensions<br />
between Turkey and Iraq, which demands<br />
Ankara release more water from<br />
upstream dams along the rivers.<br />
“Currently, Iraq only receives 35<br />
percent of its water rights. This means<br />
that Iraq has lost 65 percent of its<br />
water, whether it’s from the Tigris or<br />
the Euphrates,” Khaled Chamal, the<br />
spokesman for the Ministry of Water<br />
Resources, has told AFP.<br />
In the summer of 2022, the Turkish<br />
ambassador to Baghdad sparked outrage<br />
after accusing Iraqis of wasting<br />
water and urging “the modernization<br />
of irrigation systems.” Experts say he<br />
may have a point. Iraqi farmers flood<br />
their fields, rather than irrigate them,<br />
which is more efficient.<br />
16 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
<strong>2023</strong>07_18-CFCU-MoneyMarket-PRINT_ChaldeanNews-FINAL.pdf 1 7/18/23 2:15 PM<br />
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CM<br />
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CMY<br />
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<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 17
IN MEMORIAM<br />
Shango (Shawn) Elias<br />
Shango<br />
Jul 1, 1938 –<br />
Jun 23, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Joza Lazou<br />
Jul 1, 1940 –<br />
Jun 25, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Thomas Habib<br />
Shahara<br />
Dec 21, 1942 –<br />
Jun 26, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Mariam<br />
Alhakim<br />
Dec 21, 1933 –<br />
Jun 27, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Samira George<br />
Jul 1, 1941 –<br />
Jun 27, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Salem Jirjis Meram<br />
Mar 5, 1939 –<br />
Jun 27, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Richard Michael<br />
Namin<br />
Nov 22, 1949 –<br />
Jun 27, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Vivian Bunni Jamil<br />
Feb 5, 1961 –<br />
Jun 28, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Majed Hermiz Beba<br />
Feb 7, 1953 –<br />
Jun 29, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Mary Kiryakoza<br />
Jabero<br />
Jan 20, 1933 –<br />
Jun 29, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Maree Naoom<br />
Jul 1, 1938 –<br />
Jun 29, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Wardiya Jamil<br />
Jul 1, 1932 –<br />
Jun 30, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Habbee Yousif–Zora<br />
Khabbaz<br />
Jul 1, 1938 –<br />
Jun 30, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Nabeel “John”<br />
Shaboo<br />
Dec 25, 1960 –<br />
Jun 30, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Youash Dawood<br />
Shapoo<br />
Jul 1, 1934 –<br />
Jun 30, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Rozah Khamo<br />
Mansour<br />
Jun 7, 1938 –<br />
Jul 1, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Samir Samer Kada<br />
Feb 21, 1980 –<br />
Jul 3, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Naima Ayar Sandiha<br />
Jan 1, 1930 –<br />
Jul 4, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Dr. Justin Joseph<br />
Bahoora<br />
Mar 12, 1987 –<br />
Jul 5, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Yelda Konja<br />
Jul 1, 1939 –<br />
Jul 7, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Ghazi Nasir Krikor<br />
Jul 1, 1929 –<br />
Jul 7, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Amira Bakko Haio<br />
May 1, 1946 –<br />
Jul 8, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Amanuel<br />
Esittaifo Yonan<br />
Jul 1, 1951 –<br />
Jul 9, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Shamasha Yousif<br />
Hermez Bashi<br />
Mar 19, 1928 –<br />
Jul 11, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Shamoon Shammo<br />
Mar 11, 1946 –<br />
Jul 12, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Nada Sharrak Odish<br />
Sep 21, 1964 –<br />
Jul 12, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Faiza Tobia<br />
Haba Najar<br />
Jul 1, 1949 –<br />
Jul 14, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Wadeea Samaan<br />
Lossia<br />
Jan 22, 1946 –<br />
Jul 11, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Sharkia Samona Ouro<br />
Jul 1, 1933 –<br />
Jul 14, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Najiba Roufa Lossia<br />
Jul 15, 1929 –<br />
Jul 15, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Nouria Kassab<br />
Yatooma<br />
May 1, 1933 –<br />
Jul 15, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Ablahad “Bahi” Jarbo<br />
Dec 10, 1947 –<br />
Jul 18, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Sameerah Elias<br />
Mansoor Yaldo<br />
Jun 29, 1941 –<br />
Jul 20, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Fawzi “Frank Paul”<br />
Gabbara<br />
Apr 13, 1954 –<br />
Jul 21, <strong>2023</strong><br />
Dinkha Somo Isho<br />
Jun 6, 1958 –<br />
Jul 21, <strong>2023</strong><br />
18 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 19
COVER STORY<br />
Left: His Beatitude Mar Louis Raphaël Sako,<br />
patriarch of Iraq’s Chaldean Catholic church,<br />
moments before his enthroning ceremony at St.<br />
Joseph’s Church in central Baghdad, Iraq, in 2013.<br />
Below: Open letter to the Iraqi president.<br />
Fight or Flight<br />
The War Over the Faithful in Iraq<br />
BY SARAH KITTLE<br />
It was mid-July when Iraqi President Abdul Latif<br />
Rashid revoked a decree that gave state recognition<br />
to His Beatitude Mar Louis Raphaël<br />
Sako, the Patriarch of the Chaldean Church. The<br />
decree had given recognition to the patriarch’s appointment<br />
by the Holy See as head of the Chaldean<br />
Church “in Iraq and the world” and thus, “responsible<br />
for the assets of the Church.” Why did Rashid<br />
do that, and what does it mean for Iraq’s dwindling<br />
Christian population?<br />
The Synod of Bishops of the Chaldean Catholic<br />
Church elected Mar Sako to succeed Mar Emmanuel<br />
III Delly as Patriarch of Babylon in February 2013.<br />
Pope Benedict XVI gave his assent to the election<br />
and granted him ecclesiastical communion as required<br />
by the canon law for Eastern-rite Catholic<br />
churches in recognition of their union with the<br />
wider Catholic Church. That same year, Iraq’s thenpresident<br />
Jalal Talabani issued a decree giving state<br />
recognition to Mar Sako as Patriarch of the Chaldean<br />
Church.<br />
PHOTO BY KARIM KADIM/AP<br />
The Revocation<br />
On July 15 of this year, Iraq’s President Abdul Latif<br />
Rashid announced the revocation of the government’s<br />
2013 decree formally recognizing Mar Sako<br />
as Patriarch. Rashid claimed that the decision to<br />
revoke the decree was made to correct a constitutional<br />
error; he says as president, he has no right to<br />
appoint or recognize religious leaders. According to<br />
the press office of the Chaldean Patriarchate, such<br />
proclamations have been issued since Ottoman<br />
times and are still very common ways of recognizing<br />
the legitimacy of the leadership of minority religions<br />
in the region today.<br />
Rashid claims that his revocation does not<br />
change Sako’s status as patriarch since he was duly<br />
elected by the Chaldean Synod and confirmed by<br />
Pope Francis. He further stated his decision was because<br />
the Patriarch’s office is not recognized by the<br />
Iraqi Constitution.<br />
Rashid had recently rejected requests for comparable<br />
decrees from the Patriarchs of the Assyrian<br />
Church and the Old Assyrian Church; notably, these<br />
would be new decrees as opposed to the decade-old<br />
decree that was revoked.<br />
Mar Sako, who has been outspoken about the<br />
Iraqi government’s failure to protect its Christian<br />
population, viewed the revocation as an extension<br />
of the government’s ongoing “deliberate and humiliating<br />
campaign” against him. Others cited complex<br />
political maneuvering within the Iraqi government<br />
and through the leader of the Babylon Movement.<br />
Patriarch Mar Sako emphatically defends his<br />
right as patriarch to administer the affairs of his<br />
community and to have full state recognition.<br />
In a letter to the Iraqi president, His Beatitude said<br />
that he is appealing the decree’s revocation to Iraq’s<br />
judiciary and wrote to Rashid, “I believe the legal advice<br />
that was given to Your Excellency is incorrect and<br />
it wanted to undermine your stature<br />
and the Christian component.”<br />
In response to the revocation,<br />
which Sako the Patriarch called<br />
“unprecedented in the history of<br />
Iraq,” he announced he was leaving<br />
Baghdad to take up residence<br />
in Iraqi Kurdistan. In his statement,<br />
the Patriarch condemned the government’s<br />
silence over what he<br />
described as a campaign against<br />
him. He has “decided to withdraw<br />
from the seat of the patriarchate in<br />
Baghdad,” the statement said, and<br />
would instead settle at one of the<br />
monasteries in Kurdistan, where he<br />
will continue to lead the Chaldean<br />
Catholic Church.<br />
The Faithful’s Response<br />
In a statement issued July 15, Mar<br />
Sako called the president’s action<br />
— which calls into question his<br />
ability to control Church assets in<br />
the country — “unprecedented”<br />
and “unfair.”<br />
20 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
PHOTO BY ALI ABDUL HASSAN/AP<br />
His Beatitude Mar Louis Raphaël Sako (second from left), with Lt. Gen. Abdul-<br />
Wahab al-Saadi (right), and Gen. Abdel Ghani al-Asadi (second from right),<br />
of Iraq’s elite counterterrorism forces visit a church damaged by Islamic State<br />
fighters, in Bartella, Iraq.<br />
“It is unfortunate that we in Iraq<br />
live in the midst of a wide network<br />
of self-interest, narrow factionalism,<br />
and hypocrisy that has produced an<br />
unprecedented political, national,<br />
and moral chaos, which is rooted<br />
by now more and more,” Mar Sako<br />
wrote. “Therefore, I have decided to<br />
withdraw from the patriarchal headquarters<br />
in Baghdad.”<br />
“I call on Christians to remain in<br />
their faith, which is their consolation,<br />
strength, light, and life, and on<br />
their national identity until the storm<br />
passes with the help of God,” Sako<br />
added. “May God help the helpless<br />
Christians and Iraqis.”<br />
There are an estimated 300,000<br />
Chaldean Catholics in Iraq, and, according<br />
to the U.S. Commission on International<br />
Religious Freedom report,<br />
they make up 80% of the Christian<br />
population in the country.<br />
The U.S. State Department’s Matthew<br />
Miller said at a press conference<br />
that the department was “disturbed<br />
by the harassment of Cardinal Sako,<br />
the patriarch of the Chaldean Church,<br />
and troubled by the news that he has<br />
left Baghdad.” He went to say, “We<br />
look forward to his safe return. The<br />
Iraqi Christian community is a vital<br />
part of Iraq’s identity and a central<br />
part of Iraq’s history of diversity and<br />
tolerance.<br />
“I will say we are in continuous<br />
contact with Iraqi leaders on this matter,”<br />
Miller stated. “We are concerned<br />
that the cardinals’ position as a respected<br />
leader of the Church is under<br />
attack from a number of quarters,<br />
in particular, a militia leader who is<br />
sanctioned under the Global Magnitsky<br />
Act.”<br />
Iraqi Christian rights activist Diya<br />
Butrus Slewa, speaking to The Christian<br />
Post, called the action “a political<br />
maneuver to seize the remainder<br />
of what Christians have left in Iraq<br />
and Baghdad and to expel them. Unfortunately,<br />
this is a blatant targeting<br />
of the Christians and a threat to their<br />
rights,” Slewa said.<br />
“We hope the Iraqi presidency<br />
hears our people and revokes this (decision)<br />
as soon as possible, otherwise<br />
it will become an international matter<br />
and the Vatican will get involved,”<br />
Slewa added.<br />
“Personally, I believe the approach<br />
to revoking the decree was flawed,”<br />
Chaldean Archbishop Bashar Warda<br />
said in a statement. “The President<br />
of the Republic could have convened<br />
a meeting with all the Church leaders<br />
to explain the history of these decrees<br />
and his decision to retract them. Instead,<br />
the matter was played out in the<br />
media, leading the Patriarch to interpret<br />
this action as punitive,” he wrote.<br />
The Chaldean bishops in the U.S.,<br />
Europe, and Asia issued a letter of<br />
their own urging Rashid to reverse his<br />
decision.<br />
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Chaldean News half pg vert-4.375 x12.indd 1<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN 7/7/<strong>2023</strong> NEWS 10:17:21 AM
CULTURE & HISTORY<br />
Pope Francis greets His Beatitude Mar Louis Raphaël Sako, patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church, in the library of<br />
the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican on Feb. 18, 2022.<br />
Cardinal Sako Stands Against<br />
Conquest and Confiscation<br />
BY ADHID MIRI, PHD<br />
In geography books, there are references<br />
to historical events which<br />
have changed the borders of certain<br />
countries. In history books, there<br />
are chapters in which reference is<br />
made to geographical conditions at a<br />
particular time. History and geography<br />
are not independent. In fact, one<br />
could say that history is written on the<br />
pages of geography, and those who<br />
control the geography of an area write<br />
their own history.<br />
The Iraq of the past, heralded for<br />
the coexistence of its people within<br />
their geographic and ethnic components<br />
and classifications, no longer<br />
exists. After the 2003 US invasion of<br />
Iraq, the nation was transformed into<br />
armed groups in the form of militias<br />
that stripped the country of their attachment<br />
to ancestral geography and<br />
planned to change history.<br />
Iran-backed Shiite militias have<br />
taken steps to shrink the size of the<br />
Christian, Mandean, and Yazidi communities<br />
in Iraq by seizing their properties,<br />
homes, and businesses, gradually<br />
pushing them out of the country.<br />
Numerous abductions, killings, kidnappings,<br />
extortion, robbery, and sexual<br />
assaults have occurred against the<br />
minority population in recent years.<br />
Militias have also seized large areas<br />
of land belonging to Christians, especially<br />
in the Nineveh Plain. At least<br />
20,000 acres of farmland have been<br />
burned and the militias have carried<br />
out 75 attacks on places of worship,<br />
with no fewer than nine instances of<br />
them using a church as a military base.<br />
Since 2014, confiscating and seizing<br />
of property has become increasingly<br />
prevalent in Iraq, with thousands of<br />
homes and properties being sold without<br />
their owners’ knowledge. Armed militias<br />
have undertaken these land-grabs,<br />
seizing property in Baghdad, Basra,<br />
Kirkuk, the Nineveh Province, and Kurdistan<br />
Region, supported by Islamist parties<br />
that have been at the helm of power<br />
since 2003, in coordination with several<br />
public land registry officials.<br />
They have basically stolen agricultural<br />
land and manufacturing facilities,<br />
taken over homes, buildings,<br />
commercial properties, small businesses,<br />
restaurants, and stores. Several<br />
culprits and forces are involved. The<br />
Sunni-backed Islamic State and Shiitebacked<br />
Iran are competing for control<br />
PHOTO BY CNS/VATICAN MEDIA<br />
in a politically unstable region. Moreover,<br />
Turkey is also fighting a proxy<br />
war in northern Iraq and has bombed<br />
several towns on the Nineveh Plain to<br />
clear the border areas.<br />
To suggest that only ISIS Sunni Jihadists<br />
have contributed to the persecution<br />
of Christians in the Middle East<br />
is simplistic and ignores the influence<br />
of Iran-backed militias in countries<br />
like Iraq. These militias are especially<br />
prevalent in northern Iraq and Nineveh<br />
Province. They are squeezing non-Muslims<br />
out of the country, taking advantage<br />
of local political instability to gain<br />
a foothold in war-torn regions and control<br />
the geography of the region.<br />
This is a classic Iranian scheme of<br />
deception designed to confiscate and<br />
control the land that stretches from<br />
the western Iranian border near Diyallah<br />
to Damascus, Syria, and beyond to<br />
Hizballah, Lebanon via the Christian<br />
Nineveh Plain. Iran’s plans are to build<br />
railway systems and highways to connect<br />
to the Mediterranean. The Christian<br />
and Yazidi towns are in their way.<br />
Iranian interferences cast a dark<br />
shadow over Iraq today. After taking<br />
control of all aspects of life including<br />
the sUpreme control of the Shia<br />
and Sunni endowments offices, Iran<br />
turned its attention to subjugate the<br />
Christian religious authorities, confiscate,<br />
and control their properties using<br />
pro-Iranian agents and parties.<br />
After experiencing violence, persecution,<br />
displacement, confiscation of<br />
their properties in the recent past, new<br />
clouds are gathering over the future<br />
of Christians in Iraq, with the government<br />
decree revocation that threatens<br />
the highest Christian authority in the<br />
land, the Chaldean Patriarch, Cardinal<br />
Louis Raphael Sako.<br />
Forgery and Fraud<br />
Forgery, theft, confiscation of homes,<br />
properties, assets, extortion, and intimidation<br />
of minorities by the militia’s<br />
secret arms has become widespread<br />
in Iraq to the extent that the<br />
judicial authorities are unable to stop<br />
it. Corruption is rampant and concealing<br />
capital is a common practice. Buying<br />
and selling real estate, converting<br />
cash to real estate, establishing fake<br />
companies, and putting money in<br />
foreign banks are all ways for owners<br />
of illicit money to hide their primary<br />
sources of ill-gotten income.<br />
22 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
Recently, the most dangerous forgery<br />
operation in Iraq is the selling of<br />
private property without the knowledge<br />
of its owners—Iraqis residing<br />
abroad who left the country years ago.<br />
The value of some of these properties<br />
exceeds a million dollars.<br />
Once sold through forgery, the retrieval<br />
of properties is difficult, requiring<br />
strong government and an impartial<br />
judiciary. This is far from what we<br />
have, which is authoritarian and partisan<br />
influences and the dominance of<br />
the militias associated with the ruling<br />
parties.<br />
Religion and Politics<br />
Tensions between the Chaldean<br />
Catholic hierarchy and figures in the<br />
Babylon Movement date back several<br />
years. The dispute between Cardinal<br />
Louis Raphael Sako, the head of Iraq’s<br />
Chaldean Church, and al-Kildani, the<br />
leader of the Babylon Movement, has<br />
become increasingly tense, ranging<br />
from corruption charges to demonstrations<br />
and taking each other to court.<br />
In 2016, the Chaldean Patriarchate<br />
made it known there was no relationship<br />
between the Church and the<br />
Babylon Brigade (50th Brigade), the<br />
military wing of the Babylon Movement.<br />
The Patriarch threatened to sue<br />
the Iran-backed militia leader Rayan<br />
al-Kildani in international court if the<br />
Iraqi government failed to take necessary<br />
measures against the U.S. blacklisted<br />
military figure.<br />
In recent weeks, the clash between<br />
Cardinal Sako and al-Kildani has escalated.<br />
In July, the Iraqi President<br />
Abdul Latif Rashid ended the institutional<br />
recognition of the Cardinal’s<br />
office by repealing Decree 147, signed<br />
by Rashid’s predecessor, the late Jalal<br />
Talabani, in 2013. Decree 147 recognized<br />
the Patriarch’s appointment by<br />
the Holy See as head of the Chaldean<br />
Church, “in Iraq and the world,” and<br />
thus, “responsible for the assets of the<br />
Church.”<br />
The latter aspect is what matters.<br />
The president’s decision strips the<br />
Chaldean leader of the right to administer<br />
Church assets, which are the targets<br />
of Rayan and his Babylon Brigade.<br />
Following the decision, President<br />
Rashid tried to clarify his decision.<br />
His office issued a statement saying,<br />
“Withdrawing the republican decree<br />
does not prejudice the religious or legal<br />
status of Cardinal Louis Sako, as<br />
he is appointed by the Apostolic See<br />
as Patriarch of the Chaldean Church in<br />
Iraq and the world.”<br />
With the revocation of the presidential<br />
decree, the cardinal will likely<br />
lose control over the church’s assets<br />
and properties.<br />
In response to the president’s decision,<br />
his Beatitude Cardinal Louis Raphael<br />
Sako sent an open letter to the<br />
President of the Iraqi Republic, Dr. Abdul<br />
Latif Rashid. It was his third such<br />
letter in the past weeks, and his third<br />
letter that went without response.<br />
The Chaldean primate highlighted<br />
the grave consequences of the<br />
presidential decree and suggested<br />
that he might turn to international<br />
tribunals to protect Church rights.<br />
The harsh attacks against Sako and<br />
the Church have pushed hundreds of<br />
Christians—priests as well as congregants—to<br />
take to the streets in solidarity<br />
with the cardinal.<br />
CULTURE continued on page 24<br />
Since 2014, confiscating and seizing of property has become<br />
increasingly prevalent in Iraq, with thousands of homes and<br />
properties being sold without their owners’ knowledge.<br />
Christians in Iraq protest in support of His Beatitude Mar Louis Raphaël Sako.<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 23
CULTURE & HISTORY<br />
KDP President Masoud Barzani welcomes Cardinal Louis Sako to Erbil.<br />
CULTURE continued from page 23<br />
Cardinal Louis Sako cautions that,<br />
“The day will come when Iraq will be<br />
void of Christians in light of the continuous<br />
discrimination against Christians by<br />
various parties including armed militias,<br />
corrupt politicians, and the absence of<br />
the rule of law, job opportunities, and<br />
clear vision for the future of Iraq.”<br />
Solidarity<br />
Christian leaders condemned and denounced<br />
the Presidency’s decision to<br />
revoke the decree. Protests came from<br />
civil society organizations, the Syriac<br />
Catholic bishop of Mosul, Syriac Orthodox<br />
bishops, National parties, the<br />
Assyrian Democratic Movement, Chaldean<br />
Syriac Assyrian People’s Council,<br />
Beth Nahrin National Federation, Sons<br />
of the Two Rivers Party, Assyrian National<br />
Party, the Chaldean league in the<br />
USA, and the Iraqi Society for Human<br />
Rights in the United States of America.<br />
On July 13, <strong>2023</strong>, Christians gathered<br />
before the Cathedral of Saint<br />
Joseph in Ankawa in solidarity with<br />
Cardinal Sako. Residents of the town<br />
of Al-Qosh joined a stand in solidarity,<br />
carrying banners demanding justice<br />
for the head of the church and raising<br />
large pictures of Patriarch Sako.<br />
It’s not just Christians supporting<br />
the cardinal. The Association of Muslim<br />
Scholars in Iraq and the office of<br />
the supreme religious authority, Sayyid<br />
Ali al-Sistani in Najaf, expressed<br />
solidarity with Sako after the recent<br />
public attacks. An official in the office<br />
communicated with the patriarch and<br />
expressed his regret for the manner in<br />
which His Eminence was dealt with recently<br />
and his hope that the appropriate<br />
conditions would be available for<br />
his return to his headquarters in Baghdad<br />
as soon as possible.<br />
Bishop Basilio Yaldo was another<br />
strong voice who issued a statement,<br />
along with the Syriac Catholic bishop<br />
of Mosul, Orthodox bishops, 11 ambassadors<br />
of the European Union, and<br />
other Chaldean Catholic leaders..<br />
Statements from the Chaldean Community<br />
Foundation were sent to U.S.<br />
State and Congressional members,<br />
initiating a response from the State Department.<br />
Mathew Miller, the official<br />
spokesperson for the U.S. State Department<br />
held a press conference in which<br />
he stated, “We are disturbed by the harassment<br />
of Cardinal Sako, the patriarch<br />
of the Chaldean Church, and troubled<br />
by the news that he has left Baghdad.<br />
We look forward to his safe return. The<br />
Iraqi Christian community is a vital part<br />
of Iraq’s identity and a central part of<br />
Iraq’s history of diversity and tolerance.<br />
“I will say we are in continuous<br />
contact with Iraqi leaders on this matter.<br />
We are concerned that the cardinal’s<br />
position as a respected leader of<br />
the church is under attack from a number<br />
of quarters, in particular a militia<br />
leader who is sanctioned under the<br />
Global Magnitsky Act.”<br />
Ano Abdoka, Minister of Transportation<br />
and Communications in<br />
the Kurdistan Regional Government<br />
(KRG), criticized President Rashid’s<br />
decision as “unjustifiable” and said<br />
that “for the first time since 2003, we<br />
are witnessing a dangerous precedent<br />
represented by the behavior of the<br />
head of a state’s hierarchy.”<br />
“Why is one of the most important<br />
Christian symbols being unjustly targeted,<br />
namely the institution of the<br />
Chaldean Patriarchate and the moral<br />
highness of the Chaldean Patriarch?”<br />
Abdoka said in an open letter.<br />
Baghdad without a Patriarch<br />
Patriarch Louis Sako announced on<br />
July 15, <strong>2023</strong>, in an open letter the decision<br />
to withdraw from the patriarchal<br />
headquarters located in the Iraqi capital,<br />
Baghdad, and settle in one of the<br />
monasteries of the Kurdistan region.<br />
The cardinal apparently no longer<br />
feels politically or personally secure in<br />
the Iraqi capital.<br />
The last time the Chaldean leadership<br />
fled Baghdad, according to the<br />
Iraqi Christian Foundation, a Mongol<br />
army was solidifying its control of the<br />
city in 1259 A.D.<br />
The clash between Cardinal Sako<br />
and Rayan is nothing new. The sharp<br />
divisions between the Chaldean Church<br />
in Iraq and the Babylon Movement are<br />
expected to continue. Christian interests<br />
hang in the balance in a country<br />
where fewer than 200,000 remain today,<br />
a staggering fall from over 1.5 million<br />
who used to call Iraq home before<br />
the infamous 2003 American invasion.<br />
In conclusion, Iraq’s future and the<br />
fate of Christianity in Iraq are lights we<br />
cannot see. What is done in the dark<br />
must come into the light. This may<br />
well be the last chapter in the ‘turn the<br />
other cheek’ concept. The future will<br />
tell if Christianity in our homeland<br />
survives this calamity.<br />
Sources: Articles by Keely Jahns, Al-<br />
Monitor, Al-Ain News, Rudaw News,<br />
Asia News, Shafaq News Agency,<br />
Ankawa.com, Ishtar TV, Kurdistan24<br />
News, Vatican News, America -The<br />
Jesuit Review, and Patriarchal News.<br />
24 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
presents<br />
5th Annual Awards Gala<br />
Dinner • Awards • Celebration<br />
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, <strong>2023</strong><br />
6:00PM<br />
The Palazzo Grande<br />
54660 Van Dyke Avenue<br />
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HONORING KARAM BAHNAM<br />
SUPPORT PROVIDED BY<br />
For sponsorship inquiries, please call Jubilee Jackson at 586-722-7253 or<br />
Jubilee.Jackson@chaldeanfoundation.org.<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 25
CHALDEAN STORY<br />
We are pleased to present the first installment<br />
of a new year-long “Chaldean Story”<br />
series, made possible by a generous grant<br />
from Michigan Humanities’ Great Michigan<br />
Stories program. The grant allows us to fully<br />
explore the stories of Chaldean immigrants<br />
to Michigan, who have brought with them<br />
an ancient culture that has been carefully<br />
and lovingly preserved in story and art.<br />
Through feature stories, podcasts, and<br />
events planned for the next 12 months, we<br />
aim to tell the story of Michigan’s Chaldean<br />
community, and the contributions they’ve<br />
made to our state. As of <strong>2023</strong>, more than<br />
160,000 Chaldeans call Michigan home.<br />
Chaldean<br />
Cultural<br />
Roots<br />
Innovations that<br />
shaped civilization<br />
BY SARAH KITTLE<br />
Where did Chaldean culture start? Chaldeans,<br />
Assyrians, and Syriacs – whatever<br />
they call themselves – are the descendants<br />
of ancient Mesopotamians, with a rich cultural<br />
history to be proud of.<br />
Mesopotamia, referred to as the “Cradle of Civilization,”<br />
was home to some of the earliest complex<br />
societies in human history. Located in the region of<br />
the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, it was the birthplace<br />
of many remarkable advancements that laid the<br />
foundation for future civilizations. Ancient Chaldean<br />
history is a part of Mesopotamia; its people<br />
kicked off a dynasty that would later be known as<br />
the Neo-Babylonian Empire.<br />
Most of us are aware that the wheel was invented<br />
in Sumer sometime in the fourth millennium BC.<br />
Originally used by potters to help shape clay, the<br />
invention led to use on carts and battle chariots<br />
as well as agricultural tools and mechanisms. But<br />
there are many other “firsts” to celebrate.<br />
Among the many inventions credited to Mesopotamian<br />
cultures, most notably the Sumerians, are<br />
the first written language, first code of law, first urbanization<br />
in the form of city-states, first astronomical<br />
calendar, and first numerical system based on<br />
60 (seconds in a minute, minutes in an hour). They<br />
also invented the idea of a 24-hour day and the concept<br />
of zero!<br />
Through chronicles of entrepreneurship,<br />
culture, and spirituality, we will tell<br />
stories of brave deeds, endless resiliency,<br />
and epic generosity, as remembered by<br />
those who witnessed these acts. We will<br />
explore the Chaldean immigrants’ path<br />
from party stores to boardrooms and will<br />
share their deep and abiding faith in God<br />
and their strong commitment to family.<br />
Everything that we have celebrated for<br />
nearly two decades will be highlighted in<br />
this series, which gives us a chance to follow<br />
the narrative from the beginning—the<br />
emigration from Iraq, through the journey to<br />
get here, to the present. We hope you enjoy<br />
reading it as much as we enjoy writing it.<br />
Cuneiform Writing<br />
Arguably the most significant Mesopotamian first<br />
was the invention of writing. Sometime around midmillennial<br />
3000 BCE, Sumerians—people of southern<br />
Mesopotamia whose civilization flourished during<br />
that era—devised cuneiform script, a complex<br />
system using wedge-shaped marks. Written on clay<br />
tablets and initially used for record-keeping, cuneiform<br />
gradually evolved into a sophisticated writing<br />
system encompassing literature, mathematics, astronomy,<br />
and law.<br />
The hundreds of thousands of texts discovered<br />
over the years by archeologists include royal<br />
inscription and treaties as well as everyday bookkeeping.<br />
Extensive libraries were kept in temples<br />
and palaces, and King Shulgi of Ur (ruled 2094-2047<br />
BC) and Ashurbanipal of Assyria (ruled 668-627 BC)<br />
each made the claim to be able to read and write ancient<br />
cuneiform. Aramaic became intertwined with<br />
Akkadian during the reign of the Assyrian empire,<br />
and by the time Ashurbanipal was king, Aramaic<br />
spread throughout the Assyrian empire.<br />
The invention of written language not only<br />
transformed communication but also paved the way<br />
for the transmission and preservation of knowledge<br />
across generations. It was a pivotal moment in human<br />
history; cuneiform became the precursor to all<br />
subsequent writing systems.<br />
Code of Law<br />
Mesopotamia introduced the world to the concept<br />
of law and established legal systems. They also<br />
witnessed the earliest known legal code, known as<br />
the Code of Hammurabi. Created by the Babylonian<br />
king Hammurabi around 1754 BCE, this comprehensive<br />
set of laws covered various aspects of life, including<br />
commerce, family, and property rights.<br />
Hammurabi expanded the city-state of Babylon<br />
26 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
along the Euphrates River to unite all of southern<br />
Mesopotamia. The Hammurabi code of laws, a collection<br />
of 282 rules, established standards for commercial<br />
interactions and set fines and punishments<br />
to meet the requirements of justice.<br />
Hammurabi’s Code, which established the principle<br />
of “an eye for an eye,” was carved onto a massive,<br />
black stone stele (pillar). It laid the groundwork<br />
for subsequent legal systems, marking a significant<br />
milestone in the development of legal justice.<br />
Mathematics & Astronomy<br />
Mesopotamians were pioneers in mathematics and<br />
astronomy, making numerous groundbreaking<br />
contributions in these fields. They were the first to<br />
develop a numerical system based on sixty, one we<br />
still use today to count units of time. They also developed<br />
advanced arithmetic techniques including<br />
multiplication, division, and the concept of zero.<br />
These mathematical advancements enabled accurate<br />
astronomical calculations and played a vital<br />
role in various aspects of daily life. Mesopotamian<br />
astronomers mapped the stars, observed celestial<br />
bodies, and created the first known astronomical<br />
calendars.<br />
Trade & Commerce<br />
Mesopotamians were pioneers in long distance<br />
trade and commerce. They established extensive<br />
trade routes and connected not only with Egypt<br />
but regions as far away as the Indus Valley. Regular<br />
trade made it possible to plan purchases ahead and<br />
develop relationships with vendors.<br />
Their use of the clay tablet for record-keeping<br />
along with standardizing weights and measures<br />
made commercial transactions possible and laid the<br />
groundwork for a global trading system.<br />
City-States<br />
Another of Mesopotamia’s most noteworthy achievements<br />
was the development of the city-state system.<br />
Around 3000 BCE, city-states such as Uruk, Ur, and<br />
Lagash emerged, each with their own centralized<br />
government and complex administrative structures.<br />
By 3000 BC, Uruk was a walled city of over two<br />
square miles with about 1,000 inhabitants. These<br />
early city-states represented the first instances of<br />
urbanization, where dense populations settled in<br />
a central location, establishing the groundwork for<br />
future urban planning.<br />
Centralized Planning<br />
Mesopotamia’s cities were marvels of urban planning<br />
and engineering. They constructed monumental<br />
structures, such as ziggurats and temples, which<br />
served as religious and administrative centers. Ur,<br />
Babylon, and Nineveh were imperial capitals known<br />
throughout the ancient world.<br />
Centers of innovation and learning, these cities<br />
were where priests trained, poems and tales were<br />
studied and copied, laws were created, international<br />
treaties agreed upon, and financial contracts<br />
signed. When Alexander the Great conquered<br />
Mesopotamia in 331 BC, Babylon was considered<br />
the most spectacular of all cities.<br />
Art & Architecture<br />
Architecture on a grand scale is generally credited<br />
to have begun under the Sumerians, with<br />
religious structures dating back to 3400 B.C. The<br />
buildings are noted for their arched doorways and<br />
flat roofs.<br />
The society’s technical sophistication is evidenced<br />
in elaborate construction, such as terra<br />
cotta ornamentation with bronze accents, complicated<br />
mosaics, imposing brick columns and<br />
sophisticated mural paintings. Sculpture was<br />
used mainly to adorn temples. Facing a scarcity<br />
of stone, Sumerians made leaps in metal-casting<br />
for their sculpture work, though relief carving in<br />
stone was a popular art form.<br />
Ziggurats began to appear around 2200 B.C.<br />
These impressive pyramid-like, stepped temples,<br />
which were either square or rectangular, stood<br />
nearly two hundred feet high and featured no inner<br />
chambers. Ziggurats often featured sloping<br />
sides and terraces with gardens.<br />
The ‘hanging gardens’ were built in Nineveh<br />
by the Assyrian king Sennacherib. Scholars today<br />
have largely abandoned the idea of the Babylon gardens,<br />
which are attributed to errors made by Greek<br />
historians.<br />
Sennacherib also built an aqueduct from the<br />
mountains north of Assyria to transport water into<br />
the growing city of Nineveh. The engineering feat<br />
was so spectacular that it can still be seen through<br />
Google Earth.<br />
First Royalty<br />
Sumerians introduced us to the concept of royalty<br />
and declared that the king (literally “great man”)<br />
was descended from Heaven. The ruler’s primary<br />
obligation was to lead in battle, please the gods<br />
through temple building and offerings, maintain<br />
city walls and irrigation canals, and enforce justice.<br />
Sumerians were organized as a patchwork of<br />
city-states until Sargon of Akkad established the<br />
first true and lasting empire, one that all future<br />
Mesopotamian kings would emulate. The strongest<br />
dynasties, those of Ur, the Babylonian kings Hammurabi<br />
and Nebuchadnezzar II, and the kings of Assyria<br />
saw invasions from the Iranian highlands and<br />
tribal nomads from the northwest, but these invaders<br />
for the most part adopted and sustained Mesopotamian<br />
culture.<br />
Tablet with<br />
a Bilingual<br />
Dictionary from<br />
King Ashurbanipal’s<br />
Library, Neo-Assyrian<br />
period, 668–627 BC, terracotta. Musée du Louvre,<br />
Department of Near Eastern Antiquities, Paris.<br />
Agriculture<br />
Mesopotamians developed sophisticated irrigation<br />
systems, including canals and levees, to control<br />
and distribute water for agriculture. These achievements<br />
in urban planning and infrastructure laid<br />
the foundation for future city development and resource<br />
management.<br />
Mesopotamians pioneered innovative agricultural<br />
techniques to sustain their growing population.<br />
They utilized irrigation systems to control the<br />
flow of water, improving crop yields and supporting<br />
surplus food production. They also introduced the<br />
use of the plow, enhancing agricultural efficiency.<br />
These advancements in agriculture allowed for the<br />
establishment of larger settlements and facilitated<br />
the growth of complex societies.<br />
Legacy Left<br />
In his 1988 book History Begins at Sumer, author<br />
Samuel Noah Kramer identifies 39 “firsts” that<br />
originated with the Sumerians, including the first<br />
schools, first Great Flood story, first heroic epic story,<br />
first historian, first library catalog, first aquarium,<br />
and first lullaby.<br />
Visionaries and trailblazers who left an indelible<br />
mark on human civilization through their pioneering<br />
achievements, Mesopotamians influenced current<br />
culture to a remarkable degree. By pushing the<br />
boundaries of human knowledge and ingenuity, the<br />
Mesopotamians created a legacy that will continue<br />
to endure.<br />
Today, the descendants of ancient Mesopotamians<br />
— Chaldeans, or Assyrians or Syriacs — take<br />
pride in their heritage both in their native homeland<br />
and throughout the world, where they have been<br />
forced to disperse due to persecution.<br />
PHOTO © MUSÉE DU LOUVRE, DIST. RMN-GRAND PALAIS.<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 27
FEATURE<br />
least 20 minutes a day or to draw a<br />
picture of a fun summer memory. Depending<br />
on their maturity level, give<br />
them the freedom to use that space<br />
responsibly without you – after setting<br />
expectations, of course. Kids will<br />
have better focus and thus produce<br />
higher-quality work. Sometimes the<br />
best thing for our kids is when we get<br />
out of their way.<br />
Getting Back into<br />
the School Mindset<br />
BY CRYSTAL KASSAB JABIRO<br />
It’s August, and soon the summer<br />
will slowly come to a sad surrender<br />
and the hustle and bustle of<br />
school will be upon us. Pick-ups and<br />
drop-offs, packing snacks and school<br />
lunches, buying clothes and shoes and<br />
school supplies, and of course, homework<br />
and extracurriculars. It is a full<br />
plate for moms and dads and kids everywhere!<br />
For some parents, getting back into<br />
school-mode is a daunting task – the<br />
time, the cost, the energy (the khilek)<br />
that is needed! For others, it is delightful,<br />
and the first day cannot come fast<br />
enough – they need those kids (and<br />
their fingerprints) out of the house!<br />
No matter what kind of parent you are,<br />
YOU are your kids’ main teacher, and<br />
it is important for you to positively set<br />
the tone for the new school year.<br />
This will be my 22nd year teaching<br />
tweens and teens, and I have learned<br />
many valuable lessons along the way,<br />
especially through my most important<br />
job — being a mom to two wonderful<br />
teenagers. Below are my top 5 research-based<br />
tips on getting back into<br />
the school mindset.<br />
Reestablish Routines<br />
The dog days of summer might make<br />
us carefree and even a little lazy and<br />
out of our habits, but to make your<br />
lives easier, you must go back to routines<br />
or establish new ones at least<br />
two weeks before school starts. That<br />
means bedtimes, wake-up times, and<br />
mealtimes need to be consistent.<br />
Decide on a bedtime or give a time<br />
range that your kids need to be in bed<br />
by and have them practice “waking<br />
up” for school, even if you are not going<br />
anywhere. Their bodies need to get<br />
used to the time change, and the more<br />
prepared they are, the less morning<br />
struggles your home will have.<br />
The usual rush in the morning<br />
means a quick and simple breakfast<br />
before the bus arrives, so restart that.<br />
You can also serve lunch between 11<br />
and noon, a common time in schools,<br />
and if you haven’t already, start eating<br />
dinner at a consistent and agreedupon<br />
hour that works for your family.<br />
Research shows that children with<br />
consistent routines have strong social/<br />
emotional health; it is up to you as the<br />
parents to reinforce those routines.<br />
Set Expectations<br />
Parents, we must go back to being<br />
strict. Not in a draconian way, but in<br />
a manner that is clear-cut to our children.<br />
Just as teachers set expectations<br />
in a classroom, so must we in our<br />
households. Have a family discussion<br />
about everything, like getting homework<br />
and chores done, social media,<br />
how much caffeine they can have,<br />
going out, and curfews. When you believe<br />
it is age-appropriate, talk to your<br />
kids about sex and drugs and alcohol.<br />
Talk about everything!<br />
When your kids ask why you have<br />
these rules, tell them they are not<br />
rules, but expectations, as in, “I expect<br />
your homework to be done before<br />
dinner,” or, “I expect you will be home<br />
by 10 pm,” or even more all-encompassing,<br />
“I expect you to approach us<br />
about your problems and not turn to<br />
dangerous habits.”<br />
Talk about goals along with what<br />
went well last school year and what<br />
they would like to improve upon this<br />
year. Include those new goals in your<br />
expectations. When you involve your<br />
kids in the decision-making, they will<br />
strive to meet those expectations, and<br />
when you are consistent, it will help<br />
with behavior and discipline, which<br />
ultimately leads to positive effects in<br />
academic achievement.<br />
Set Up a Study Area<br />
Create a space for your kids to do homework,<br />
study, read, or complete projects,<br />
making sure that it is well-lit and<br />
away from distractions. Keep the space<br />
stocked with paper, pencils, markers,<br />
crayons, glue, tape, scissors, and any<br />
other school/office necessities.<br />
Before school starts, encourage<br />
them to use that space to read for at<br />
Every Moment is a<br />
Teachable Moment<br />
Any and everything can be a lesson!<br />
Don’t worry, if you have not been doing<br />
this all summer, you can start now.<br />
You could take your kids to the Detroit<br />
Zoo to learn about animals and their<br />
habitats or to the Chaldean Cultural<br />
Center to learn about our history.<br />
The grocery store is a very easy<br />
place to teach reading, math, science,<br />
and even geography. Ask your kids to<br />
read the signs and help them sound out<br />
words, and then tell them to look for<br />
something on your grocery list. They<br />
can help you figure out how much three<br />
pounds of cucumbers will be. They can<br />
do a scavenger hunt to learn on their<br />
own, like about the volcanic soil of San<br />
Marzano tomatoes or why Michigan is<br />
the cherry capital of the world.<br />
They can also glean lessons in<br />
manners, like saying “thank you” to an<br />
employee or returning the grocery cart<br />
to the corral in the parking lot. These<br />
sorts of exercises help to combat learning<br />
loss when kids are out of school,<br />
also referred to as the “summer slide.”<br />
Practice Run<br />
Some kids, especially little ones or<br />
those going to a new school, get anxious<br />
before school starts, so it would<br />
be a good idea to take them there to<br />
familiarize them with it. Show them<br />
their classroom(s), as well as the office,<br />
cafeteria, gym, and bathrooms.<br />
Older kids will have lockers, so you<br />
can help them practice, especially if<br />
it is their first time having one. Some<br />
schools will do meet-and-greets, and<br />
even if there is no formal one, you<br />
might find the teacher there preparing<br />
his or her classroom. They are almost<br />
always happy to chat.<br />
With some practice before school<br />
starts, we can calm those first day<br />
jitters – for our kids and for us too –<br />
and help set them up for a successful<br />
school year.<br />
28 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
CHALDEAN COMMUNITY FOUNDATION<br />
Educational programs<br />
Registration open.<br />
Please call for an appointment.<br />
All Nationalities Welcome!<br />
ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE<br />
GED (HIGH SCHOOL EQUIVALENCY DEGREE)<br />
Provides individuals English<br />
instruction at basic/beginner and<br />
intermediate/advanced levels<br />
Small group instruction for<br />
individuals working towards<br />
their GED<br />
LITTLE SCHOLARS PRESCHOOL<br />
CITIZENSHIP PREPARATION<br />
Prepares children for kindergarten<br />
through a variety of emergent<br />
literacy, early learning and<br />
development opportunities<br />
Offers instruction and training for<br />
successful completion of the U.S.<br />
Citizenship and Immigration Services<br />
(USCIS) Naturalization interview<br />
We can’t wait to see you!<br />
Want to learn more? Please contact Rachel Rose at<br />
Rachel.rose@chaldeanfoundation.org or call (586) 722-7253<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 29
FEATURE<br />
Beyond Borders<br />
Reflections from a Transformative Iraq Mission Trip<br />
BY DR. RENA DAIZA<br />
“<br />
The fruit of love is service,<br />
which is compassion in action.”<br />
Mother Teresa’s words<br />
echoed in our hearts as we embarked<br />
on a remarkable medical mission to<br />
Iraq in June <strong>2023</strong>. With a team of nine<br />
dedicated healthcare professionals<br />
and two aspiring medical students,<br />
we traveled to a land that held both<br />
ancestral roots and a need for medical<br />
assistance. What unfolded was an<br />
emotional and impactful experience<br />
that left a lasting impression on us.<br />
As our team geared up for the journey,<br />
I felt a deep sense of humility to<br />
have been entrusted with leading this<br />
diverse and dedicated group. It was<br />
an honor that carried with it an air of<br />
responsibility and a desire to ensure<br />
that our mission would leave a lasting<br />
impression. With half of our team<br />
consisting of American-born members<br />
who were unfamiliar with Iraq’s<br />
current state, we trekked into the unknown<br />
with unwavering enthusiasm,<br />
ready to lend our skills and support.<br />
Personally, this mission offered a<br />
unique opportunity to connect with<br />
my family’s homeland–a place I never<br />
thought I would have the chance to<br />
visit due to its war-torn history. Setting<br />
foot inside the same church where<br />
previous generations had exchanged<br />
vows evoked a deep sense of connection<br />
to my roots. It became evident that<br />
this journey encompassed more than<br />
healthcare; it also forged personal and<br />
cultural bonds, bridging gaps formed<br />
by years of separation and turmoil.<br />
The impact of those turbulent years<br />
was palpable as we ventured to villages<br />
located just north of Mosul, including<br />
Tel Keppe where my family is from.<br />
These areas were captured by ISIS during<br />
their invasion in 2014. As we made<br />
our way toward Tel Keppe, we couldn’t<br />
help but notice the presence of damaged<br />
buildings, scarred with bullet<br />
holes that had never been repaired.<br />
Once bustling with our Chaldean<br />
families, these places looked completely<br />
desolate. Walking through the<br />
remnants of our churches, witnessing<br />
their destruction, stirred deep emotions<br />
within us. Closing our eyes, we<br />
could almost envision the marble<br />
walls that once shimmered during<br />
Sunday masses. The sight of religious<br />
relics used as targets for ISIS fighters<br />
was a reminder of the atrocities endured.<br />
Despite the emotional intensity,<br />
this visit held immense significance<br />
for our entire team.<br />
The final village we encountered<br />
on our journey back to the city was<br />
Alqosh, a village spared by the horrors<br />
of ISIS. Although I had never set foot<br />
there before, it immediately evoked<br />
a sense of familiarity and a feeling of<br />
home. We made a special visit to an<br />
all-girls orphanage in Alqosh.<br />
Our time with these angels proved<br />
to be as enriching for our team as it<br />
was for the girls themselves. Laughter<br />
filled the air as we shared stories and<br />
formed connections. Taking on the<br />
Dr. Rena Daiza discussing urgent<br />
health issues in Iraq with the<br />
Minister of Health of Kurdistan<br />
Region of Iraq, Dr. Saman Barzangy.<br />
role of health educators, we shared<br />
valuable knowledge on the importance<br />
of proper dental care, making<br />
healthy food choices, and safeguarding<br />
their mental well-being. This experience<br />
served as a genuine bond that<br />
we will cherish forever.<br />
Many of our days were dedicated<br />
to visiting local hospitals and clinics,<br />
some of which were established<br />
to address the needs of those disproportionately<br />
affected by the atrocities<br />
committed by ISIS, including minority<br />
Christians and Yazidis. Among them, a<br />
particular clinic in Duhok made a profound<br />
impact.<br />
This clinic specifically focused on<br />
providing support to Yazidi women<br />
who endured unimaginable suffering<br />
at the hands of ISIS. These women<br />
faced immense challenges in readjusting<br />
to life after their captivity, with<br />
Mission team after a productive<br />
meeting with Ano Abdoka, Minister<br />
of Transportation and Communications<br />
of Kurdistan Region of Iraq.<br />
some expressing a preference for the<br />
life they had with their captors rather<br />
than risk being rejected by society. The<br />
clinic emerged as a sanctuary, providing<br />
a safe haven for these courageous<br />
survivors to reclaim a sense of normalcy<br />
and heal from their traumatic<br />
experiences.<br />
Our mission extended beyond medical<br />
care as we engaged with religious<br />
leaders, government officials, and<br />
health ministers to address healthcare<br />
needs in Iraq. These discussions paved<br />
the way for future medical missions as<br />
we explored potential collaborations<br />
and partnerships.<br />
We also seized the opportunity to<br />
visit medical schools and universities,<br />
initiating a medical student exchange<br />
program between the United States<br />
and Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Through<br />
this program, we aim to enhance medical<br />
education on both ends, fostering<br />
cross-cultural understanding and nurturing<br />
the next generation of healthcare<br />
professionals.<br />
Despite its reputation for conflict,<br />
Iraq unfolded as a stunning country<br />
that captivated us with its natural<br />
beauty and embraced us with the genuine<br />
warmth of its people. The Kurdistan<br />
region in particular left a lasting<br />
impression.<br />
We discovered a developed area<br />
where we felt safe and secure, surrounded<br />
by vibrant markets, stunning<br />
mountains, and cascading waterfalls<br />
that showcased Iraq’s natural splendor.<br />
However, what truly made our<br />
journey unforgettable was the genuine<br />
kindness and hospitality of the locals.<br />
Their belief in bridging cultural divides<br />
was inspirational, fostering an<br />
environment where genuine connections<br />
could flourish.<br />
Our medical mission to Iraq was<br />
a journey of compassion, connection,<br />
and hope. The trip was more impactful<br />
than I could have imagined. From<br />
visiting clinics to creating a bridge between<br />
students across the globe, our<br />
efforts sought to pave the way to these<br />
connections and encourage others to<br />
venture to places unknown. We left<br />
with hope, inspiring others to visit this<br />
beautiful place and give back to their<br />
communities. For in the fruit of love,<br />
we find service, and through service,<br />
we discover the true essence of compassion<br />
that transcends borders and<br />
unites us all.<br />
30 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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In therapy your therapist will help you to establish person<br />
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<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 31
FEATURE<br />
On Martyrs Day<br />
Remembering Seyfo<br />
BY CHRIS SALEM<br />
Imagine attending a wedding a century<br />
ago with hundreds of friends<br />
and family at a community banquet<br />
hall like Shenandoah. Everyone<br />
was enjoying themselves and then<br />
suddenly, invaders showed up. They<br />
were not coming to rob or steal; they<br />
were coming to eradicate you and your<br />
people with a darkness that knew no<br />
bounds. They started by disarming<br />
any potentially armed men, rounding<br />
them all up, and murdering them in<br />
front of their wives, mothers, children,<br />
and the entire extended family. In this<br />
horror story, once every adult male was<br />
sprayed with dozens of bullets,<br />
no one remained to protect the<br />
hundreds of horrified widows<br />
and daughters from the invaders<br />
who committed unspeakable,<br />
gender-specific crimes<br />
against them.<br />
This story is not fictional —<br />
it is your history. It began with<br />
the Seyfo Genocide between<br />
1914 – 1925 and peaked with<br />
the Semele [Simele] Massacre<br />
in 1933, exactly 90 years ago.<br />
If you ever wondered what our<br />
community was doing during<br />
World War I and the Great Depression,<br />
this was it.<br />
Age was not a factor in these<br />
crimes. Little girls and elderly women<br />
were not immune from assaults on<br />
their dignity. After the invaders attacked,<br />
they disposed of the women in<br />
the same way they did the men. Some<br />
committed suicide rather than being<br />
held captive. Some were given the<br />
option to be promoted to the second,<br />
third, or fourth wife of their assailant,<br />
but under strict conditions requiring<br />
conversion. Other women were kidnapped,<br />
transported, and sold to the<br />
highest bidder.<br />
After watching their mothers and<br />
sisters get violated, and their fathers<br />
and brothers get shot, any children<br />
who were old enough to remember<br />
what they witnessed also got shot.<br />
The invaders could not risk vengeful<br />
8-year-olds growing up with fire in<br />
their hearts, plotting their demise. The<br />
loose ends were tied up.<br />
The youngest, too young to remember<br />
such horrors, were torn from<br />
their roots and raised to become like<br />
the very monsters who deleted their<br />
family’s existence and reshaped their<br />
lives. Not every child shared this fate.<br />
Many of them were turned into targets<br />
for sport.<br />
This is what happened during the<br />
Semele Massacre in 1933. Many of the<br />
victims had fled what later became<br />
Turkey after the Seyfo Genocide and<br />
eventually settled in Semele, Iraq.<br />
Semele is about 40 miles away from<br />
Tel Keppe, and about 25 miles from<br />
Alqosh. The genocide in Turkey was<br />
perpetrated by the Ottoman government,<br />
Turkish irregulars, Kurdish militants,<br />
Circassians, Arabs, and Azeris,<br />
Persians, while the atrocity in Semele<br />
was a state sponsored massacre by the<br />
Iraqi Government and Kurdish militants.<br />
An estimated 6,000 Christians<br />
were killed and over 100 villages<br />
were destroyed over a period of several<br />
days. in a single day. Those who<br />
remained fled to Alqosh, where they<br />
were protected by their heavily armed<br />
brethren, according to a documentary<br />
by Wilson Sarkis.<br />
August 7 is the 90-year anniversary<br />
of the Semele Massacre, which<br />
is also known as Martyr’s Day. In a<br />
groundbreaking move, the U.S. House<br />
of Representatives has introduced a<br />
resolution—H. RES. 472— to formally<br />
recognize and remember the Semele<br />
Massacre of 1933. This resolution seeks<br />
to rectify the historical injustice faced<br />
by our community, rejects any attempt<br />
to deny the massacre, and emphasizes<br />
the need for public education about<br />
the incident.<br />
When the invaders successfully exterminated<br />
3/4 of our population during<br />
WWI, it was because of division.<br />
Division led to the fall of our ancient<br />
empire and led to the Seyfo Genocide<br />
Yousef VI Emmanuel II Thomas, patriarch of the Chaldean Catholic Church from 1900 until his<br />
death in 1947. General Petros Elia, head negotiator for the Assyrian nation between 1919 and<br />
1923. Madame Habiba, matron of the military hospital who was featured in Shall This Nation Die?<br />
in World War I. Division also led to the<br />
Semele Massacre. In a book detailing<br />
an account of the massacre of Christians<br />
by the Turks in Persia, author Yonan<br />
Shahbaz wrote the following:<br />
“The Mohammedans were, of<br />
course, pleased to see the Christians<br />
fighting one another. In the towns the<br />
latter were always at variance; each<br />
sect claimed that the others had no<br />
right to be there, and they opposed<br />
one another with great animosity.<br />
Each despised the other, very often on<br />
the mere ground that one had been the<br />
longer in the country. These bitter and<br />
outrageous feelings have been held<br />
for years, many years. The complaints<br />
were transmitted from one generation<br />
to the next.”<br />
Within the last few hundred years,<br />
divisive church politics weakened a<br />
nation one race of people into multiple<br />
competing churches, and we lost<br />
hundreds of thousands as a result.<br />
They died in the cruelest ways for<br />
their Christianity and their way of life,<br />
culture, and heritage. Our Church is<br />
known as the “Church of Martyrs” for<br />
that reason.<br />
Some, fortunately, lived to tell the<br />
story. One of those people was Chaldean<br />
Reverend Joseph Naayem, who<br />
published a book in 1921 called “Shall<br />
This Nation Die?”. Without people like<br />
him, we wouldn’t even know the massacre<br />
happened in the first place. All the<br />
screams, horror, blood, and destruction<br />
would have simply vanished into the<br />
dark abyss of oblivion. In fact, the Turkish<br />
government publicly denies this ever<br />
happened, like they do with the Armenian<br />
Genocide, which happened in the<br />
same place at the same time.<br />
Some estimates report losses of up<br />
to 300,000 people, while others<br />
are as high as 750,000.<br />
Imagine all the relationships<br />
that were lost, the wealth<br />
that was burned, and the traditions<br />
that are now stored deep<br />
in the vastness of obscurity.<br />
We’ll never fully know what we<br />
lost. Millions of lives, possibilities,<br />
and dreams vanished into<br />
the void of the past, leaving<br />
only shadows of what might<br />
have been. This is our history,<br />
and history repeats itself. ISIS<br />
rose in 2014. Now, our people<br />
are barely hanging on by a<br />
thread in the homeland.<br />
The Jews spare no detail when they<br />
discuss the holocaust. Neither do the<br />
Armenians when they talk about their<br />
genocide, or African Americans when<br />
they talk about slavery. If our ancestors<br />
went through all of that, the least<br />
we can do is read and know about it.<br />
We were at a crossroads in 2014;<br />
face extinction or do something about<br />
it. Now that we have finally settled in<br />
the West, transformed ourselves entirely,<br />
and achieved financial success,<br />
we can finally do something about it.<br />
Several nonprofit organizations exist<br />
for this exact purpose, like the Chaldean<br />
Community Foundation, Assyrian<br />
Aid Society, Help Iraq, Etuti Institute,<br />
and Nineveh Rising. Find the one<br />
you resonate with and make a difference<br />
so that this history never again<br />
repeats itself.<br />
32 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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YOU<br />
HIRING?<br />
JOIN US<br />
2ND ANNUAL<br />
COMMUNITY<br />
JOB FAIR<br />
Wednesday, September, 27, <strong>2023</strong> 3:00 P. M . -6:00 P. M .<br />
The Chaldean Community Foundation (CCF) invites you to participate in our 2nd Annual<br />
Community Job Fair <strong>2023</strong>. Our job fair will enable you, the employer, to meet and<br />
conduct on-the-spot interviews with New Americans and the greater community. It is an<br />
excellent opportunity to promote open positions and network with other businesses and<br />
organizations. We look forward to seeing you!<br />
Please register by scaning the<br />
QR code below.<br />
Employers will receive:<br />
• Table and two chairs for setup.<br />
• Light refreshments and snacks.<br />
* Space is limited. Registration is available on a first come,<br />
first served basis.<br />
$150 Registration fee<br />
For more info contact Elias at Elias.Kattoula@chaldeanfoundation.org or call 586-722-7253.<br />
Chaldean Community Foundation<br />
Wireless Vision Gymnasium<br />
3601 15 Mile Rd.<br />
Sterling Heights, MI, 48310<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 33
ECONOMICS & ENTERPRISE<br />
Christina Roki:<br />
Motor City’s Media Maven<br />
BY CAL ABBO<br />
When Christina Roki’s family<br />
car broke down, they<br />
couldn’t afford a mechanic<br />
to look it over. Her family lived paycheck<br />
to paycheck, and with three<br />
children, there was little money to<br />
spare. Most would turn to a family<br />
member for help or take out a shortterm<br />
loan. But Christina had a rare and<br />
enterprising thought: What if she tried<br />
to fix it herself?<br />
The rest, as they say, is history.<br />
Since the incidents with her parents’<br />
car, Christina leveraged her<br />
knowledge and social savvy to find<br />
extraordinary success on social media<br />
in the niche market of automotive<br />
engineering and aesthetics, amassing<br />
more than three million followers on<br />
TikTok and 265,000 on Instagram. Her<br />
videos, which she posts several times<br />
per week, attract viewers in the hundreds<br />
of thousands. These numbers<br />
put her in the top echelon of automotive<br />
social media creators, and she<br />
is certainly one of the most popular<br />
Chaldean influencers in the world.<br />
There is, however, a hitch in the<br />
narrative. Christina failed, many times,<br />
at fixing the vehicle. The key differences<br />
between her story and others are<br />
persistence, diligence, and the relentless<br />
desire to help her own family.<br />
A Mechanic’s Metamorphosis<br />
The journey was neither straightforward<br />
nor simple. As a young, firstgeneration<br />
American woman, Christina<br />
has a unique position in the automotive<br />
influencer category. She’s learned<br />
a lot about the cutthroat and saturated<br />
industry, and with few female influencers<br />
to draw inspiration from, she has<br />
forged her own path out of necessity.<br />
Christina’s mother was born in Zakho,<br />
a mid-sized city located about as far<br />
north as Iraq extends. Her family fled<br />
just before the Iran-Iraq war began in<br />
1980. According to Christina, her mother<br />
and her family walked all the way to<br />
the border to seek refuge in Turkey.<br />
From there, her family applied for<br />
refugee status. Unfortunately, different<br />
people were accepted in different<br />
parts of the world. This is common for<br />
refugees and contributes to the reality<br />
of the Chaldean diaspora. Some of<br />
her family went to Europe, and some<br />
to Canada. Christina’s mother eventually<br />
married a Chaldean man in Detroit<br />
and gave birth to three daughters, including<br />
Christina, who was born on<br />
Christmas Day in the year 2000.<br />
When Christina was about 5 years<br />
old, her mother and the three kids<br />
moved back to Canada, where she<br />
has several cousins. Once she was in<br />
middle school, they moved back to the<br />
Detroit area.<br />
Growing up, Christina joked that<br />
she was the boy in the family. While<br />
she got along well with her sisters and<br />
performed the same household chores<br />
as they did, she grew to like things that<br />
are often seen as traditionally masculine—cars,<br />
engineering, and computer<br />
science. When the famous car<br />
breakdowns began to occur, Christina<br />
educated herself on car mechanics<br />
by searching the issues on YouTube.<br />
In these moments, history was made,<br />
and the echoes of her first clanking<br />
can be heard by millions around the<br />
world who watch her videos.<br />
Christina faced harsh backlash<br />
from her father for her attempts to fix<br />
the family car. “You can’t do it,” her father<br />
said, according to Christina. “Why<br />
are you even opening the hood?”<br />
“I won’t lie, I started crying,” Christina<br />
said. “It’s just that doubt, constant<br />
doubt from your own support system.<br />
It filled me with anger, confusion,<br />
and I questioned my own abilities.<br />
You have to brush it off, even when it<br />
comes from your own father, that you<br />
can’t do it because you’re a girl.”<br />
She also had to convince her mother<br />
to let her go to Los Angeles as an<br />
18-year-old. “It’s hard for them to understand<br />
social media, TikTok, car engineering,<br />
and the educational side of<br />
it,” she said. “Being successful is a big<br />
part, knowing that I was able to make<br />
something out of it.”<br />
Christina constantly refers to her<br />
parents as “old school.” In the beginning,<br />
her mother would see her working<br />
on a project with a boy and immediately<br />
offer her objections. Christina<br />
countered that there were no girls to<br />
work with, but part of her mission was<br />
to change that. “I told them, this is me<br />
trying to make that change.”<br />
While Christina still takes it seriously,<br />
she said it feels silly thinking<br />
about it now. “Looking back, it definitely<br />
drove me to be where I am right<br />
now and fueled me up,” she added.<br />
“It’s another variable that helps me<br />
boost my drive, that keeps me going<br />
and learning.” Having these doubts<br />
come from her own family, she said,<br />
helped her laugh off outlandish social<br />
media comments which come from<br />
people she doesn’t even know.<br />
At Stevenson High School in<br />
Sterling Heights, Christina met her<br />
statistics and calculus teacher, Mr.<br />
Carpenter. “He was one of my biggest<br />
mentors. He told me about tons<br />
of opportunities and scholarships,”<br />
she said, emphasizing his exceptional<br />
ability to instruct each individual student<br />
rather than teaching an average<br />
class. He also encouraged her to join<br />
the robotics team to further explore<br />
her passion for computer science.<br />
Robotics introduced her to the<br />
world of computer science and engineering<br />
in an official and educational<br />
setting. She fell in love with the field<br />
and decided to make it into a career.<br />
This experience also gave her the confidence<br />
to work with groups of boys in a<br />
traditionally male-dominated field, an<br />
ROKI continued on page 36<br />
34 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 35
ROKI continued from page 34<br />
asset she’s carried with her ever since.<br />
Even before she graduated high<br />
school, Christina started a program for<br />
women in STEM. “The robotics team<br />
in high school is there so we can learn<br />
and make mistakes,” she said. “I wanted<br />
to create something like that but<br />
less competitive.” Thus, Christina’s<br />
automotive STEM camp for women,<br />
Project 102, was born.<br />
The annual camp accepts 20 female<br />
high school students who are<br />
interested in STEM and the automotive<br />
industry and leads them through<br />
a five-day program of workshops, lectures,<br />
and hands-on installation of vehicle<br />
modifications.<br />
This year’s iteration of Project 102,<br />
From Scarcity to Stardom<br />
During her childhood, Christina’s parents<br />
didn’t speak much English, and they<br />
had an especially difficult time reading<br />
and interpreting mail. This gap was filled<br />
by her and her sisters, who would help<br />
translate documents and bills.<br />
“I was constantly trying to make<br />
ends meet with my parents’ bills,”<br />
Christina said. Often, she couldn’t afford<br />
to participate in class field trips because<br />
of costs, and she never had stylish,<br />
new clothes to wear in school. “But<br />
I never blamed my parents,” she added.<br />
According to Christina, her mother<br />
worked two or three jobs at a time, and<br />
her sisters would help whenever they<br />
could. At times, this meant applying for<br />
food stamps or healthcare, or filing taxes,<br />
and helping around the house. “My<br />
work for one of the big three as a data<br />
analyst on performance vehicles. Although<br />
the path is less clear now, she<br />
has only expanded her options.<br />
“I had a lot of doubts, but I’ve always<br />
been a big risk-taker,” Christina<br />
said. “I wanted to not take the average<br />
path. I have goals bigger than I could<br />
achieve by taking an average path. If I<br />
just went with the flow, it wouldn’t get<br />
me where I need to go.”<br />
Christina sees herself as a force<br />
for inspiration in her community. She<br />
shared one of her mottos, which she<br />
learned in Chaldean and translated<br />
into English. “Keep your head down<br />
and walk.”<br />
She interprets this saying as a way<br />
to stay humble and focus on your own<br />
path. Have your ups and downs but<br />
going to school now,” she said. “I’m<br />
just here to inspire and be inspired.”<br />
In the beginning, Christina filtered<br />
her content so that she only showed<br />
successes. She avoided telling her audience<br />
about problems she encountered<br />
or mistakes she made. Soon, she<br />
realized she was putting on a face that<br />
was unnecessary; it’s okay to make<br />
mistakes and break things. In fact,<br />
that’s how others learn from you. She<br />
found a lot of media success and more<br />
satisfaction after this stylistic switch.<br />
Christina also shares a YouTube<br />
channel with her boyfriend of more<br />
than five years, Grant Sloan. Together,<br />
they post vlogs of themselves buying,<br />
building, and modifying cars. While<br />
this content is not as lucrative or attention-grabbing<br />
as short-form videos,<br />
From left: A post on Christina’s social media account; young women at a workshop taught by Christina; the influencer in Japan with Nissan.<br />
which concluded in March, was featured<br />
as a photo essay in the Detroit<br />
Free Press. Sarahbeth Maney, a photojournalist<br />
for the Free Press, showcased<br />
the project to the metro Detroit<br />
community.<br />
“I want to inspire girls to join maledominated<br />
fields,” Christina said. “Being<br />
Chaldean, our families want us to<br />
be doctors and pharmacists, but I just<br />
wanted to be an engineer. I wanted to<br />
introduce it to other students for free<br />
so they can figure out if it’s a passion<br />
of theirs. This is something that you<br />
can’t really do unless someone puts it<br />
in front of you.”<br />
Christina tapped into an important<br />
aspect of the gender disparity in engineering<br />
and the automotive industry.<br />
As a general rule, this work is difficult<br />
to access because of its expensive<br />
equipment. Many car engineers and<br />
mechanics end up in the industry after<br />
learning or being inspired by family or<br />
friends, and women are not privy to this<br />
type of knowledge as much as men.<br />
Christina is trying to fix that, 20 women<br />
and millions of viewers at a time.<br />
head was always in the real world.”<br />
This childhood experience feeds<br />
Christina’s strong desire to support her<br />
own family, and bonds them together<br />
in everlasting connection. “We’re very<br />
family-dependent,” she said. “My sisters<br />
and cousins always have my back.<br />
If my mom had one dollar in her pocket,<br />
she would give it to us.”<br />
Christina’s mother tells her daughters<br />
that she came to this country for<br />
them, so they could have a better life.<br />
Christina accepted this love, transformed<br />
it, and sent it back. She wants<br />
her mother to have a better life now<br />
and see something grow out of her<br />
own arduous journey.<br />
Christina’s expertise in the automotive<br />
industry is mostly self-taught,<br />
however, she is an exceptional student.<br />
She graduated from Stevenson one<br />
year early and entered college as a junior<br />
at the University of Michigan in the<br />
College of Engineering. She is due to<br />
graduate this summer, which will give<br />
her more time to work on her car builds<br />
and content creation. Before her social<br />
media accounts blew up, she wanted to<br />
keep them to yourself. “I have so many<br />
ideas and things I want to accomplish,”<br />
she said. “It’s more fulfilling<br />
if you achieve it on your own, without<br />
telling anyone your plans.”<br />
Fast Lane to Fame<br />
Christina’s content has changed a<br />
lot since she began. She first learned<br />
about TikTok from her younger sister,<br />
who was on the app before it even got<br />
its name. “She’s always ahead of the<br />
trend and gives me inspiration and<br />
ideas,” Christina said.<br />
Christina also claims to be one of<br />
the first automotive influencers on Tik-<br />
Tok. In the beginning, she posted educational<br />
content like how to change a<br />
headlight or modify a car. Then, over<br />
time, it turned into a lifestyle account,<br />
and she started to involve her family.<br />
Now, Christina is a shining example<br />
for female automotive content creators.<br />
She regularly sees content online<br />
that is clearly inspired by her own,<br />
and she couldn’t be prouder. “I get a<br />
lot of tags and comments, people telling<br />
me about their cars or that they’re<br />
Christina enjoys this more because it<br />
allows her to form a deeper connection<br />
with her audience.<br />
One of Christina’s favorite cars is<br />
one she made for an invitation-only<br />
drag race created for influencers. She<br />
swapped a Hellcat Redeye with a Challenger<br />
RT, which is a complex process<br />
that involves removing and reinstalling<br />
the Hellcat’s 6.2-liter, supercharged<br />
V8 engine in the Challenger, offering<br />
nearly double the horsepower. The final<br />
modification, which she decided on<br />
24 hours before the race began, was to<br />
wrap the vehicle in rose gold.<br />
With great power comes great<br />
responsibility, and with that, great<br />
fame. When she began, Christina<br />
would send emails and pitch projects<br />
to various brands; most were<br />
not interested. Now, the paradigm<br />
has flipped, and brands are eager to<br />
work with her. “One of the tipping<br />
points was Nissan, which allowed me<br />
to build a car and put it at the SEMA<br />
show front and center,” she said.<br />
For this show, she customized a Nissan<br />
truck with a wide body, lowered<br />
36 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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Christina has also worked on<br />
major projects with Ruffles, Toyota,<br />
Hypebeast, and 7-Eleven. She just<br />
revealed her newest car build which<br />
features a custom Slurpee design inspired<br />
by the world-famous convenience<br />
store.<br />
Earlier this year, Christina was invited<br />
to the world premiere of Fast X,<br />
the latest hit movie in the Fast & Furious<br />
series, in Rome, Italy. There, she<br />
met some celebrities, including John<br />
Cena and her favorite cast member,<br />
Jordana Brewster, who plays Mia Toretto<br />
in the movies.<br />
“I love bringing my family along<br />
on all of these journeys,” she said. “I<br />
brought my cousins from Canada and<br />
Belgium and my little sister. That’s<br />
what makes my day. I don’t like enjoying<br />
this stuff all by myself. I want<br />
my family to share these experiences,<br />
too.”<br />
Christina has enjoyed her fair<br />
share of fame from fans, too. In one<br />
instance, she went to a car festival in<br />
Arizona where one of her fans drove<br />
all the way from Texas to meet Christina<br />
and show off her own inspired<br />
build. “I spent pretty much the whole<br />
day with her,” Christina said. “She<br />
started watching me from my very<br />
first videos. It was a whole different<br />
level of connection that makes me<br />
want to keep going. I’m here to represent<br />
the female automotive community.<br />
This is only the start of it.”<br />
Christina believes that brands<br />
play a vital role in breaking down<br />
the gender gap in the industry, and<br />
not just in her case. When large companies<br />
sponsor Christina’s projects,<br />
it shows other women that there are<br />
real opportunities out there, and it<br />
helps to grow her female audience.<br />
“Institutions and communities<br />
and smaller groups are paving the<br />
path for the future, and it can start a<br />
chain reaction,” Christina said, referencing<br />
her experience with the robotics<br />
team. “That’s why it’s important to<br />
keep my program going.”<br />
Christina advises her followers to<br />
stick with their goals and plans and<br />
avoid getting down after a few rejections.<br />
Even the most successful stories<br />
are full of dismissals and unanswered<br />
emails in the beginning. She<br />
told a story of her application for a<br />
Chaldean Community Foundation<br />
scholarship almost five years ago. She<br />
was denied, and she admitted it hurt<br />
her at the time.<br />
This seemingly small event, which<br />
undoubtedly put doubt in her mind<br />
and shot her own confidence, came<br />
full circle as she recently reconnected<br />
with the CCF, albeit at a different stage<br />
in her life and for different reasons.<br />
This synchronicity reinforced a valuable<br />
lesson for Christina, one that she<br />
hopes to instill in others: Keep your<br />
head down and walk.<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 37
CHALDEAN KITCHEN<br />
Samira Cholagh’s elevates<br />
traditional cooked barley<br />
(Pikota Habbia Kashka)<br />
into a work of art.<br />
A Short History<br />
Barley is an extremely hardy grain and<br />
has survived over the centuries because<br />
of its unique design: It has a double<br />
husk, and the outer husk layer helps to<br />
make it very resistant to insects.<br />
First cultivated around 11,000<br />
years ago, barley was grown in the<br />
Fertile Crescent, a region with relatively<br />
abundant water that spans Western<br />
Asia and the Nile River delta in northeast<br />
Africa. It was a staple in many<br />
cultures — including ancient Greek,<br />
Roman, Egyptian, Chinese and Viking<br />
civilizations. In ancient Mesopotamia,<br />
barley was used not just for cooking<br />
but often served as currency as well.<br />
Food as Art<br />
Presentation is central to Samira Cholagh’s take on<br />
the traditional cooked barley (Pikota Habbia Kashka)<br />
BY Z.Z. DAWOD<br />
Although there are a variety of<br />
ways to prepare Pikota, the ageold<br />
Chaldean dish, Samira Cholagh’s<br />
presentation is like nothing you’ve<br />
ever seen before. With only a handful of<br />
ingredients, the recipe itself is surprisingly<br />
simple but the final touch of display<br />
Samira gives her Pikota is over-thetop<br />
extraordinary: It’s a work of art.<br />
Detail-oriented and creative,<br />
Samira draws on her love for baking<br />
when putting the final touches on her<br />
creations. Experimenting with cake<br />
pans for shaping and molding, the<br />
results are truly impressive, original<br />
presentations.<br />
Barley as a Family Tradition<br />
Although Samira was born and raised<br />
in Baghdad, summers were spent visiting<br />
her mother’s family in Alqosh,<br />
where farming and animal grazing was<br />
a way of life. Samira recalls the sheep<br />
producing the best cheese around; in<br />
fact, people would travel from afar to<br />
purchase the cheese.<br />
Since the 1960s, her uncles in<br />
Alqosh have operated tahini and barley<br />
processing factories so, as a child,<br />
Samira saw first-hand the process barley<br />
and tahini follow prior to appearing<br />
in our kitchens.<br />
PHOTOS BY ALEX LUMELSKY<br />
Early Experiments in the Kitchen<br />
Curious about cooking from a very<br />
young age, Samira would experiment<br />
with different ingredients. She recalls<br />
preparing meals at the age of ten,<br />
while her family took a siesta. If it did<br />
not turn out, she wouldn’t serve it so,<br />
“No one ever tasted the ‘wrong’ thing.”<br />
From a young age, Samira was a perfectionist<br />
at heart.<br />
At about the age of eleven, Samira<br />
remembers a cookbook making its<br />
way into the family. Following recipes<br />
was like a puzzle for little Samira, she<br />
would try it over and over until she got<br />
it to taste right and look presentable.<br />
Samira recalls her mother preparing<br />
traditional dishes for breakfast, lunch<br />
and dinner but, as far as Samira can remember,<br />
her mom never baked. The aspiring<br />
young chef ventured into baking<br />
by following recipes from the cookbook,<br />
making her the baking pioneer in the<br />
family. Being the eldest of her siblings,<br />
she cherished and treasured what ended<br />
up being the only cookbook she had for<br />
many years to come.<br />
Adjusting to the Western Diet<br />
As Samira and her husband made<br />
their way to the United States in the<br />
early 1980s, her only cookbook made<br />
the journey as well. When she became<br />
a mother, she relied on this book to<br />
make meals for her growing family.<br />
Having earned a degree in Agricultural<br />
Engineering from University<br />
of Baghdad, Samira’s philosophy<br />
is based on the basic foundation of<br />
whole ingredients that nourish the<br />
YouTube Sensation<br />
With more than 113,000 subscribers,<br />
14,036,505 views and 669 episodes,<br />
Samira Cholagh has earned a coveted<br />
symbol of YouTube success — the<br />
YouTube Play Button.<br />
She began sharing her talent for<br />
baking and cooking on the World<br />
Wide Web when she launched her<br />
YouTube Channel in October 2010. At<br />
669 episodes and counting, Samira<br />
has no plans to slow down anytime<br />
soon. From main dishes to soups to<br />
meat pies to salads to jams to breads,<br />
if you can think of it, Samira has a<br />
recipe for it. She enjoys encouraging<br />
and teaching the next generation all<br />
about the art of making deliciousness.<br />
In addition to Samira’s success on<br />
YouTube, she is also very active on Instagram,<br />
Facebook and TikTok, where<br />
she has a wide following.<br />
38 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
ody — such as vegetables, grains,<br />
meats and fish.<br />
Samira recalls her kids enjoying<br />
the traditional home-cooked dishes<br />
she made daily. But as her kids grew<br />
older, they became interested in eating<br />
what their friends were eating.<br />
Samira quickly realized that the modern<br />
Western diet is not at all the same<br />
(or as healthy) as the traditional Eastern<br />
diet she grew up eating.<br />
It became Samira’s goal to recreate<br />
all sorts of dishes for her family,<br />
and to completely avoid feeding her<br />
children the unhealthy “fast food”<br />
meals. Focusing on wholesome ingredients,<br />
through trial and error, Samira<br />
figured out how to make a couple of<br />
favorites such as chicken nuggets and<br />
hamburger buns for the burgers.<br />
Cheerleader for Aspiring Chefs<br />
In addition to cooking for her family,<br />
Samira has always enjoyed sharing<br />
her recipes. Friends, family and sometimes<br />
complete strangers began asking<br />
for her recipes and instructions.<br />
Eager to lead, set an example and<br />
empower, Samira’s approach is to encourage.<br />
She tells people, “You can do<br />
this, even if you’ve never cooked before.”<br />
The more she shared, the more<br />
inspired she became to keep going.<br />
Over the years, Samira’s passion<br />
for cooking, and especially baking,<br />
grew to the point of boiling over (pun<br />
intended) and she finally decided to<br />
put it all into a book.<br />
Between 1997 and 2011, Samira published<br />
three cookbooks in Arabic and<br />
in English. Her first book, Muchtar Min<br />
Fenoon Al-Dabough, was published in<br />
Arabic, in 1997. Next, came the Treasured<br />
Middle Eastern Cookbook, published<br />
in 1998. Her third book, A Baking<br />
Journey, was introduced in 2011.<br />
While raising a family and putting<br />
together cookbooks, Samira also became<br />
a regular on TV Orient — the Arabic-speaking<br />
network on cable television<br />
— preparing, demonstrating and<br />
sharing her latest dishes for the Chaldean<br />
and Arabic speaking community.<br />
Toward the end of her run with TV<br />
Orient, Samira moved her platform to<br />
YouTube, where she has been posting<br />
since October 2010. Taking charge<br />
of the production directly has given<br />
Samira complete creative freedom. It<br />
is only the latest chapter in her long<br />
and evolving career.<br />
RECIPE<br />
Pikota Habiya Kashka<br />
Recipe shared by Samira Cholagh<br />
Ingredients:<br />
4-5 pounds beef or<br />
lamb with bones<br />
3 cups barley<br />
6 cups water<br />
1 teaspoon ground turmeric<br />
1/2 cup oil or butter<br />
1 large onion, chopped<br />
salt to taste<br />
Step 1, Barley: Rinse the barley. Fill<br />
pot with water, add barley, salt and<br />
turmeric. Boil until the water has<br />
evaporated. In a frying pan, heat 1/4<br />
cup oil, add chopped onions. Cook<br />
onions until soft, not brown. Add<br />
onions to cooked barley, mix well.<br />
As a final step, add remaining 1/4<br />
cup of oil to pan, heat at high temperature<br />
then pour into the pot of<br />
the Pikota. Mix well.<br />
Step 2, Meat: Select beef or lamb<br />
with bones for best flavor, any<br />
choice of cut. Searing the meat in<br />
oil at a high temperature for a few<br />
minutes on each side will enhance<br />
the savory “meat” flavor. Add water<br />
to the pot, cover and simmer for an<br />
hour and a half or until tender.<br />
Step 3, Presentation: To achieve the<br />
pictured presentation, pack Pikota<br />
into a round cake/Jello pan or any desired<br />
shape. Place a flat serving dish<br />
over filled Jello pan, keeping pressure<br />
to seal them together and in one quick<br />
swoop, flip Jello pan over serving dish<br />
and slowly remove the shaped pan.<br />
Arrange meat around the Pikota. As<br />
a side with this dish, fresh tomatoes,<br />
parsley and cucumbers are served.<br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 39
SPORTS<br />
Terrific<br />
Tennis Trio<br />
Meet three Chaldean<br />
girls who won<br />
championships<br />
BY STEVE STEIN<br />
Raegan Tomina. Kayla Nafso.<br />
Alana Hindo. Three Chaldean<br />
girls, three winners of high<br />
school state championships in tennis<br />
this past spring.<br />
Tomina won the No. 2 singles title<br />
in Division 1 just before she graduated<br />
from Bloomfield Hills. Nafso and Hindo<br />
were half of the No. 1 and No. 3 doubles<br />
state championship teams in Division 4,<br />
playing for Bloomfield Hills Academy of<br />
the Sacred Heart. Nafso will be a senior<br />
and Hindo will be a junior this fall.<br />
All three girls were named to the<br />
Michigan High School Tennis Coaches<br />
Association’s All-State team for their<br />
division.<br />
Their tennis journeys include losing<br />
a season to the COVID-19 pandemic,<br />
having sisters who also were tennis<br />
stars at their school, changing spots in<br />
their team’s lineup, and transferring to<br />
another school.<br />
Raegan Tomina<br />
Tomina, 17, who lives in Bloomfield<br />
Hills, is moving on to Oakland University<br />
to pursue a career in nursing. Her<br />
competitive tennis career is most likely<br />
over. “I’ve played competitive tennis for<br />
a long time, and I loved playing tennis in<br />
high school,” she said. “I’ll miss it a lot,<br />
but it’s time to move on to new things.”<br />
Two of the new things are pickleball<br />
and reading. “I love pickleball;<br />
It’s my new tennis,” Tomina said. “As<br />
for reading, I really didn’t like it until a<br />
couple years ago. But a found a couple<br />
genres I like, murder mysteries and romance<br />
novels.”<br />
After losing her freshman tennis<br />
season at Bloomfield Hills to the<br />
pandemic, Tomina won the Division<br />
1 state championship at No. 2 doubles<br />
as a sophomore. Her sister Hannah<br />
won the state title at No. 1 doubles for<br />
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE HINDO FAMILY<br />
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE NAFSO FAMILY<br />
Bloomfield Hills that year as a senior.<br />
“I really didn’t want to play doubles<br />
when I was a sophomore, but<br />
I ended up loving it,” Raegan said.<br />
After starting her junior year at No. 1<br />
doubles, Raegan was moved to No. 2<br />
singles and lost in the Division 1 state<br />
quarterfinals. She was at No. 2 singles<br />
all season this past spring and won another<br />
state championship.<br />
Hannah, now 20 and a junior at the<br />
University of Michigan who also plans<br />
to be a nurse, won the Division 1 No. 1<br />
doubles state championship as a sophomore<br />
and senior, sandwiching a lost<br />
junior season because of the pandemic.<br />
Another Tomina sister is ready<br />
to make her mark on the Bloomfield<br />
Hills girls tennis team. Sophia, 14, the<br />
youngest of the sibling trio, will be a<br />
freshman in high school this fall.<br />
Kayla Nafso<br />
Nafso, 17, a Bloomfield Hills resident,<br />
has played for the No. 1 doubles state<br />
championship in Division 4 all three<br />
years of her Sacred Heart career. She<br />
won with her sister Marisa in 2021 but<br />
lost with her in 2022.<br />
Because of graduation losses, it is<br />
not certain Kayla will be back at No.<br />
1 doubles for Sacred Heart come next<br />
spring. She may be needed to play<br />
singles, probably No. 1. “I don’t love<br />
singles like I love doubles,” she said.<br />
“But if my team needs me to play singles,<br />
I’ll do it.”<br />
Clockwise from above: State champion Raegan Tomina is surrounded by<br />
family members (from left) Sophia, Kelly, Hannah and Patrick.<br />
Alana Hindo won a state championship as a sophomore.<br />
Kayla Nafso (right) and her doubles partner Jade Horcoff celebrate not only<br />
their regional championship, but Sacred Heart’s team regional championship<br />
this past spring.<br />
It has been a busy summer for<br />
Kayla, who attended the University of<br />
Notre Dame’s two-week, “History of<br />
London as a Global Trading Capital,”<br />
program last month in England.<br />
Back home, she’s involved in Focus:<br />
HOPE’s Food for Seniors program,<br />
which provides thousands of seniors<br />
with monthly food packages.<br />
Alana Hindo<br />
Hindo, 16, who lives in Commerce Township<br />
and is active at St. Thomas Chaldean<br />
Catholic Church in West Bloomfield, has<br />
left Sacred Heart and is transferring to<br />
Birmingham Marian because she wants<br />
to attend a bigger high school.<br />
Because she’s transferring, she<br />
can’t play golf or tennis for Marian this<br />
school year. She said she’d likely resume<br />
playing one or both sports when<br />
she’s a senior.<br />
Hindo played No. 3 singles for Sacred<br />
Heart as a freshman. She wanted<br />
to play doubles with close friend and<br />
practice partner Presley Krywko this<br />
past spring, and they were given that<br />
opportunity. “Did I think Presley and I<br />
could win a state championship?” she<br />
asked. “I didn’t think it could happen<br />
at first, but as the season wore on, we<br />
got more confident,” said Hindo.<br />
The Scoreboard<br />
So how did the three girls win their<br />
state championships in June?<br />
Tomina, the No. 3 seed at No. 2<br />
singles in Division 1, defeated two familiar<br />
foes en route to her state title.<br />
She beat No. 6 seed Abbey Labate of<br />
Clarkston 6-1, 6-1 in the quarterfinals<br />
and No. 4 seed Katie Fu of Rochester<br />
Adams 7-5, 6-0 in the state championship<br />
match. Tomina had defeated both<br />
earlier in the season, including Fu in<br />
the regional title match.<br />
Nafso and her partner Jade Horcoff,<br />
the No. 3 seed, had a tough road to the<br />
No. 1 doubles state championship in<br />
Division 4. They had to rally for a 5-7,<br />
6-3, 6-4 win over No. 2 seed Brooke Tietz<br />
and Alivia Mott of Grand Rapids West<br />
Catholic in the semifinals, and they<br />
turned back No. 1 seed Sophie Chen<br />
and Lauren Ye of Ann Arbor Greenhills<br />
7-5, 7-6 (2) in the championship match.<br />
Hindo and Krywko were the No. 1<br />
seed at No. 3 doubles. They dropped<br />
just nine games in three matches before<br />
their 6-2, 7-6 (3) win over No. 2<br />
seed Meera Pandey and Meera Tewari<br />
of Greenhills in the title match. They<br />
had beaten the Greenhills duo twice<br />
earlier in the season in close matches.<br />
Tennis fans will be sad to see this<br />
trio move on but rest assured, there<br />
will be others to take their place.<br />
Bloomfield Hills junior Julia Yousif,<br />
another young Chaldean, was the No.<br />
2 seed at No. 3 singles at the Division 1<br />
state tournament. She advanced to the<br />
semifinals in the flight.<br />
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE TOMINA FAMILY<br />
40 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 41
NEW AMERICANS<br />
Theoni<br />
Balasi:<br />
Finally<br />
Made It<br />
BY SUSAN SMITH<br />
Sometimes the Chaldean Community<br />
Foundation is the last stop<br />
on a long string of stops. When<br />
the last stop offers a welcome in your<br />
own language and you’re met with<br />
kindness, those two things can go a<br />
long way.<br />
Told by her daughter-in-law, this<br />
story is about Theoni Balasi’s journey<br />
to gain U.S. Citizenship at the age of 90.<br />
Theoni came to the United States<br />
to live with her son and daughter-inlaw<br />
Samantha in 2008 after the death<br />
of her husband. Both families lived in<br />
Greece, sharing a building and meals,<br />
and caring for each other. Samantha<br />
is a teacher here as she was in Greece<br />
and has always had a strong relationship<br />
with her mother-in-law Theoni.<br />
Traveling back and forth between<br />
Greece and the U.S., Theoni had the<br />
best of both worlds — visiting with<br />
family, but with a home in the U.S. and<br />
aspirations to become a citizen.<br />
Samantha took all the right steps<br />
to help Theoni. She obtained and filled<br />
out the necessary paperwork, coaching<br />
and preparing her mother-in-law for the<br />
naturalization interview. After several<br />
unsuccessful attempts to obtain citizenship<br />
for Theoni, the pair lost hope.<br />
A few years later, they stopped by<br />
a location that no longer offered help<br />
with becoming a citizen; however,<br />
this organization pointed them in the<br />
direction of the Chaldean Community<br />
Foundation. Samantha and Theoni<br />
had no idea what to expect; of course,<br />
that day the lobby was overflowing,<br />
and extra chairs had been brought out.<br />
Fluent in English and Greek in a full<br />
lobby of people speaking Arabic and<br />
Chaldean, they were concerned that<br />
once again they would be turned away.<br />
After finally being seated in front<br />
of a case worker, the two were introduced<br />
and greeted in Greek by one of<br />
Theoni celebrates with an<br />
official and with family as<br />
she accepts her citizenship<br />
certificate.<br />
CCF’s immigration team. They relaxed,<br />
and progress began.<br />
“We were introduced to the immigration<br />
team, and they reviewed<br />
each step we took and made us feel<br />
like family,” said Samantha. “Our experience<br />
was one of compassion and<br />
kindness, as my mother-in-law finally<br />
became a U.S. Citizen.<br />
“Beyond happiness, we were also<br />
connected with additional CCF staff and<br />
received assistance with the applications<br />
for Medicaid and guardianship,”<br />
Samantha went on. “That experience<br />
was easy and again the staff made us<br />
feel welcomed and like family.”<br />
For Theoni, receiving her U.S. citizenship<br />
has been a long time coming.<br />
Now she can obtain a U.S. passport to<br />
visit friends and family in Greece without<br />
having to obtain a visa — that is<br />
worth celebrating!<br />
She plans to visit her 86-yearold<br />
twin sisters who are still living in<br />
Greece. When receiving her citizenship,<br />
Theoni summarized it best when<br />
she shared, “I finally made it.”<br />
A TTORNEYS & C O UNSELORS AT LAW<br />
42 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 43
FAMILY TIME<br />
Fun Ways<br />
to Beat the<br />
Heat This<br />
Summer<br />
BY VALENE AYAR<br />
The WoahZone<br />
at Heron Beach.<br />
Summer is really heating up! And because we<br />
have barely been able to go outside earlier this<br />
summer because of the poor air quality, we<br />
have to make up for some much-needed splash time.<br />
Thankfully, though, you don’t have to travel too<br />
far to engage in some family-fun outdoor activities.<br />
So many new splash pads and aquatic centers have<br />
emerged in the last few years; allow me to list a few.<br />
WhoaZone at Heron Beach<br />
I decided to start with the most unique and versatile<br />
place on my list. This attraction was perhaps Oakland<br />
County’s best-kept secret, but the secret is out<br />
now. Located on the sandy beach of the Holly Recreation<br />
Area, you and your family will want for nothing<br />
where fun and water activities are concerned. For instance,<br />
the Wibit Aqua Park is a one-of-a-kind floating<br />
obstacle course for anyone 7 years and older and<br />
at least 45 inches tall.<br />
If you have younger children, there is also the<br />
Wibit KidsZone for children ages 4-6 and under 45<br />
inches tall; this is the perfect miniature version of the<br />
Wibit Aqua Park.<br />
These obstacle courses are just a few things you and<br />
your family can enjoy. There are also watercraft rentals<br />
for kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards. WhoaZone also<br />
Kensington<br />
MetroPark’s<br />
Splash N Blast<br />
attraction.<br />
offers shaded seating rentals, SnackZone concessions,<br />
and a beach store. If your interests are simpler, you can<br />
always enjoy a nice dip in the cool, refreshing lake. For<br />
more information, visit whoa.zone/holly.<br />
Troy Family Aquatic Center<br />
With both indoor and outdoor pool activities, you<br />
have so many options if you decide to spend a day<br />
here. Located at 3424 Civic Center Drive, the Troy<br />
Family Aquatic Center is the ideal place to cool off<br />
this summer.<br />
Their outdoor aquatic center has a main pool<br />
with a zero-depth edge, tube and body slides, a kiddie<br />
area with a waterfall, kiddie slide and splash pad,<br />
sand volleyball and sand play area, along with concession<br />
stand. And these are just a few of the outdoor<br />
attractions; there are plenty more both outdoor<br />
and indoors if those are not enough for you. Visit<br />
rec.troymi.gov/parks_facilities for more information.<br />
Lily Pad Springs in West Bloomfield<br />
Located at Maple and Farmington Roads in West<br />
Bloomfield, (where Potomac Pool previously was),<br />
this new neighborhood splash pad is great for kids<br />
of all ages.<br />
With over 50 play features, 4 water slides, and a<br />
splash bucket that dumps 55 gallons of water, you really<br />
cannot go wrong here. Add to that the very low<br />
price of $4 per resident and only $7 per nonresident,<br />
it is likely to become your new favorite end-of-summer<br />
hangout. And because it is in the heart of West<br />
Bloomfield, there is no doubt you and your children<br />
will run into some familiar faces or perhaps make<br />
new friends as you splash around and make some<br />
memories. Find Lily Pad Springs at wbparks.org.<br />
Heritage Park Splash Pad<br />
Located inside Heritage Park on Farmington Road between<br />
10 and 11 Mile Road, you will find a splash pad<br />
with a series of fountains and sprayers that is free to<br />
the public.<br />
Why not have a picnic and a splash at this Farmington<br />
Hills community staple? There is also a Nature<br />
Discovery Trail and a snack shack that sells treats<br />
and refreshments, just to round out your family outing.<br />
Visit fhgov.com for more info.<br />
Kensington MetroPark Splash n Blast Waterpark<br />
Located inside Kensington Metropark at Martindale<br />
Beach in Milford is an oldie but a goodie —Splash<br />
n Blast Waterpark. I loved going there as a kid and<br />
teen, and from the looks of it, the park and slides<br />
have only gotten better with time.<br />
In addition to nice, sandy beaches and spacious<br />
shelters and picnic areas, you will also find a splash<br />
pad, two 240-foot-long twisted waterslides, the ‘spray<br />
ground’ with palm trees, serpents and cannons that<br />
spray water and more…much more! With the perfect<br />
blend of refreshing lake and affordable splash park<br />
options, there is something for everyone. But don’t<br />
take my word for it, plan a day, and go check it out for<br />
yourself! You will not be disappointed.<br />
Find out more at metroparks.com.<br />
Conclusion<br />
Summertime for parents and children can be tricky.<br />
With summer coming to an end but time on everyone’s<br />
hands, it can be difficult to find ways to fill up<br />
your days while also bonding as a family and staying<br />
active. My advice . . . turn off those iPads and hit the<br />
splash pads!<br />
44 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
When Every Moment Counts<br />
Synergy Longevity Centers’ Breakthroughs<br />
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Included in each service is an<br />
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info@synergly.com<br />
synergylc.com<br />
@synergylongevitycenters<br />
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<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 45
DOCTOR IS IN<br />
Fungal Infection<br />
Making the Rounds<br />
If you follow the news,<br />
you may have heard<br />
about drug-resistant<br />
infections caused by an organism<br />
called ‘Candida auris.’<br />
This kind of news can<br />
create concern; the goal of<br />
this article is to help readers<br />
understand the infection—who<br />
is at risk, how it<br />
spreads, associated symptoms,<br />
and treatment.<br />
C. auris, a fungus first<br />
identified in 2009 in Japan,<br />
has become a cause of severe infections<br />
across more than 30 countries<br />
worldwide. C. auris began spreading<br />
in the United States in 2015, and<br />
cases increased significantly in 2018.<br />
At that time, the Centers for Disease<br />
Control and Prevention (CDC) decided<br />
it should become a notifiable disease.<br />
Despite headlines, the infection<br />
is still rare and healthy people do not<br />
usually get C. auris infections. Affected<br />
patients usually have serious underlying<br />
medical conditions or weakened<br />
immune systems, such as blood cancer<br />
or diabetes.<br />
Some people can carry the fungus<br />
somewhere on their body even if it’s<br />
not making them noticeably sick with<br />
symptoms, a process called colonization.<br />
When people have it on their bodies,<br />
it can spread to nearby objects or<br />
equipment, and in turn, spread to others.<br />
Because of this, health care workers<br />
are trained to properly identify a C.<br />
auris infection.<br />
DR. RENEE<br />
JIDDOU<br />
SPECIAL TO<br />
THE CHALDEAN<br />
NEWS<br />
Many hospitals also<br />
screen patients who are considered<br />
high-risk or come<br />
from long-term care facilities<br />
to determine if they are<br />
carriers. The most common<br />
symptoms of an invasive C.<br />
auris infection are fever and<br />
chills that don’t improve after<br />
antibiotics for a presumed<br />
bacterial infection. Sometimes<br />
specialized laboratory<br />
technology is needed to help<br />
diagnose the infection.<br />
When diagnosed, there are things<br />
that can be done to stop the spread.<br />
For instance, C. auris can live on surfaces<br />
for several weeks, so good hand<br />
hygiene and properly disinfecting surfaces<br />
is especially important. Health<br />
care workers should wear<br />
gowns, gloves and clean<br />
their hands correctly before<br />
and after patient care.<br />
Patient rooms should also<br />
be cleaned thoroughly with<br />
a disinfectant that works<br />
against this fungus.<br />
Family members and<br />
other close contacts of patients<br />
with this infection<br />
should clean their hands<br />
with hand sanitizer or soap<br />
and water before and after<br />
touching a patient with C.<br />
auris, or after touching any equipment<br />
or other objects in the patient’s room.<br />
There are many types of Candida,<br />
with at least 30 causing infections in<br />
humans. C. auris might be resistant to<br />
medications commonly used to treat<br />
other types of Candida infections,<br />
meaning these medications will not<br />
work to treat that specific infection.<br />
Instead, many C. auris infections are<br />
treatable with a class of antifungal infections<br />
called echinocandins.<br />
However, some C. auris infections<br />
can be resistant to all three main classes<br />
of antifungal medications, making<br />
it difficult to treat. In such situations,<br />
multiple antifungal medications are<br />
used at high doses to try and treat the<br />
infection.<br />
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When people have severe infections,<br />
such as it is in the bloodstream,<br />
it can cause serious illness and even<br />
death. In most C. auris cases that result<br />
in death, the infected individual had<br />
other serious, underlying illnesses.<br />
Even after the infection is treated,<br />
patients may continue to have C. auris<br />
on their skin or other body sites that<br />
does not cause infection but can still<br />
spread to other patients. All these precautions<br />
previously mentioned would<br />
continue throughout their whole stay<br />
in the hospital.<br />
Although the risk of infection in<br />
healthy people is low, patients and<br />
family members should continue with<br />
good hand hygiene, washing hands<br />
thoroughly before and after touching<br />
the patient or medical devices when<br />
they return home. Handwashing is especially<br />
important if a caregiver is caring<br />
for multiple patients at home.<br />
Routine testing for C. auris of family<br />
members or other close contacts is<br />
usually not recommended. However,<br />
if someone who has frequent contact<br />
with a person with C. auris is admitted<br />
to a health care facility, they might be<br />
checked to see if they carry it and help<br />
prevent it from spreading further. This<br />
is usually done with a swab of the skin<br />
near the armpits and groin. People who<br />
have tested positive for C. auris in the<br />
past should inform their health care<br />
providers of this. For more information<br />
on C. auris, you can visit CDC.gov.<br />
Renee Jiddou-Yaldoo, MD is a<br />
specialist in Infectious Diseases at<br />
Corewell Health’s Beaumont Hospital<br />
in Grosse Pointe.<br />
46 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 47
FEATURE<br />
Left: The Jarbo Family<br />
at Georgina’s wedding.<br />
Below: Sue and Bahi<br />
cooking kabobs.<br />
7 Mile’s<br />
Kabob<br />
King<br />
A Tribute to<br />
Bahi Jarbo<br />
BY CRYSTAL KASSAB JABIRO<br />
A<br />
simple man with an extraordinary<br />
life story, Ablahad “Bahi”<br />
Jarbo left a legacy for his family<br />
and his community.<br />
Bahi was born to farmers Zingel<br />
and Gorgia Jarbo on December 10,<br />
1947, in the village of Telkeppe, Iraq.<br />
As a young boy, he shepherded animals<br />
and cared for his hunting dog.<br />
His mother died when he was 11. His<br />
older sisters helped raise him, as did<br />
his mom’s brother, the late Ramzi<br />
Yono, who taught him how to cut hair.<br />
When he was 18, Bahi was drafted<br />
into the Iraqi Army where in between<br />
training and combat he would trim<br />
soldiers’ hair for extra money. He<br />
served six years in very difficult conditions<br />
because of ongoing conflict in<br />
the region. After he was discharged,<br />
Bahi went to Kuwait and worked for a<br />
sheik as his personal barber. Several<br />
years later he traveled to Lebanon with<br />
a friend to await their American visas.<br />
On March 18, 1976, Bahi arrived in<br />
Detroit, Michigan and was reunited with<br />
his brother Edris, his only sibling in<br />
America. He lived with him on Havana<br />
Street in a section later known as Chaldean<br />
Town because of its large Iraqi-<br />
Chaldean immigrant population. With<br />
only $50 to his name, he started working<br />
at the Big Boy factory in Warren making<br />
ketchup. After a couple of years, he became<br />
a fish salesman for a small, Chaldean-owned<br />
company and later became<br />
a butcher in a supermarket.<br />
Bahi’s older sister Mare, who was<br />
now in Detroit with her family, encouraged<br />
the then 33-year-old to settle<br />
down and start a family. He was not<br />
interested, but she insisted on him<br />
meeting Sabri Shayota’s daughter, a<br />
young and pretty brunette who lived<br />
in the house across the street on Robinwood.<br />
To appease her, he agreed to<br />
meet the girl… but he had to see what<br />
she looked like first. So he offered to<br />
cut Sabri’s hair at home!<br />
When he saw 25-year-old Sue, he<br />
thought she was beautiful. Bahi recognized<br />
her as the girl who cashed<br />
out his invoices for fish delivery at the<br />
market. She was aloof and more interested<br />
in her brother Wisam recording<br />
the haircut on his new video camera.<br />
Innovative for 1980, he had attached a<br />
cord to the TV in the other room for the<br />
family to watch the haircut live, so Sue<br />
and the rest of the kids were laughing<br />
and having fun with it.<br />
Bahi wanted to see her again and<br />
hopefully get her attention. He intentionally<br />
left his clippers there so he<br />
could go back.<br />
The next day, another suitor for<br />
Sue popped up at the Shayotas. Bahi<br />
returned later that same day without<br />
knowing that. Sabri invited him to<br />
come in for some Arak. Sue looked at<br />
Bahi and said to herself, “This man<br />
will be my husband.” When he left,<br />
she discussed the proposals with her<br />
dad. He insisted on Bahi because he<br />
knew him from the market but ultimately<br />
left the choice up to Sue. She<br />
wanted to marry Bahi, so her mom<br />
Miriam called Mare to accept the marriage<br />
proposal. They had a tanatha<br />
(promise ceremony) the next day, New<br />
Year’s Day, 1981.<br />
Four months later, Bahi and Sue<br />
got married at Sacred Heart Chaldean<br />
Catholic Church in Detroit, officiated<br />
by the late Father Jacob Yasso. They<br />
had a big party at Chateau Hall with<br />
over 700 people in attendance.<br />
The next year, their daughter Georgina<br />
was born and Bahi opened a<br />
nameless chaikhana (coffee shop) on<br />
Seven Mile and Havana, at the end of his<br />
street. Bahi started selling kabobs there,<br />
and they were so tasty that everyone in<br />
the neighborhood called them “Bahi’s<br />
kabobs.” He was honored that people<br />
craved his kabobs, but he was bombarded<br />
with orders. So in 1989, he opened<br />
Bahi’s Kabob Restaurant at Seven and<br />
Blake next to Greenfield Union Elementary<br />
School. It was the hot spot for over<br />
a decade. Bahi’s kabobs connected people<br />
in a way that was previously unseen<br />
in Chaldean Town. Even celebrities like<br />
Shaquille O’Neil and Kadim Al-Sahir<br />
loved Bahi’s food!<br />
Throughout the success of his restaurant,<br />
Bahi and Sue had three more<br />
kids: Jarvis, Genelle, and Julian. Bahi<br />
worked seven days a week all day long<br />
to provide for his family. They would<br />
wait up till midnight just to see him<br />
when he came home. Sometimes the<br />
kids would hide from him, and he<br />
would act scared when they jumped<br />
out. At holiday get-togethers, he would<br />
pretend he was talking to Santa or the<br />
Easter Bunny to get their permission to<br />
give away sweet treats and ice cream.<br />
48 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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That was his playful way. He was also<br />
fun-loving on the dance floor at family<br />
celebrations, dancing with a cup on<br />
his head, flailing his hands and even<br />
shimmying to the ground.<br />
Safety eventually became a concern<br />
in Chaldean Town. Bahi was carjacked<br />
once and endured two more attempts,<br />
and even a hold-up at the restaurant.<br />
The once-vibrant mainstay closed<br />
down in 2000. Bahi and Sue ran “Bahi’s<br />
Kabobs’’ inside three local markets in<br />
Sterling Heights for nearly two decades<br />
before they decided to retire in 2018.<br />
That is when Bahi got to experience<br />
what he missed out on all those<br />
years he labored in the kitchen. He<br />
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spent time with<br />
snavarrette@chaldeanchamber.com<br />
his grandkids, tended<br />
www.chaldeanchamber.com<br />
to his garden, and www.chaldeanfoundation.org<br />
barbecued for family<br />
Twitter: @ChaldeanChamber<br />
and friends, Instagram: rain or @ChaldeanAmericanChamber<br />
shine. He lost 100<br />
pounds by watching his diet and walking<br />
three to five miles a day, even in the<br />
winter. Every single morning, he made<br />
coffee for himself and for Sue, and every<br />
single night, they would play konkan.<br />
Bahi was diagnosed with dementia<br />
in 2021. An emergency CAT scan<br />
several weeks ago at the ER revealed<br />
the last stages of pancreatic cancer.<br />
He was sent home to rest with his<br />
family where he passed away peacefully<br />
on July 18, <strong>2023</strong>. He leaves behind<br />
a legacy rooted in family, fellowship,<br />
and food.<br />
From left: Bahi in the Iraqi Army, circa 1965; Bahi Jarbo, 1947-<strong>2023</strong><br />
<strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong> CHALDEAN NEWS 49
EVENT<br />
Fr. Namir Narra<br />
Ordination<br />
On July 1, the Chaldean community gathered at<br />
Mother of God Cathedral in Southfield, Michigan,<br />
as Fr. Namir Narra was ordained to the priesthood.<br />
A graduate of Sacred Heart Major Seminary,<br />
Father Narra was ordained through the laying on<br />
of hands and the invocation of the Holy Spirit by<br />
the Most Rev. Francis Y. Kalabat, Bishop of St.<br />
Thomas the Apostle Chaldean Catholic Diocese.<br />
Father Narra will serve as parochial vicar at St.<br />
George Chaldean Catholic Church in Shelby Township,<br />
Michigan. Please keep him in your prayers as<br />
he begins his new journey as a priest!<br />
Clockwise from top of page: Bishop Francis and Fr. Namir with our Chaldean<br />
clergy, seminarians, and visiting clergy; Chaldean seminarians leading the<br />
procession for the Ordination Mass; Fr. Namir being celebrated by happy<br />
faithful; Mother of God Cathedral at capacity; Bishop Francis laying on hands<br />
Fr. Namir Narra; Bishop Francis placing the priest’s cope on a newly ordained<br />
Fr. Namir with help from Fr. Bryan Kassa.<br />
50 CHALDEAN NEWS <strong>AUGUST</strong> <strong>2023</strong>