I Am My StoryLive3StorytellingSurvivorWelcoming Week 2021

A Story I Never Signed Up For

Rama could not escape the war all around her – the sounds of bullets, the sights of suicide bombings, the constant fear of being caught in the middle of an attack.  Her parents wanted to get her to safety and, expecting the fighting to end soon, her mother brought her to stay with her older married sister in the US. But war tore the family apart and Rama soon found herself alone, a young teenager, stranded in a strange country with no parents or siblings to protect her and no safe place to stay. She had to start making her own decisions.

I Am My Story Live is a production of the award-winning nonprofit The Immigrant Story. The stories were presented live at First Congregational Church of Christ, Portland, OR on Saturday, April 1, 2022. With a focus on powerful voices of survival and soothing musical accompaniment, I Am My Story Live provided a space for storytelling, cultural exchange and empathy.

Organized as a part of Genocide Awareness Month, this free event is made possible by a generous contribution from the Zidell Family Foundation. This project is supported in part by a grant from the Oregon Heritage Commission, Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. Additional funding was provided by a grant from Oregon Humanities (OH), a statewide nonprofit organization and an independent affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, which funds OH’s grant program.

Please visit The Immigrant Story: https://theimmigrantstory.org/