Tomsena Hawa N’doinjeh

Country: Sierra Leone

Age: 17

Tomsena Hawa N’doinjeh is a Senior Thomas Worthington High School. She grew up speaking French in Sierrra Leone, but has been in the U.S. for six years. She came to America because her grandmother, who was her primary caretaker, died. Her mom wanted her to come to the USA to get a better education. Her mother wanted her to speak another language and learn from the Americans. She was okay with her mother’s decision, but she says she misses her family back home. She wants to return to her Seierra Leone because family is very important for her. Her mother is a citizen in America, so her mother “fought” through the immigration system so she could come here. When N’doinjeh came to America, she traveled alone, by plane. She was very scared to come to a new a place and move to another continent without knowing where she was going even though her mother lived here already. She felt different when she came here because she did not know anyone. She did not know the language and had no friends here, so she felt alone.