Surviving a war and being able to tell about it is an accomplishment in of itself. But, using that experience as a motivation to succeed is even more impressive.
That’s what Naim Syla, a student at LaGuardia Community has done. Syla was only 12-years-old living in Kosovo during the war there.
“It really had a bad impact on my life. At the same time, I grew more mature. It helped me make decisions that I wouldn’t know on my own,” he explained.
Though Syla can recall many memories from the war, the most profound moment occurred when he and his siblings were separated from their parents.
“They [the Serbian soldiers] let my parents go past the border and told us to go back,” said Syla. “Then, NATO [the North Atlantic Treaty Organization] started bombing. They [the Serbs] wanted to kill more people because they knew they were leaving.”
In the midst of the chaos in the late 1990s, Syla was forced to hide with his older brother and sister. He still remembers the time when he thought he would die in the hands of the enemy.
“We were in a house, and soldiers came to our house. I was all by myself, and I was numb. I couldn’t think of anything. I just imagined I was in another world. It was like a nightmare,” said Syla. “They didn’t kill anyone at that moment. They just tortured people.”
In light of the economic hardships following the end of the war, Syla immigrated to New York in 2006 with the help of his aunt. His family still remains in Kosovo, though he intends to bring his mother over to the United States once he receives his citizenship.
“After the war, the economy was really bad. I couldn’t afford to pay for school. My aunt sponsored me to come here,” he said. “It’s hard to know that they’re there and I’m here.”
Though difficult at first, Syla’s adjustment to his new home was bearable.
“The good thing was that I studied English, but I didn’t have anyone to translate [for me],” said Syla.
Soon after, Syla quickly found a job at J&R electronic store, and he later got a job at Bloomingdale’s.
“I didn’t want to start school until I could pay for it,” he said.
In 2008, Syla enrolled at LaGuardia Community College. Initially, he was a bit surprised by the impression given by his professors.
“In my country, professors don’t really talk to students. You have to respect your professors. You can’t speak against them,” said Syla, who is studying radiologic technology and holds an impressive 3.8 grade point average.
Syla credits his first English professor, Kelly Connelly, for instilling hope in him.
“She wasn’t just a professor. She was a friend,” he said. “She liked my writing, but I didn’t think my writing was that good.”
Despite Syla’s lack of confidence in his English, Connelly encouraged him to take more English classes so that he could prove to himself that he was a good writer.
Connelly’s advice paid off: Syla recently won the “How LaGuardia Community College Changed My Life” contest.
“I’m taking a writing class ever since I won that LaGuardia essay contest,” he said proudly. Syla is currently taking a creative writing course and has written 10 poems already. He is planning on writing a memoir soon.
“My writing relieves me of all these bad memories [in Kosovo],” he said.
