As a lifelong resident of Arkansas and former high school teacher, I never thought I would become the outreach director for the Syrian Emergency Task Force, a nonprofit American organization, with a mission to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Syria.
Over the past year and a half, I have worked alongside volunteers, students, and compassionate communities across Arkansas to sustain a school for orphans and a women's center in Idlib, Syria. "The Wisdom House Project" has been a ray of hope for war-ravaged Syrians, and a learning experience for local schools, universities, houses of worship, and individuals in Arkansas.
Through connecting Arkansans to Syrian civilians including teachers, students, widows and orphans, our initiative has brought education and economic support to civilian society in Syria and in doing so played an vital role in countering extremism and empowering grass-roots democracy. We have provided equipment, salaries, and even letters of hope from Arkansas to Syria, inspiring others across the nation to join us in this work.
Since September 2016, I've been in touch with the English teacher from our school in Syria, talking to her on a daily basis. Christmas morning, while many Americans eagerly unwrapped gifts alongside their families and loved ones, my friend in Syria was sending me panicked messages of the impending danger approaching her small village.
I could feel the terror and desperation in her messages in a way I had never felt before. The village we support was under heavy bombardment while Bashar al-Assad's army with its Iranian and Russian allies was closing in on their community.
The last few weeks have been some of the hardest for our mission of hope. I along with other Arkansans have focused on providing whatever little comfort and support we can to our brothers and sisters in humanity as we urged them to leave their homes.
Since Christmas many thousands of Syrians have been displaced in our sister province of Idlib, including in the village we have grown to know and love. Countless children have been murdered, my phone and computer are overflowing with images and videos of babies being pulled from rubble, their little bodies shredded by horrendous weapons of war including napalm, mortar shells, cluster bombs, and barrel bombs.
The Turkish border to the north remains closed and as we continue to be in constant touch with the leaders on the ground, now displaced themselves without a safe place to go, we along with them cling on to the hope that the world will not remain silent to their plight.
I learned something in my time doing this work. I learned that the words Never Again carry no meaning when they are so often uttered, I learned that the struggle for the freedom of the Syrian people is the way to defeat terrorism in Syria, and I learned that our national interests and core values align when it comes to Syria. The only way to defeat terrorism in Syria and to counter adversaries such as Iran and Russia is to empower civilian governance and civil society in Syria.
Arkansans have brought a bright story to a dark war by proving that Americans in the heartland of the United States can make a difference in the lives of women, men, and children in Syria. I am so proud of the communities in Conway, Little Rock, Hot Springs and elsewhere that have answered the call of their fellow human beings. My dream is to see Americans across our great nation join us in supporting democracy against the forces of evil in Syria.
What has inspired me is that despite the setback and the grim future of our beneficiaries, Arkansans have become even more committed and determined to not be bystanders to our Never Again moment. I hope through building awareness, relationships and hope we can reiterate the importance for our policymakers to do all they can to bring to an end the killing of civilians in Syria.
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Natalie Larrison is the Syrian Emergency Task Force director of outreach, and Wisdom House project manager.
Editorial on 01/29/2018