Know Their Names: Meet Nardeen

A story from Jordan: Marka Education Center serving Iraqi students in Amman

By Dawlat Hijazeen

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Dawlat Hijazeen serves as principal, subsitute teacher, and school van driver for Marka Education Center in Amman, Jordan.

A few weeks ago, a new girl joined my class. Her name is Nardeen. She’s Iraqi, a refugee, only eight years old. From the first day she walked in, I felt she was different.

A strangely quiet child, she doesn’t talk much but she listens with her eyes. Exceptionally bright—she memorizes quickly and understands right away.

But there’s always something behind her eyes, a pain living inside her.

Loss of a father

I later found out she lost her father less than six months ago. He passed away just two months after they arrived in Jordan. Since then, Nardeen, her sister, and their mother have been living on their own.

A few days ago, something happened that broke me. Nardeen came to me crying hysterically, and I couldn’t let her go. I held her hand and asked what was wrong.

She told me she was coloring with her friends and one of them asked her, “Why are you and your sister sharing the same box of crayons? Why don’t you ask your dad to buy you another one?”

At a loss for words

Nardeen was quiet. She didn’t answer, but in her heart, there was one reply: “My dad is dead.” But she couldn’t say it. She couldn’t bring herself to. Maybe she didn’t want to cry in front of them. Maybe she has learned to hold it all in.

Nardeen’s story needs to be shared because there are children around us carrying pain far beyond their years. And behind every box of crayons, there might be a story of loss, a mother struggling to hold things together, and a small heart that deserves to be embraced. •

Year-end 2025’s Know Their Names campaign will help deliver safe schools to refugee children in Jordan. Our goal is to raise $105,000 for refugee schools, including Marka. Together, we can show children God cares for them.