Mother, Medical Doctor, and Activist

In order to understand the story of University of Minnesota, Crookston (UMC) alumna, Sureya Sayadi ’78, you must understand a little about the story of the Kurdish people. The Kurds and their land were divided into Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Russia. Their history goes back to ancient times. As one of the indigenous peoples of the Middle East, they have a history that is peppered with struggle and they remain one of the largest ethnic groups in the world to exist without a state of their own. The Kurds number between 25-30 million people. “While in the refugee camps, Sureya explains, we began to educate each other about what was happening to our  people. The Shah of Iran also did not want the refugee Kurds from Iraq to be close to Iranian Kurds thus exiling them to a remote part of Iran far away from Kurds of Iran,” Sureya recalls, “they loaded us onto army trucks and took us close to the border of Afghanistan.” She recalled the trip, “It was very, very hot, and we were with about fifty or sixty families who were let off in the middle of the night on the street without water, camps, or any facilities.” Sureya was grateful she had grown up in the city, “It seemed like those of us who had lived in a city were better able to adapt to some of the changes. Although, it was devastating to all of us, it is a nightmare to leave all you have ever known in order to save your life and the lives of your loved ones.” Circumstances separated family members, mothers from children. Sureya’s mother returned to Iraq at one point and was not allowed to return. And it would be many years before they would see each other again. Today, Sureya continues to care deeply about peace and the people and situation that exist in war-torn Iraq. When she was almost finished with high school, Sureya was offered a chance to go to the United States by Lutheran Social Services. A family in Northwood, ND sponsored her. Her American father was the pastor of a Lutheran church and he had an interest in Kurdish history. “They were the greatest, kindest family in the world,” Sureya explains, “They took me in and made me a part of their family.” Living in a small town in North Dakota gave Sureya the opportunity to do things she might never have done, like play basketball. “I had never even held a basketball and I became a part of the b-squad basketball team at the high school,” she said. She also worked in a local nursing home, babysat, and delivered newspapers. These things helped to immerse her in the English language and learn it much faster.

Sureya would like to have her teenage son grow up in an America just like the one she knew as growing up. “I worked as a maid in a motel in Grand Forks, ND and that is where I met my friend, Holly Qranquist. “I hated to clean the tubs and Holly hated to make the beds, so I would make the beds and she would clean the tubs,” Sureya remembers. When Holly was going to register for classes at UMC that summer, Sureya rode along. During her visit to UMC, she was convinced it was a place she would like to attend school. She called her American mother and explained her desire to attend UMC. “I liked the campus and the people,” Sureya says, “It was a very good experience for me.” When it comes to people she remembers, she immediately mentions Jerry Knutson and his wife, Mary Lynne. She was babysitter for their two girls, Jill and Jana. “One of the biggest reasons I fell in love with UMC was because it felt like a family. Daisy Stahlberg would take me home along with other international students and treat us to supper,” Sureya reflects. “I even found a job at the Irishman’s Shanty and I worked at the lab for Paul Holm.” Her background in science at UMC, including chemistry, microbiology, and biology were foundational for Sureya’s interest in becoming a medical doctor. “I would have been lost in a big place,” she says, “UMC was the right fit for me.” She enrolled at North Dakota State University in medical technology. She remembers starting at NDSU and how Jerry Knutson helped move her to Fargo. He and his wife bought her a new dress and told her it was her graduation dress even though she did not participate in graduation. Her UMC family continued to care for her. Daisy came to visit her whenever she came to Fargo/Moorhead to visit her own children. She would take her out for a meal and kept her connected to the campus she loved. She graduated from NDSU as a medical technologist. She attended medical school in the Caribbean and then went to England for two years to do her clinicals and met distinguished doctors from all around the world while she trained there. When she was busy preparing for her board examination, her American father died along with other family tragedies changed her direction. A door opened for her to begin teaching classes in microbiology, pathology, histology, physical diagnosis, and primary care skills. Her love for students and teaching became one of her passions.

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