To the editor:

(Plain Press, February 2018)        Your October 2017 edition printed an article, titled International Village Festival features storytelling, food and entertainment, about Esther Ngembe speaking at the International Village Festival. I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Ngembe, last year, and hearing her families’ story. It is the part of a refugees’ life that many of us don’t understand.

Ms. Ngembe’s firsthand knowledge of her family leaving everything they have and running for their lives, is the compelling truth of what it is like for people who are suffering in war torn countries and want a better life. We Americans need to educate ourselves about what is happening all over the world, and we must show compassion for refugee families instead of the distain I have heard from some.

I urge everyone to make an effort to attend an International event when they are presented in your community, and support local refugee services in the Greater Cleveland area.

Susan L. Gundich

Old Brooklyn neighborhood