MILWAUKEE — This is a story of perseverance and the determination it takes to make a dream come true.
Two sisters of Somali descent grew up in Kenya with a dream to one day come to America to go to school.
It all goes back to the then five-year-old Raha and six-year-old Murio being raised by their paternal uncle after their parents divorced.
They would help get their cousins ready for school but they weren't allowed to attend themselves.
When their father immigrated to Wisconsin he promised to bring them over as soon as he could.
Growing up, the girls weren't allowed to visit their mother's home in Kenya but would often find a way while on short trips to the market.
Their mother's dream for them was to go to America and eventually for them to help sponsor her to join them.
It would take Raha and Murio ten years of not going to school and waiting for their father to arrange for them to join him in Wisconsin.
Once in southeast Wisconsin, the sisters found themselves on their own after their father discouraged enrolling in school. After a year in southeast Wisconsin, the two sisters were no longer welcomed in her father's new family and were forced to live somewhere else.
That would be a blessing in disguise for the teenagers.
It was the vision of a relative living in the Milwaukee area who stepped up and enrolled the aspiring sisters in South Division High School at the end of the 2021 school season.
During the thick of a global pandemic Raha and Murio, not able to speak fluent English and forced to learn virtually, began living their childhood dream of going to school.
"This school is really helpful in that it's diverse because you know you get to interact with a lot of other students who speak different languages," said Raha.
While working hard, and adjusting to a new language and culture, Raha excelled as salutatorian of her graduating class and Murio landed among the top ten.
Raha was asked to speak at graduation and both sisters are planning to attend UWM in the Fall.
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