Melina Sameer
Sociology Honors degree (2007)
Manarat Al Riyadh English Cooradnator (Arabic Section Grade 1,2,3
Middle East (American Section) Kindergarten Coordinator
founder member of Horizon International School Riyadh
She was almost two years when she won the Smartest dressed girl at the Jafferjee Brothers Xmas party held in Colombo in the year 1976 and at five years she got her Honors degree at the Speech and Drama competition that was held at the Lionel WendtTheatre where she won the first prize! It was a great acheivement to us as proud young parents and our families shared that glory with us …..I was proud of her as she was taking after my dead dad who had excelled in this field and was also a YMCA Speaker.
My husband got an attractive job and we moved on to KSA in 1982 January where Melina made her self comfortable at the age of 7 in a country alien to us in all areas and a brand new school which was an English/ Arabic school called Manarat Al Ryiadh. A sigh of relief it really was! We were not in a position to send her to any other school as being a muslims we had to adhere to the laws of the country. Fortunately luck followed us when the rule was lifted this opened the doors to us to send her to the American school namely Dhaharan Academy where she excelled. Later on when we were moved to the Riyadh she entered the American School..SAISR. The expected interference had a forceful hand in creating confusion and complications my voice silenced when Faz decided to keep Mel back in Colombo and send her to an International school along with her male cousin (her dad’s sisters son). With great pains and much against my applied for admission to the Colombo International School down Gregory’s Road where we left her in the hands of my mum sister and her paternal granpa who promised he will not hurt a hair on her head!
Returned with Nadia to KSA Riyadh with an unspeakable pain n my heart and the echoing cries of Melina don’t leave me alone’ This resulted me walking around like a Zombie leaving Nadia alone to survive. Some stroke of luck Faz decided to bring Melina back to Riyadh. Alhamdulilah. Sadly she could not get back to the American school as it was too late and we had to settle for the Indian Embassy school for a year when tragedy walked into my life with my mum’s fall that ended up with her in a coma.This was another change in our plans for the kids and us..when we had to get back to Colombo and the kids began schooling at Stafford International School Col 7
Life Is Like A Story Book..Shirani Ibrahim 