Maurine Najjar
By Maurine Najjar, 6th grader in The Dalles, Oregon. Winner of the EnviroGorge Kids Writing Contest.
My environmental hero in the Gorge is my mom, Rachel Najjar. She has worked hard to help the people in our town. She saw that people were sick and dying in The Dalles, and she wanted to know why.
Ever since I came to live with my family here, I noticed there was a terrible smell all of the time, and it is making my sisters and me sick. My mom put together that the smell was coming from the plant that sprays the wood with a chemical called creosote. Even though she is a busy mother to me and my three sisters, she is working hard for clean air in our town.
My father, mother and sisters brought me here from Ghana in February. Before I came, I never had met anyone as kind as my mother and who helps anyone she can. She talks to everyone about creosote and how it harms them, even if they are mean to her.
She makes me feel like I have a voice in everything that I do. She has taught me to love the earth and how important it is to have clean air. I have been a part of the protests that my mom planned. She wanted to share the idea of having a clean environment. People in the town drove by and honked for my mom and everyone holding signs. It was really amazing. But not everyone believes creosote is bad for us. My mom helps to tell them how it is bad for them by handing out fact sheets and explaining why it is bad. She is so polite to people, even when they think she is crazy.
Though my family likes it here, my mom doesn’t want us to get sick anymore. She wants to protect our family by moving away from the smell. I have not met anyone who cares more about other people than herself. I love her so much. I am so proud of her for making a change. Because of her work, the town now has air monitors to see how much creosote is in the air. Before she came, there was nothing to find out how bad the air was. Soon, we will have monitors and new laws to help get rid of the creosote in the air.
I know that people will be healthy again, because my mom saved their lives. My mom met a woman that is very sick and might die soon because of the creosote she is breathing. Mom became her friend and helps her every day. No one believes that the creosote is the reason that she is sick, so my mom is helping her to show people that she is right. People are always calling my mom to help when they are sick or if they have questions about the creosote. She always helps them and makes them feel safe.
Some people agree with my mom and have asked her to help make the new laws for the whole state of Oregon. Even though, she is very busy with helping all of us children, she still wants to make time to help make change. She takes my sisters and me to her meetings and makes us aware of what’s going on. Because of her, I am brave enough to share with others about this problem.
Sometimes when I’m playing outside at recess, the creosote comes and makes everyone sick. I remember what my mom told me and I tell them that it is the creosote and that we should go inside. I even tell my teachers to be careful, and they don’t listen!
My mom is my environmental hero because she is saving the town from creosote. She has also taught my sisters and me to care for people and the environment. That is something I will never forget in my life. I am not scared for people here, because I know that my mom will not finish her work until it is fixed. I wish that everyone was as kind and brave as my mother. If they were we wouldn’t have this problem in the first place.
