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Muradov Family to be Featured in 2007 CWS Calendar

By National Geographic's Annie Griffiths Belt, this photo of Nuradin Muradov; his wife, Zukhrakhan Muradova, and their grandchildren, Suleyman Muradov and Aygul Khozihyeva, will be included in the 2007 Church World Service calendar.

Photo: © Annie Griffiths Belt for CWS - not for reuse

September 18, 2006

Each year, National Geographic Photographer in Residence Annie Griffiths Belt contributes her stunning images to the Church World Service calendar -- all photos of people around the world whose lives CWS has touched.

Among those featured in the 2007 calendar will be a three-generation Meskhetian Turk family who resettled in Richmond, Virginia, in November 2005 under the auspices of CWS and the Virginia Council of Churches Refugee Resettlement Program (VCC), a CWS affiliate.

Belt visited Richmond this summer to photograph the Muradovs along with refugee families from Afghanistan and the Sudan. Photos not selected for the 2007 calendar will be kept on file for future projects.

The Muradovs fled their home in Uzbekistan in 1990, barefoot and without any possessions, to escape ethnic fighting. With other refugees, they were airlifted to Russia and told they'd spend a month there. But the month dragged into 16 hard years.

With no identity papers, they couldn't get jobs, had no rights, and very little way of surviving, except for farming a small piece of land. Finally, the plight of the Meskhetian Turk refugees came to the notice of the larger world, and in November 2005, the Muradovs arrived in Richmond.

Since then, their two grown sons have gotten good jobs as cabinetmakers. In June, Suleyman was born, and the proud family immediately applied for his Social Security card. "Finally," said grandfather Nuradin, "I can sleep again. I don't have to worry about somebody breaking down the door, and all my children are here and free."

The Muradovs welcomed their guest from National Geographic with a huge meal. "They couldn't have been more gracious," Belt commented. "You can't meet a family like this and not see that they are good, hard-working, full of humor, proud people."

"When we do the calendars," she continued, "we try very much to represent different parts of the world and the different kinds of work CWS supports."

Featuring resettled refugees illustrates that CWS, "in addition to supporting work abroad, also does a tremendous amount of work in this country," Belt observed. Featuring refugees from northern Europe serves as a reminder that "people can be victims anywhere. And with a little bit of a break, they are capable of moving forward.

"Helping refugees helps people who have had disaster in their lives," she reflected. "It also enriches the American fabric. We are huge beneficiaries of what these people have to teach us."

Concluded John Javed, VCC Program Coordinator, "I'm really proud that our program here in Richmond is being featured in the 2007 calendar."

The 2007 CWS calendar, available in wall and desk formats, will be available by early October. Order from CWS, P.O. Box 968, Elkhart, IN 46515 or by phone at 800-297-1516. Price is $10 plus $3 for shipping and handling.

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