Family ties pull Bosnian teens after a year in America

Maida Fazlic is set today to leave the quiet house in Lakeside Park, Ky., where she has been staying for the past year.

She's returning home.

First, she'll fly to Frankfurt, Germany. Then she'll take a bus to Zagreb, Croatia. From Zagreb, she will use pocket money to try to thread her way home by bus, truck or car, to Tuzla, the second largest city in war-torn Bosnia, where her family awaits her.

"It's going to be strange," said Miss Fazlic, 16. "I just got used to the way things are here and now I go back to where we don't have things or certain freedoms. It's going to be hard getting used to how things are done there again. It's going to be even worse, because I have seen America. In Tuzla, it was always America this, America that. But they were just stories."

Working dryers, new clothes, microwaves and compact discs are just some of the things that have become rarities in Tuzla since the war in Bosnia, once an area with a relatively high standard of living for Eastern Europe. But even more precious is the peace, safety and community enjoyed here. Now Miss Fazlic is giving that up to help rebuild her shattered homeland.

Miss Fazlic is one of 15 Bosnian teen-agers returning home today from Cincinnati. They are among 30 Bosnian children brought here last year by Project Shelter, a non-profit organization based in Northern Kentucky. The organization, with the help of a Bosnian women's group, brought Bosnian teen-agers with good English skills here to study in Cincinnati high schools for a year. About half came from Sarajevo, the Bosnian capital, and half came from Tuzla. Both towns were predominantly Muslim centers that were besieged by Bosnian Serb armies during the 3ï-year war. All the children brought over are Muslim. Since NATO troops arrived in December, relative peace has been restored, though many fear renewed fighting at the end of this year when those troops are scheduled to leave.

Now winding down, Project Shelter was the largest such effort in the United States. Four Bosnian children who graduated from high school this spring hope to stay and go on to college. The rest are attending high school here until they get their diplomas. No more children are set to be brought over.

The decision to return to Bosnia - a choice made individually by each student - was difficult. Children missed their loved ones in Bosnia, but the nation faces an uncertain future, with renewed fighting a distinct possibility. Even without war, students will return to a shattered economy and divided country.

Miss Fazlic, sitting with her host family, the Maiers, said she agonized about the choice. She could have stayed with the Maiers and attended Notre Dame Academy on scholarship. Like most of the Project Shelter children, she proved an excellent student. She got along well with the Maiers. But in the end, she just missed her family too much.

"I'm too young to be away from my family and friends," said the soft-spoken Miss Fazlic in perfect English. "Mom missed me. She's all sentimental."

But the Maiers, Bob, 40, and Melinda, 44, worry for Miss Fazlic's safety. Bob Maier said his three children, Zeke, 11, Tessa, 8, and Max, 5, learned a great deal as hosts to Maya.

"My children have been exposed firsthand to information about the war, about another culture, but they also got to know Maya herself, the individual, who is in so many ways a very special, intelligent, sensitive person."

The family had such a good experience that they volunteered to take another student for this year, Rizah Smailbegovic, 17, of Sarajevo. He already has moved in after staying with another Kentucky family for the school year.

Rick Deerwester, head of Project Shelter and a vice president for a chemical supplier, said all the host parents are worried about their Bosnian children.

But, Mr. Deerwester said, the Bosnian parents miss their children.

"Imagine how hard it would be to send your kid halfway across the world to another country, another culture, and trust that somehow it was going to work out," he said.

The year has been a muddle of emotions for the teen-agers. The schools and fellow students have been friendly. Families, for the most part, have been nice. They have received numerous donations to help the children, including plane tickets to Frankfurt donated by Continental Airlines.

Both Miss Fazlic and Mr. Smailbegovic said most Cincinnatians have been understanding and interested in learning about the war. They said the Bosnian children, divided sharply among themselves into Tuzla and Sarajevo cliques, adapted easily to American culture, because it was similar in many respects to life in pre-war Yugoslavia, of which Bosnia was the central part.

"We like movies, we hate some teachers, we're just like other kids," said Miss Fazlic.

But what does set them apart forever is the war. More than 250,000 people have been killed, most of them civilians.

Daily bombardments and starvation forced the children to grow up much faster than their American counterparts. They were spooked by loud noises. They had nightmares about seeing people killed.

"Yes, we're only different because of the war," said Mr. Smailbegovic. "Otherwise we would be the same. My view of life has completely changed."

Northern Kentucky University sociology professor Joan Ferrante, 40, who along with husband Robert Wallace, 51, were hosts for 18-year-old Emina Atikovic, said Miss Atikovic decided to return to Tuzla to become a doctor. She wants to help rebuild Bosnia, Ms. Ferrante said.

"Project Shelter's goal was to take the kids for a year, educate them, then return them to Bosnia to help rebuild their country," Ms. Ferrante said. "I just think she, like the other kids, took that goal seriously."

The children have built strong ties to Cincinnati. The last week here was filled with parties, tearful goodbyes and a special trip to Kings Island.

If trouble erupts again in Bosnia, some students have made arrangements to come back.

But Miss Fazlic and the others are counting on any fighting ending quickly. She plans to stay safe.

"I was there during three years of war, so when I go back, I'll survive," she said, adding, "I hope."

Meanwhile, Mr. Smailbegovic said he will finish Covington Catholic High School, then think about returning to Bosnia.

Asked if he feels guilty that he is in America while others struggle in Bosnia, he said, "I think I deserve it after all that, three years of war. Not just me, I think all (Bosnian) kids should get a break like this."

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Published June 9, 1996