Peterborough Woman Who Started Football Academy In Jordan On The Impact A Pro Team Would Have On This Community She Adores
/Where is “home”?
I was born and raised on a small island in Denmark called Fyn. Being part Danish and part Lebanese/Palestinian makes me a dynamic combination of the Western and Middle Eastern world—a combination I spent years trying to understand.
Quite early in my life, I knew I had to experience the world. So after a lot of travelling, I decided to move to Amman, Jordan, in 2015 where I co-founded a football academy with the purpose of helping young boys off the streets and provide a safe, fun and educational environment.
Photo by Mariam El Chiekh Khalil of football Academy she co-founded in Jordan
It is very common to see children play football on the concrete in the Middle East as it can be expensive to register with a football academy. But because football is engraved in the hearts of Arabs from a very young age, children and youngsters will play regardless of their circumstances.
Photo by Mariam El Chiekh Khalil of football Academy she co-founded in Jordan
After running the football academy for four years and finishing my master’s degree in International Business Communication, I finally moved to Canada. By coincidence I found myself settling in Peterborough, a city that I didn’t know anything about or had ever heard of.
Photo of Mariam El Chiekh Khalil with players at football academy she co-founded in Jordan
Upon arrival in 2019 I thought to myself, will I ever be able to call this place home? Within only few days of living in Peterborough, my fear of not fitting in became completely insignificant. I was met with an extreme openness and kindness.
When I stood in the grocery store trying to figure out which coins to give to the cashier, I would always apologize and explain that I’m still quite new here. The response was always, without exception, “Oh, really. Well, welcome to Peterborough. I hope you’ll like it here.” I felt welcomed, included and within a few months I told my husband, This feels like home.
Mariam El Chiekh Khalil
But I still felt something was missing. I tried to search for a Middle Eastern community where I could mirror myself in people with a similar culture to mine.
Unfortunately, without any luck. I therefore decided to create the group “Arabs in Peterborough” on Facebook, and within no time, the group reached almost 80 members. Several group members expressed how they missed connecting with other Arabs and that they’re excited about what the group can bring to the Arabic community in Peterborough.
Photo by Mariam El Chiekh Khalil in Jordan
