Roma (left) grew up in a refugee camp in Nepal, persecuted for being Christian. She dreamed of becoming a nurse her whole childhood, but after so much time spent in the camp, she gave up on that dream.
In 2010, Roma came to the United States as a legal refugee. When she arrived in the U.S., World Relief helped her to get a job at a hotel where she cleaned rooms and took English classes at night.
Roma met Amos, a missionary from Nepal. They married and had a daughter in 2012. Their daughter was diagnosed with a rare – and often fatal – heart condition that required surgery shortly after birth and then several more surgeries. Roma would work at the hotel during the day, continue her classes in the evening, and then join her husband at the hospital to spend the night praying for their daughter’s life.
It was there – in the hospital – that Roma’s dream to become a nurse was revived.
God healed Roma and Amos’ daughter, and today she is a healthy and thriving 5th grader in St Charles. Roma began nursing school and finished. She started studying for the required Board exams, which are extremely difficult, even for native-English speakers. During this same time, Roma also became pregnant.
Roma started attending Radical Love’s English learning program during the Summer of 2021. She needed help studying for her Board exams. For the first few weeks, different women took turns trying to help Roma.
Then one Friday, a woman named Abby (pictured above right) came to Radical Love. Abby was an ER Nurse with 15 years’ experience, and God had been moving in her heart to come to Radical Love to serve. She and Roma met and connected instantly. They began studying together and encouraging one another in life.
While Abby was a nurse, her husband Mike was a firefighter and pediatric nurse.
At Radical Love, it was discovered that many refugees are fearful of first responders. In many of their home countries, first responders are not allies, and in fact can be foes, especially to women. Mike and Abby helped organize Radical Love’s “First Responders Day,” which brought together firefighters, police and EMTs to visit with the women and the children about what they do and who they are in this country. It was such a success!
In September of 2021, Roma’s pregnancy was in jeopardy, and she went on bedrest at the hospital. Abby visited Roma frequently, praying with her and offering encouragement and hope. God blessed Roma and Amos with a healthy son in October and Abby and Mike rejoiced with them.
Then tragedy struck. Abby’s husband, Mike died suddenly in January 2022, leaving behind Abby and their young daughter.
Roma fell to her knees upon learning of Mike’s passing and prayed constantly for her friend Abby, encouraging her in their shared faith and reminding her that God is always right there beside her.
As the year went on, Abby continued to encourage Roma with her nursing Board exams, and in July, Roma PASSED! One of her first phone calls to share her success was to her friend Abby. Both women cried and rejoiced.
Roma is now a registered nurse and hopes to join the team at a local hospital, perhaps working alongside her friend Abby.
