To learn about different cultural backgrounds and religions, I interviewed Bilge “Bea” Felek, a current transfer student to Sacred Heart Academy’s junior class. Bea is from a big city in the Western part of Turkey called Denizli, but she was born in Elazig, a small town in Eastern Turkey. Bea has done a lot of traveling throughout her childhood. When Bea was only two years old, she moved to Columbus, Ohio, because of the headscarf ban at the schools in Turkey. Her mom wanted Bea to pursue her education, but did not want to take off her headscarf, which is also called a hijab. After two and a half years in Ohio, upon her mother’s completion of her Masters, Bea’s family moved back to Turkey for a year.  Later, her family then lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan for seven years where her mom was a Ph.D. student in Islamic Studies.  They then moved again to Palo Alto, a small town outside San Francisco for one year due to her mom’s postdoctoral research. Their next stop was Brooklyn, New York for one year prior to Hamden in June. She explained how she learned about Sacred Heart when her family friends suggested it as they were searching for schools in Connecticut.
Bea is very open about her upbringing and willingly spoke about her favorite holiday , Eid al-Fitr:
“This is a holiday we (as Muslims) celebrate at the end of a month of daily fasting known as Ramadan. It is celebrated for three days with lots of food, desserts, and activities for young children. In Turkey, people pass out candy for children who go door to door, almost like Halloween. Women decorate their hands with henna and everyone gets new shoes and clothing for Eid. During the three days, people visit relatives, old teachers and friends who they don’t often see. Everyone serves Baklava and chocolate in their homes, which sounds good but gets tiring after three days.”
Bea goes on to tell me how her favorite food is a Turkish dish called “manti,” which she explains as pieces of ground beef wrapped in dough and cooked like pasta. “ It is similar to ravioli, but the pieces (according to Turkish tradition) have to be small enough to fit 40 in one spoon.” It is then served with yogurt and melted butter.

When Bea was asked about Christianity, she happily responded, “I found the process of joining the sisterhood very interesting. I also found the amount of care given towards the sisters (such as Sister to Sister) to be very heartwarming.”
Bea Felek has an older sister currently in West Virginia attending medical school, and an adorable, orange tabby cat named Sabit. In her free time, she enjoys playing ukulele, sewing (mostly costumes for her kitty), cooking, and visiting with her friends. She speaks fluent Turkish and can read some Arabic. She also likes decorative henna, as opposed to Turkish henna which is very plain. Bea is one of the kindest people I have ever met and is a wonderful addition to Sacred Heart Academy! We welcome her and wish her the best!