In 2012, Bana and her family bought round trip tickets to the United States, planning to return to Syria once the war ended. But things didn’t get better, and they didn’t go home. With time, they made a new home in West Virginia, opening a restaurant called Beity, the Arabic word for “my home.”

I had the pleasure to work at Beity with Bana and her husband. Every shift I would come in smiling and go out smiling. If you’ve ever worked in a service job, you know that’s rare. Meet Bana, hear her story, and enjoy the last full episode of Sandstone!