Maine ENA Home

One of Our Own

Imagine, if you will, not knowing where your grandchild is. This is exactly what is happening to Geneva Sides, the chair of the Maine ENA Trauma Committee.

About ten years ago, Geneva’s daughter Heidi married Mohammad Alsahieh. All seemed well at the time and he was well liked by the entire family. They had three children, Ahmed, who is 9, Manar, 5 and Sarah, 4. However in 2009 the marriage began to deteriorate. The couple separated and had an informal agreement to alternate custody of the children. In May of that year an event occurred that would change the lives of the entire family. Heidi received a text message from Mohammad saying he had taken the children to Jordan and would not be returning them home.

In September of 2009, Geneva, her husband Dean and Heidi traveled to Jordan in hopes of reuniting the family. Heidi moved in with her husband in order to be with her children and has not left Jordan since.

Things were not well. Life with her husband was “full of emotional, mental and physical abuse…I could not leave my children.” In September of this year, Heidi and her children moved to a safe house run by the Family Protection Department of the Jordanian police. They were safe.

Last October, Heidi’s parents, Geneva and Dean, returned to Jordan and rented an apartment in Amman for Heidi and the children. Mohammad was in agreement that the children could move there but said he wanted to see if the place was suitable for his children. Geneva, Heidi, Manar and Sarah were in one taxi and Ahmed and his father were in another. The boy understood Arabic and knew from his father’s conversation with family members what was about to happen. Imagine the fear in the heart of this 9 year old boy….and the absolute panic of his mother and grandmother. They still do not know where Ahmed is. Geneva is staying in Jordan with her daughter and granddaughters.

This ordeal has been a financial strain as well. Geneva has had her position at Sebasticook Valley Hospital put on hold for the time being and her husband has been unable to continue with his business as a self-employed builder. There are a range of expenses which continue to mount, including paying the rent on the apartment in Amman. Support from the community of Hartland and the hospital where Geneva is employed has been overwhelming.

Geneva has been an active member of Maine ENA and TNCC chair for the Board. She has worked to have as many RNs as possible to obtain TNCC certification, even taking the course to Africa! As this holiday season approaches, please think of her and her family, especially her grandson. After all, she is one of our own.

Andrea Varnum RN BSN CEN

About Maine ENA

MENA is the Maine state council of the Emergency Nurses Association. We are a not-for-profit organization and our main purpose is education.

Our vision is to define the future of emergency nursing and emergency care through advocacy, expertise, innovation, and leadership.

National ENA Organization

ENA is the specialty nursing association serving the emergency nursing profession through research, publications, professional development, and injury prevention. Since 1970, when Judith Kelleher and Anita Dorr founded the Association, ENA has grown larger, stronger and more influential each year.

The National ENA website has a great deal of information related to its mission, vision, values and ideas for today and tomorrow.