A daughter who never knew her home 

We’d like to introduce you to Nadine Pasikari.

Born one of 12 children, neither Nadine nor her siblings were born in their parent’s home country. As proud natives of Burundi, her parents were forced to flee their home in 1972 due to a violent tribal war. They loved their home country and were distraught to leave just to find safety. After much travel, they landed at a refugee camp in the Congo, where they lived for 25 years and had two children. But their visions of settling down and finding a place to plant roots never came there. 

In 1994, Nadine’s family was forced to flee to another refugee camp again. This time they travelled to Tanzania. During their 12 year stay, they had six more children, including Nadine in 1999, before leaving to find safety in the United States. With the new opportunity to begin creating roots, in December 2007, the Pasikari family resettled in Memphis through Catholic Charities. Nadine was eight years old. 

The final four children were born after arriving in Memphis. Since coming to America the family has been able to find stability, including recently moving into a house in Cordova that they can call home. 

The Pasikari family have long leaned on their Christian faith through their turbulent moves. Nadine’s mother became a believer first and later her father professed faith. An important part of raising their children has been their belief in Christ and the necessity of relying on Him through their journey.

Now, at 22 years old, Nadine loves to babysit, paint, volunteer, cook, and sew. Her favorite traditional meal to cook is Cassava Leaves (SOMBE). She hasn’t had the opportunity to return to her parents homeland for a visit, but the country still calls to her. She misses the food (especially the mangoes, her favorite food), traditions, and dances of Burundi, and of course, Africa. Although she misses home, Nadine is thankful for the opportunity that her family is given in America, and seeks to make the best of it every day. 

The Pasikari family has been a treasured part of the Christ Church family for more than 10 years now. Nadine loves to serve because this is how she witnessed her mother live out her Christian faith. It’s not uncommon to see Nadine or her siblings serving the church on Sundays and during large events such as Cup of Nations.

This year, Christ Church’s sponsored team is Nadine’s home country, Burundi. There will be two Burundi teams in the 2021 tournament, with her cousins playing on one team and her brothers on the other. We hope you’ll come out to support Team(s) Burundi on October 23, at Bellevue for the Cup of Nations soccer tournament. 

About Christ Church Memphis
Christ Church Memphis is church in East Memphis, Tennessee. For more than 65 years, Christ Church has served the Memphis community. Every weekend, there are multiple worship opportunities including traditional, contemporary and blended services.