If you’ve spent any amount of time in the neighborhood parks or visited the North-East Branch Library, chances are you’ve crossed paths with Sudi Hussein and her children Hassan, Hamdi, and Ayala.

Sudi came to the U.S. in 1993 to escape violence in her native country, Somalia. While she was living in Minnesota in 1998, she became a U.S. citizen. She has been living in Northeast since 2011.

Sudi is Muslim and her family worships at the Masjid al Huda mosque on Van Brunt Boulevard. She has many Christian friends and says “we have very much in common, with only a few small differences,” and she enjoys visiting churches and Bible studies with her friends.

Sudi is also an avid sports fan. She enjoys watching the Kansas City Royals, the Kansas City Chiefs, and Sporting KC, but she says the Kansas City Mavericks Ice Hockey might be her favorite local team. Her children share her love of sports and they spend a lot of time at Budd Park and at The Concourse.

If you see Sudi and her children, tell her “Hello!”