BOTHELL – Xheni Diko remembers the day in Albania eight years ago when her mother came back.
She and her sister, Sindi, slept next to their mother that night, both of them holding on tight, not wanting to let her go.
It had been two years since they had seen her or their father.
Of that time, living with their grandparents, Xheni recalls little more than her angry and confused phone calls to the United States, where Besnik “Nick” and Engjellushe “Angel” Diko had gone to set up a new life for their daughters.
Now a senior at Monroe High School, Diko, who turns 18 on Wednesday, understands how the separation led to better futures for her and her sister.
Xheni, called Jenny here, is the first freshman to be accepted to attend the University of Washington’s Bothell campus next fall.
It was the only college to which she applied.
“We’re a really close family,” Diko said. “It’s everything. I’m not ready to go yet.”
Choosing the Bothell campus fulfills her desire to attend the UW, while getting a more manageable commute that allows her to continue living at home for a few more years.
“This opportunity came up, and it was like fate,” Diko said. “I honestly don’t see another school to go to. It’s so close, and UW has been my dream school.”
In an effort to provide more access to four-year degrees, the Legislature last year allowed the state’s university branch campuses to start enrolling freshmen and sophomores while continuing to serve the needs of upper-division transfer and graduate students.
UW-Bothell has received more than 420 applications for the 125 freshman slots it has available.
“We’re delighted with the interest,” said Dannette Sullivan, director of student affairs. “They’re going to be a great addition to our student body.”
Diko had toured the University of Washington’s main campus in Seattle at age 12 and had dreamed of going there.
Last fall, her school was visited by college representatives and she was handed a flier about the new opportunity at the 15-year-old Bothell campus.
“I’m excited because it’s so new,” Diko said.
Diko talks generally about wanting to be a doctor, but looks forward to exploring her options.
“Within myself, I expect to … push myself hard and make a name for myself. I think I owe it to my parents,” she said.
Nick and Angel Diko have pushed their daughters to value education.
Nick Diko has two bachelor’s degrees and was a mayor when he left Albania; he now delivers mail. Angel Diko has a bachelor’s degree in business administration and is now a seafood manager for a grocery store.
“The reason we moved and left everything behind, our family and country, was the kids,” Angel Diko said.
She recalls the years without her daughters like being in a dark tunnel. “That was the hardest time in my life. … Sometimes it felt like I’d never see them again.”
Seeing her oldest accepted to a university with a respected name, her future laid out in front of her, “was the biggest payment I could receive from my kids. It’s a dream come true.”
Reporter Melissa Slager: 425-339-3465 or mslager@heraldnet.com.
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