Fatima and Robert take StoryCorps’ One Small Step

Fatima and Robert take StoryCorps’ One Small Step

... and bond over looking for ‘kind and just’ candidates

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Robert Jackson

Bio: Robert Jackson has lived all across the U.S.: Mississippi, Minnesota, Washington state, Colorado, Missouri, and Florida.

He’s got two children: a four-year-old and a five-year-old.

He originally started going to bible college, but dropped out because he couldn’t afford tuition. He worked in construction and project management before becoming the pastor at Orlando Grace Church.

“So it’s been a little bit of a trip, but yeah, so I'm grateful for God's providence,” Jackson said. “It's actually ended up being a really helpful path, because everything that I've had to do in construction and project management has been really informative for the types of work that I have to do with our church now.”

Fatima Saied

Bio: Fatima Saied is the cofounder and executive director of the Muslim Women’s Organization.

Her father moved to South Florida from Pakistan in the 1970s. She said growing up, her parents helped to create Muslim organizations for immigrants in the area.

She’s a Sunni Muslim, and grew up following the Hanafi school of thought.

“So we grew up very Sufis-Sunni, so there was a lot of singing in my home,” Saied said. “It's not that traditional, very serious and strict kind of conservative home. It was a little bit conservative, but it was, looking back, a lot of fun. There was a lot of singing and music and love in that worship.”