Our Forever Spirit of Empire
In Memory of Sania Khan
I don’t know how to start a piece like this or what to say. I’m overwhelmed with sadness and disbelief. But I wanted to share some of my personal reflections about Sania and the impact that she had on the organization during her time with us. So, here it goes.
On Monday, the world lost a tremendous human. We lost a star. Sania Khan passed away at age 29.
Sania came into our lives at Empire in 2018. We hired her because we needed a photographer. What we got was so much more.
Sania and Empire was like love at first sight: she adored our students and staff, and we felt the same way about her.
Sania found the trials fascinating to watch and to capture. She’d sometimes walk over to me with her big camera, beaming with excitement as she showed some recent photos that she took of students. Sania never ceased to be amazed by the students and their talents; she felt like it was her duty–her calling–to showcase them.
But it’s not the quality of her photography that I’ll remember most (though she was an extraordinary professional): it’s Sania’s spirit.
When Sania walked into a room, you knew she was there–she’s just that type of person. You could feel her energy enter a space. It was a mix of boundless positivity, exuberance, passion, compassion, and love. She’d usually be sporting a big smile from ear-to-ear, the type of smile that made a person cheer up even when they had no desire to do so. Her energy was infectious, and everyone around her felt it.
It was that spirit that made Sania’s photos so incredibly special. You couldn’t help but be happy when you were around her. Although most of our recent photos don’t feature Sania in front of the camera, you can still feel her presence in them: the smiles, the laughs, and the gratitude on the faces of those that she photographed, mostly our awesome students.
Sania was also the ultimate team player.
From the very start, she made clear that she was committed to Empire’s mission of empowering young people and willing to do anything to help. I took a trip down memory lane last night, and found a video of Sania in San Francisco helping us move cases of water into the courthouse. It was a Friday night, in which she could have been sightseeing or relaxing; yet, there Sania was, rocking her Blue Shirt, performing tedious manual labor.
Finally, Sania had a heart of gold.
Last November, hosting Empire Chicago was a fairly stressful experience for me, having to enforce COVID regulations, around the clock, for 5 days. It was also an emotionally taxing time in Sania’s life, as I’d come to find out weeks later, but had no idea in the moment; because Sania only asked about me at the competition. She could tell that I was stressed, and continued to ask over and over what she could do to help: do you need anything to eat or drink? Can I communicate with Stephanie (our branding director) directly, to give you one less thing to worry about? She made me, and by extension the organization, feel incredibly supported during one of our most difficult times.
In so many ways, Sania Khan embodied all that we, as an Empire team, aspire to be: caring, positive, energetic, committed, the ultimate teamplayer. And that is how I will always remember her.
Sania may not be with us anymore, but her spirit always will.
She will Forever be our Spirit of Empire.
Disclaimer: I am about to address the circumstances surrounding Sania’s passing, which will be difficult for anyone to read, but especially if you’ve been the victim of domestic violence. Reading discretion is advised.
The Activist & Influencer
In addition to her talents as a photographer, Sania had developed a series of vibrant, well-followed, social media accounts, where she often spoke candidly about the pain associated with her divorce and the judgment that came from it.
The last time I saw Sania was over a slice of Peaquod’s pizza, where she introduced me to her husband (at the time), Raheel. Three months later, Sania told me that she had filed for divorce from Raheel after his behavior toward her became increasingly unstable. Yesterday, I read online that Raheel was responsible for taking Sania’s life.
I hesitate whether or not to include this section in Sania’s tribute. It’s hard for me to even type these words. But ultimately, I’ve decided to do so because I think—no, I know—that Sania would want her story to make a difference.
Domestic abuse—both verbal and physical—is so real and prevalent in our society. Sania’s life was taken in Chicago, and according to the Chicago Sun Times:
Domestic violence continued to surge in Chicago and across Illinois last year as pandemic-induced isolation and economic uncertainty made it harder for victims to get help (See a report released earlier this month).
A statewide domestic violence hotline received nearly 30,000 calls in 2021, up 5%, and the number of murders and shootings involving domestic relations in Chicago increased nearly two-thirds from 2020, according to the report by The Network, a Chicago-based advocacy organization.
If you, or someone you love, is the victim of domestic violence, please know that there are resources available. In addition to sharing your experience with a loved one, you can call 911 or contact the Domestic Violence Hotline.
