What does a Jewish grandmother have in common with a teen-age Muslim student? Quite a lot in point of fact.

I became Dima Zahan's mentor seven years ago shortly after she began the sixth grade in a city private school on a full scholarship. Now at 16, she has been accepted by several colleges but is worried about obtaining sufficient financial support to meet the cost.

I met Dima, who was born in Baltimore the year after her parents arrived from Bangladesh, under the umbrella of Sisters Circle, a unique program founded in 2000 by Ruxton resident Heather Harvison. Its purpose is to bring women mentors, often those whose children have left the nest or who never had any, together with city girls who are on the cusp of adolescence. These are girls who typically attend city public schools and show promise, but need academic help and social guidance. To date, at least 130 have benefited from the special attention provided by the mentors, and we have benefited in return.

Dima is a gem. Over the years I have watched her mature and grow more self-confident. Together we have established a meaningful relationship based on a shared interest in books, film and politics — especially politics. We are two peas in a pod, as we both like to argue, in a friendly fashion of course. And since we are both the offspring of immigrants, that subject is often on the front burner. In fact I have a son-in-law who was deported to Israel from the United States after having lived here for 30 years. But that is another story.

Over time, I have tried to expose Dima to the rich ethnic and religious mix of Baltimore. We have talked often about racism and the economic and social problems confronting so many Baltimore residents.

She is well aware also of the injustices suffered by women in the part of the world from which her parents come and refers to herself as a “militant Muslim feminist” knowing of course that her head would be lopped off were she spouting those words in some countries.

“Trump's talk of banning Muslims from entering this country frightens me,” she admits. “I worry about my own future as a brown woman and a Muslim seeking a job. I want to major in international relations in college and hopefully become a diplomat. ... My fingers are crossed that this could ever happen.”

I admire Dima's respect for her parents. Her father is a waiter, and her mother now manages a food store. The family forms a tight unit and already has achieved part of the American dream to which most immigrants aspire.

Three years ago Dima and her mother visited relatives in Bangladesh. She returned eager, more than ever, to return to her favorite place in Baltimore: the Enoch Pratt Library.

“The Pratt is where I grew up,” she said. “I read every book I could when I was growing up and could walk there from our apartment. My only regret is that my Mom did not have much of an education ... but she is getting one through me.”

Indeed, so am I.

Janet Heller lives in Baltimore; her email is santonipisa@gmail.com.