Dreaming Bigger Dreams

A Profile of Thomas Denha

Thomas Denha over the years.

By Adhid Miri, PhD

In the early and mid-20th century, countless numbers of young Iraqi men were moving from villages to fill up major Iraqi cities like Baghdad, Mosul, and Basra. But a few visionaries, courageous young men, were more adventurous and turned their faces another way, journeying west to the United States of America. The late Thomas Denha was one of them.

Early Life

Denha, a Chaldean Christian, was born in the village of Telkeppe in Iraq in 1927. He spent most of his early life in Telkeppe with his parents Mansouri Denha and Jamila (Nafsu) Denha. Thomas is the second eldest of 6 siblings (Yousif, Sabri, Hanneh Semaan, Julie Hanna, Najeeba Yaldo, and Samira Kassab). He attended school in Mosul.

Thomas’ father Mansouri and his brother Elias owned a tahini mill along with their extended family. They all worked in the fields and operated their own manufacturing business making tahini, a paste made from sesame seeds. The extended Denha family were (and still are) widely known as the original manufacturers of tahini in the region; they made a good living selling their brand name and premier product to other villages in the Nineveh Province and Duhok.

Coming to America

Dreaming bigger dreams, Thomas decided to venture to America when he was 18 years old. He arrived in New York Harbor shortly after the end of World War II. Upon his arrival in Michigan, he stayed one night with relatives in Detroit, in a small, noisy, and overcrowded house.

Appreciative of the help but knowing he needed to strike out on his own, Thomas packed his suitcase and left, despite not knowing where to go or what to do. William Shakespeare once said, “The best things in life happen by chance,” and by chance, as Thomas was strolling the old streets of Detroit, he spotted a party store with a familiar Chaldean face within.

Thomas went in and greeted the man in Sureth, which put a smile on the face of the person who turned out to be the owner; he also was a Chaldean from the village of Telkeppe. Thomas told him, “I am new here. I just arrived from Iraq. I have no money, no place to live, and I need a job.”

The man immediately embraced him and offered him accommodations and a job at his store. That wonderful welcoming man was Aziz Hesano. After a few months, Thomas moved to a rooming house with other Chaldean men like him who would become his lifelong friends —Najeeb Garmo, Louie Denha, and Buddy Atchoo, among others. They remained close friends throughout their lives.

Thomas and Virgine Denha at their wedding.

Building a Family

The young bachelor Thomas was not used to the harsh, frigid winters of Michigan. In 1954, he decided to travel back to the warm weather of Iraq. It was that year that he married his wife, Virgine Nadhir, and they both made their way back to Michigan. At the time, there were about 150 Chaldeans in the metro Detroit area. The small Chaldean community was close knit and saw each other at church each Sunday, and of course, during community events, communions, and weddings.

Thomas and Virgine started their life together in Highland Park but moved to Beverly Hills in response to the riots in Detroit. Theirs was a special marriage, anchored in faith, love and respect. Together, they raised five children: Roger, Cindy, Connie, Mark, and Kevin. Virgine still lives in the family home nearly 60 years later. She now has 3 daughters-in-law (Karen, Nesreen and Contessa Denha), a son-in-law (Jay Yasso), 12 grandchildren, and 8 great grandchildren.

Even though Thomas himself did not complete high school, he understood the importance of education and acquiring new skills. He was adamant that his children receive a quality education and even encouraged his sons to go away to school—during a time when very few Chaldean children left home for school. As a result, all his children have degrees, careers, and successful businesses.

The World of Business

Like many other Iraqi immigrants during that time, Thomas started working for other Chaldeans at grocery stores in Detroit. Also, like many others, he eventually went on to own his own business. Stores Thomas owned include Food Time Market and Superland Market; he partnered in a Howard Johnsons restaurant with his good friend Gabe Esshaki. In 1975, he made the daring move to a growing suburb, Sterling Heights, to open Grape Vine Wine Shop.

Denha saw the potential of the area and made note of the growing residential base. A few years later, he opened a second Grape Vine store two miles away; he later built a large shopping center at that same location. That location would later become the first home of the Chaldean Community Foundation.

Thomas also took the bold risk of investing in land in California during a time when only a few other Chaldeans were doing so. In the late 1980s, Thomas, his son Mark, and his cousin Mike Denha purchased a large parcel of land in Temecula and worked tirelessly on meeting zoning requirements. That endeavor took close to a decade to complete, but that didn’t dampen Thomas’ spirits. He loved real estate and business and passed on this passion to his children.

Despite his limited education, Thomas learned English and was an avid reader of business news, specifically the Wall Street Journal. He took educated risks in business and was fearless in doing so. He earned respect from all entities he interacted with.

He was also very close to Chaldean investors, networking with many bankers, including Jewish lenders. He learned about real estate, and then became a commercial broker and started his own firm, Thomas Realty. In that capacity, he helped many newcomers to America find stores and become business owners themselves.

Thomas was not only business smart, but more significantly, he was people smart. He had great intuition and the ability to “get it done,” no matter the task, with grit and determination.

Thomas Denha with other Chaldean pioneers

Helping others

“My journey was not easy,” said Thomas in a previous interview. “America is the place to come to change your life…. to start a new life.” He recalled, “I was the first one in my family to come to the United States. It took me three months to come to America.”

In 1962, John F. Kennedy signed the Migration and Refugee Assistance Act, created to help foreigners who had fled from persecution in their home countries. This enabled Thomas to bring his two brothers and four sisters to America, as well as Virgine’s siblings.

Thomas took the opportunity to help his brothers and sisters get established in the United States. He found stores for them to buy, secured loans, and provided guidance. He was overjoyed to be able to help his siblings and spent a lot of time with his brothers Sabri and Yousif.

Thomas’s passion to help others didn’t stop with immediate family but extended to the entire Chaldean community. He was deeply involved with the Chaldean Iraqi American Association of Michigan (CIAAM) and was a constant presence when they were establishing Southfield Manor.

Virgine Denha fondly recalled Thomas, his good friend Oraha Shouneyia, and others going from store to store asking Chaldean store owners to give donations to build the new cultural gathering spot.

Denha also helped countless others he encountered in his daily life, many of whom weren’t related or even Chaldean. One former Detroit police officer who read Denha’s obituary in the newspaper in 2011 drove across town to tell Thomas’s family of how their husband and father helped him over 30 years earlier. He said, “I will never forget what Tom did for me.”

The Denha Family.

Lasting Legacy

Thomas Denha’s story is not entirely unique in this country or within our great Chaldean community, but it is an evocative tale of a generation that has come and gone. A self-educated man with both street smarts and business smarts, Thomas was a risk taker without fear. Failure was never an option. He was a pure capitalist who loved America and all the opportunities it presented if one was willing to put in hard work and exhibit will and fortitude.

Thomas Denha knew that Chaldeans would contribute in a huge fashion to the United States of America, as they have, and correctly believed that they would continue to make their new country richer, stronger, and better.

Those who visit the Chaldean Community Foundation in Sterling Heights may recognize the name on a plaque in the middle of the center. Thomas A. Denha Main Street celebrates the legacy of a man who knew the value of family and community.

This article was drafted to fill a lasting desire on the part of the community for what we call “Pioneer History.” To the families represented here, the value is inestimable. For the children and grandchildren, it is our hope that the character, courage, resolute endurance, and firmness of mind become an example for all. Contributions for this story were made by Virgine Denha, Kevin Denha, Connie Yasso, Malik Mary, Amira Samouna Mary, and Farouq Samouna.