Performing with a Purpose
Within a matter of months, Joe Kye had gone from teaching English in a high school classroom to playing his music at open mics in local dive bars.
Category: Immigrant
Blind Faith in a Better Life
“Blue eyes, mustache, tall! I loved him,” says Anna Giurgiev. “And I still do.” She smiles, describing how she met her husband, Sava, when he waited on her
The Hard Way Can Be What Saves You
Yamini Rajan was 12 the first time she heard her father cry. With tears rolling down his cheeks, he saw the scars covering Yamini’s thighs and arms.
Embrace All Your Cultures
It was her teachers, violinist Inés Voglar says, who gave her the courage to do what she loved the most and to trust that success would follow.
Designing a Better Future
“After the travel ban and after Trump, I had the hard feeling — I felt ignored and voiceless,” says Shiva Farrohki. “I was thinking, how can we change
Love at First Sight—with Medicine
Growing up in Kyiv, Ukraine with a mathematician father and physicist mother, Tetyana Odarich was expected to follow in her dad’s footsteps.
Sketching a Life in Secret
Nothing about the financial world interested Sarah Rikaz. The only tie she could find between her passion and the career her parents wanted for her was
For the Love of Mozart
It’s the late 1980s in Taipei, Taiwan. Every week, four-year-old Ruby Chen ventures with her mother from their storefront apartment to the local Yamaha Piano store
Why Her Accent Became a Mask
When Onyeka Azike journeyed from Nigeria to America to attend Portland’s Reed College, she believed she would fulfill a childhood dream.
Upsetting the Status Quo
Contrary to the unobtrusive lifestyles of most immigrants, blending in has never been a priority for Victor Maldonado. Behind his signature blue mask,
The Gift of New Opportunities
Growing up, Zsusana Vamos always loved stories of Marie Curie, so when she got her first job doing cancer research in Budapest, she was excited
Laughing through the Years
Janet Liu is no stranger to a life shaped by history. Or rather, a history shaped by her life. But her rolling laughter and raw honesty reveal that she remains […]
An All-American Korean Gives Back
Lori Stegmann thinks her birthday is on January 24, but she will never be sure if that’s true. Her story begins in 1960 at City Hall in Seoul, South Korea, […]
We Are an Asset to Our Society
It’s a long way from Mexico City to the Revolución Coffee House in Portland, Oregon. But Maria Garcia — business owner, mother, activist, advocate —
Building a Thriving Community
Selling matches and chewing gum on the rough streets of Mexico City, Jaime Miranda learned early on what it took to survive. “I guess at the age of 9 or […]