Strong faith and the Church saved Salvadoran priest from war and destruction
BY JULIA GASPAR-BATES The Rev. Vidal Rivas hails from the city of San Sebastian, in the central zone of El…
Trauma and hope have helped Trinidadian resident become resilient
By Julia Gaspar-Bates Sharon Pierre grew up in the outskirts of Arima, on the Caribbean island of Trinidad, an area…
Cultural Connections: Austrian native now calls Hyattsville home
By Julia Gaspar-Bates Born in Vienna just after World War II, Gloria Felix-Thompson said her childhood was filled with constant…
From Rome to Hyattsville: an Italian resident’s journey to the US
By Julia Gaspar-Bates Beset by tragedy at a young age, Italian native Cecilia Volterra spent most of her early life…
A passion for conservation links Costa Rican to the U.S.
By Julia Gaspar-Bates Jorge Bogantes Montero grew up in a middle-class suburb outside San José, Costa Rica’s capital. His teacher-parents…
Cultural Connections: Resident’s transition from bucolic Germany to urban Hyattsville
By Julia Gaspar-Bates Born in the small town of Kaiserslautern, Germany, Christine Hopp was raised in a 13th-century restored farmhouse….
Cultural Connections: An Egyptian’s journey from the streets of Cairo to a home in Hyattsville
By Julia Gaspar-Bates Born in Cairo, Egypt, Fawaya Mohammed spent her early years in a poor neighborhood close to the…
Cultural Connections: Faith guided Canadian resident’s journey
By Julia Gaspar-Bates Growing up in Cambridge, Ontario, Maggie Banga describes having a typically Canadian childhood. “We loved winter,…
Civil war sent Sierra Leonean to the US
By Julia Gaspar-Bates Human rights activism is deeply woven into Matthias Seisay’s story, and eventually led to his immigration to…
From the Ecuadorian highlands to the Maryland lowlands
By Julia Gaspar-Bates Growing up in a conservative and insular family in Quito, Ecuador, Daniela Collaguazo would never have imagined…
