MARTHA LONDONO
Episode 1
Martha Londono is a 51-year-old single mother who was born in Buenaventura, Colombia. She moved to Cali, Colombia when she started her secondary schooling, attending a university until she had her first child, Carlos, at the age of 20. She was a successful businesswoman in Colombia until the death of Carlos’ father, which prompted Martha to rethink the direction of her and her son’s life. Eventually, Martha met her second child’s son, Pedro, and moved to the US to give birth to Lau in 2001. In the United States, Martha encountered discrimination based on the language barrier she faces still to this day. As she prepares for another transition in her life with her son graduating soon, Martha’s daily life currently features working the night shift at Walmart, taking care of their dog Candy, and making sure Lau reaches the finish line. Currently a single mother due to divorce, Martha prides herself on being independent and strong, looking towards the future with a positive outlook.
NICKO MORAITIS
Episode 3
Nicko Moraitis is a 65-year-old father of two who moved to the US with his parents at the age of 2 from Icaria, Greece. His parents fled to Detroit, Michigan because they sought a better life, recognizing that their home island was still occupied by Nazis by the end of WW2 and their child would be in danger if they stayed. In the US, Nicko graduated high school and has worked as both a salesman and a chef. He has three kids, one daughter and two sons, and remains very close to both of his parents. Nicko is thankful for the vibrance of Greek culture where he lives and the luck he’s had not having to face any blatant discrimination due to his ethnicity and nationality. He is also grateful for having been able to pursue the “American Dream” and giving his kids the opportunity to do so as well. His favorite part about living in the US is having a nice home in a safe neighborhood and that his children receive a stellar education.
SARAH ROMESTANT
Episode 2
Sarah Romestant is an 18-year-old college student born in Venezuela to young parents who were working on their education, moving to France at the age of 8. Two and a half years later, her family moved to Bogota, Colombia for her father’s work only for him to be transferred to Miami 3 years later. Sarah was new to the US education system, having studied in the French system for 13 years. Due to a lack of good international schools near the Miami area, Sarah had to go to Cypress Bay high school and accommodate to studying completely in English rather than completely in French. She expresses being fortunate enough to have moved to South Florida where minorities, specifically Latin minorities, are more integrated and less discriminated against. However, she cites having experienced severe culture shock and a hard time adapting to the “American” life. She is currently studying environmental engineering at Florida State University.
YAW KYEREMATENG
Episode 4
Yaw Kyeremateng is a 27-year-old director of forensics at Concordia University in California. He moved to the United States from Ghana at the age of 17 looking for a better education than he would’ve received in his home country. Yaw studied at the University of Northern Iowa and competed in college forensics. After experiencing the collegiate circuit, Yaw went on to coach college speech and working with high school speech students during the summer at different summer camps such as the Champion Briefs Institute and the Modern Brain Institute. He enjoys activities such as modeling, acting, writing, and most of all, spoken word poetry. Yaw appreciates the US for giving him the ability to express himself freely and openly.