feel like you belong

sharing the life stories of immigrants, expatriates, and refugees to the United States

Television Show

Feel Like You Belong TV is your source for real stories about the real people we call migrants. They may be the seasonal workers who traverse the country picking our daily produce.* They may be the expatriates who come on temporary assignment for their multinational companies. Or they may be the intrepid** souls who have committed to calling these United States their new homeland.

People have been migrating since time immemorial.*** They have moved for safety from earthquakes and drought. From war and disease. From persecution and economic hardship. They have the same characteristics as our immigrant forebears who gave up the familiarity and comfort of home in order to take risks and build a better life.

Join us here every week with these heroic storytellers and learn about what it is that still makes America a destination for entrepreneurs and risk-takers. The people who moved themselves and their families across deserts and oceans. People who add to each new generation’s vibrancy**** and can-do spirit. Welcome to Feel Like You Belong.

January 27, 2018

Michael Auer: Ushering In the Future of Dance

January 27, 2018/ Alan Headbloom

Austrian-born Michael Auer merges two careers into a new art form, and the Grand Rapids Ballet is ever the better for it. Join us for a look at the intersection of professional dance and technology.

December 22, 2017

Yuka Oba: Learning Through Dance

December 22, 2017/ Alan Headbloom

How do you know if you have what it takes to become a professional ballet dancer? Give it a try, says dancer Yuka Oba. Taking her own advice, this peripatetic ballerina has pursued her dream from Japan to the U.K. to Slovakia, and finally to Grand Rapids, Michigan where she is in her seventh season taking on challenging roles and new ways to embrace the diversity the world's choreographers have to offer.

December 14, 2017

MOVEMEDIA: Diversity (Grand Rapids Ballet)

December 14, 2017/ Alan Headbloom

The world is a complicated canvas of varying views, realities, and expectations. The next two installments in the Grand Rapids Ballet's innovative contemporary dance series, MOVEMEDIA, will explore and celebrate these beautiful differences. Experience thought-provoking panel discussions and powerful community outreach bookended by complementary world-premiere works by some of today’s most important choreographers. For tickets, visit grballet.com. Performances February/March 2018.

feel like you belong

Feel Like You Belong is a sometimes serious, sometimes funny, always “touch-your-heart” real conversation about fitting into the American culture. It introduces guests who have made the immigrant journey to the United States. The stories–of both struggle and success–will help newcomers feel more confident in sharing their opinions and expertise, more likely to want to stay in the U.S., be more productive in their jobs, and fully invest in their communities.