Ney-T: Healing Through Music
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Ney-T is a singer-songwriter from the West African nation of Senegal. He shares with us his passion for music and an original song in his native Wolof. Come for the conversation, stay for the music.
David Astudillo: Representing Latin America in Film
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Growing up in Venezuela, David Astudillo loved stories told through film. When the opportunity arose, he ventured to Grand Valley State University to follow his passion of filmmaking. With us, he discusses bringing Latin American voice to the world of film.
Fridah Kanini: Community Leader and Entrepreneur
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Fridah Kanini talks about the journey that led her to Michigan from her native Kenya: hardships, tenacity, and the drive to create community. An entrepreneur at heart, she talks about founding the first-ever African Festival coming to Grand Rapids on August 10.
Swithina Mboko: Refugee Entrepreneurship
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Swithina Mboko is a professor at the Seidman college of business at Grand Valley State University. In this interview, she discusses the culture differences between Zimbabwe and the US, the trials of teaching in a foreign country, and her qualitative research surrounding refugee entrepreneurs.
Israel Ledesma: Community Servant-Leader
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Growing up in southwest Grand Rapids, young Israel Ledesma knew both good times and bad. Using his personal experiences from the hard times – including brushes with the law – this local Latino leader fashioned his own view on kids, community, and the importance of mentoring.
Frank H. Wu: Race in America Beyond Black and White
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Frank Wu joins us to discuss growing up Asian American in very-white suburban Detroit. He shares the chilling impact of the 1982 Detroit murder of Vincent Chin on the Asian-American community. Finally, he calls for strengthened coalition building across the diverse Asian populations of the U.S.
Fable the Poet: Giving Voice to the Voiceless
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Marcel "Fable" Price talks of his challenging youth, a teacher who saw promise in him, and the redemptive power of poetry. As Poet Laureate of Grand Rapids, Michigan, he uses his platform to empower area youth, call out public policies that marginalize brown and black people, and advocate for mental health services.
Mercedes Lopez-Duran and Paola Mendivil: Kitchen, Family, and Community
/Back in Mexico, Mercedes Lopez-Duran got important advice when she started as a restaurant dishwasher: You are the one responsible for your own career trajectory. Taking that guidance to heart, she worked her way up to cook and moved with daughter Paola to the United States. When a Mexican restaurant came up for sale, the intrepid duo took a deep breath, leapt into the void, and never looked back. Today, El Granjero Mexican Grill celebrates 10 years of good cooking in the Bridge Street neighborhood of Grand Rapids, Michigan. In the process, they created a place for locals to feel like they belong.
Marcelo Lehninger: A Life of Music
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Just looking at his name, one can tell that Marcelo Lehninger was destined to be a citizen of the world. The child of a Brazilian violinist and German pianist, young Marcelo grew up with two constants in his life: global fluidity and music. Today, he unites his passions on a third continent as music director for the Grand Rapids Symphony. Join us for an uplifting conversation about life, love, and music!
Javier Olvera: Hispanic Entrepreneurship
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Javier Olvera is the president and owner of Supermercado Mexico in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He joins us to tell his own immigrant story, talk about the joys and challenges of business ownership, and share his vision for Hispanic entrepreneurship in his adopted city.
Ace Marasigan: Preserving One's Heritage
/As a teenage immigrant, Ace Marasigan wanted no part of the United States. His older brothers were back in his native Philippines, as was the security of home, culture, and language. Yet he persisted, with the help of the local Filipino community. He formed a rock band and focused on making Grand Rapids his new home. Fast forward to today: Ace is the downtown manager of Old National Bank, where he has the time to look out onto his city and dream of a second successful Downtown Asian Festival. Just the kind of belonging he wants to create for his son.
Abe Carrillo: Global Inclusiveness
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Abe Carrillo is a proud son of Mexican immigrants and proud employee at Herman Miller where he is Director for Diversity & Global Inclusiveness. He joins us to talk about the hard work of immigrants and the inspiring community work that Herman Miller is engaged in.
Mlado Ivanović: Global Refugee Crisis
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A 13-year-old Serbian boy and his mother flee worn-torn Bosnia. Young refugee Mlado Ivanović spends his teen years trying to adapt to Austrian culture and the German language. Beginning his PhD studies in the U.S., he connects his passion and his life's work: teaching American students about the worldwide refugee crisis and what they can do about it.
Leela Dhakal: Refugees Helping Refugees
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Refugees often find themselves warehoused in makeshift camps for years – or even decades. The lucky ones are eventually resettled by a generous nation to start a new life. But new struggles – especially for older refugees – then begin: trying to learn a strange language, adapting to new climates and customs. Who is the best to help with the daily tasks that natives take for granted: driver's license, bank forms, job applications, healthcare appointments, school registration for kids? It's often fellow refugees who came before. Like Leela Dhakal.
Craig & Pamela Benjamin: From Down Under to Up Over and Fitting In
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An Aussie/Kiwi couple moves from Down Under to Up Over. Pamela and Craig Benjamin discuss their personal mid-life moves. Changing hemispheres and changing careers in the land of opportunity.
Huynh Tran: Receiving and Giving Back
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It was not an easy decision for Huynh Tran to put down his architect's dream in order to remold himself as a healer. The young Vietnamese refugee worked long hours to put himself, first, through architecture training, then, through medical training. Committed to giving back to the community that embraced him, Dr. Tran formed a medical philanthropy that ministers to underserved community and trains overseas physicians to improve their caregiving skills.
Lola Audu: Intercultural Real Estate
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Lola Audu is used to creating firsts in her adopted U.S. home. As an international student in college, she had to teach white administrators about unintended racism. As a real estate professional, she became the first black president in the 117-year history of the Grand Rapids Association of Realtors. As a graduate of the Cultural Intelligence Center, she is now bringing cultural intelligence (CQ) to the real estate industry. Join Alan as he interviews the Nigerian native who has become a West Michigan force to be reckoned with.
David Castro: From the Ground Up
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David Castro understands hard work. Arriving in the United States, the Mexican native spoke little English but knew he had to work. Luckily, the manager of the Sears men's department was kind and gave him a job stocking clothing. And helped him learn English. Moving from retail to the catering business, David maintained that same work ethic, moving from Server to Supervisor to Manager. Today, he is the President and Partner of Applause Catering, the largest catering company in Grand Rapids, MI.
Yan Yu: Coming to America
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After a quarter century in the United States, sociology professor Yan Yu shares her secrets about culture, education, friendship, and belonging.
Sara Proaño: Hispanic Center of Western Michigan
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The needs of the Hispanic immigrant community are varied and often urgent. Services in demand run the gamut from nutrition education to job mentoring, legal counsel, language services, and domestic violence counseling. Sara Proaño speaks proudly of the rich resource that is the Hispanic Center of Western Michigan.
