February 23, 2012
Sandra Raak
Sandra writes,
I am a storyteller too and I would like to share some of my story with you. I first came to the United States from South America at the end of August of 2008 and three weeks later I started classes at Calvin College. I remember that my uncle picked me up from the Chicago O’Hare airport and I was feeling terribly intimidated because it was a huge building. I had a feeling that if I went in the wrong exit I was going to end up on the other side of the world.
Once at Calvin, I realized there were not very many Latin American students like me, but once I found them, they became my closest friends in college. I look back, and having lunch with them at least twice a week was what made me miss my family less.
After graduation, I had to decide if I was going to stay in the United States for another year or if I was going to go back home. On the one hand, the economic situation in Michigan was terrible but on the other hand, I had been dating Aaron Raak (TPH Class of 2005) for seven months. I stayed. After an intensive job search, I got an internship at WGVU Radio, where I wrote news stories, and a month later I got a job at “El Vocero Hispano,” where I currently work part-time. At “El Vocero,” I write stories in Spanish for the Hispanic population of Western Michigan.
Aaron and I got engaged in July 2010 and in March of 2011 we got married. We have been happily married since.
I have been at The Potter’s House for more than a month now and I have seen first-hand how wonderful it is to work in a community of believers. This is why I wanted to work and serve here.
Welcome, Sandra!
