Second Generation

Jimmy Christeas is so busy he won’t sit still for an interview, running back and forth from the cash to the backroom at Quinpool Shoe Repair, a business he has managed for 10 years and … Read more

Nineteen-year-old Manuel Moncayo-Adams is on a challenging journey to fully understand his Colombian heritage and how it affects his life. His Colombian-born father, a veterinarian, settled in Canada in 1988 after meeting and marrying Rose … Read more

Ebony Abe is determined to succeed in life because of her mother’s hard work and sacrifice. “On my mom’s side, females were expected to stay home and care for the children. My mom really branched … Read more

Sara Abdo has fond memories of growing up in an Egyptian family in Halifax. “My sister and I would watch plays in Arabic with my mother and, of course, we would fall asleep halfway through,” … Read more

Until he was school age, Labi Kousoulis had no idea his parents spoke English. “We only spoke Greek in the house,” says Labi, adding that he and his sister attended Greek school. “It was on … Read more

Perhaps David Hung is destined to become a doctor. After all, when he was six, his physician father, Dr. Orlando Hung, would take him and his little brother to the hospital. “He’d find the smallest … Read more

Bernadine Gerrits and her husband, Klaas, raised three children of their own and were foster parents to 22 others, something she mentions almost casually. Most were teenage girls. Some stayed overnight in emergency placements, many … Read more

Howard Ramos, son of an Ecuadorian immigrant, is an expert on the integration of immigrants and refugees in Canada. He grew up in Toronto, but didn’t focus on immigration until moving 14 years ago to … Read more

One day last year, Monica Mutale, her parents, three older sisters, brother-in-law, niece and nephew stood in the middle of their Cole Harbour street, holding hands, posing for a special family portrait. It was the … Read more

Maria Keselj’s wisdom, confidence, and accomplishment belies her 17 years. The grade-12 student, enrolled in the International Baccalaureate program, is her student council’s outreach coordinator, organizing fundraisers and volunteer opportunities. She edits her high-school newspaper, … Read more

Matthew Ngo, a physics teacher at Citadel High School, has good and bad memories of growing up in Spryfield with Vietnamese as his first language. “We had three Miss MacKenzies in elementary school, and they … Read more

When Reema Fuller was five, her family moved to India because of her father’s work opportunity. Since she spent her formative years there, Reema, felt she had two identities. “My dad traveled back and forth … Read more

One of Deputy Mayor Tony Mancini’s favourite assignments is attending citizenship ceremonies. “I get to tell the story of my parents; I’m happy to tell it,” says Tony. “And I ask them to go home … Read more

Sana Kavanagh laughs when she’s asked to describe herself. “I often say I’m a non-aboriginal Lebanese-Irish Cape Bretoner,” says Basma’s younger sister. She has worked at the Mi’kmaw Conservation Group, outside Truro, since 2012, as … Read more

For Basma Kavanagh, being an artist and poet was not on her parents’ agenda for their daughter’s future, but they grew to respect it. She discovered that on her Lebanese mother’s side, her grandfather was … Read more

Gerald Bermundo selects Alderney Landing to meet, a place that holds special memories. “I’m looking at my generation who grew up here and participated in multicultural events, and now watching a later generation doing what … Read more

When Jody Riggs was a teenager, he attended a conference about overseas Christian humanitarian work. “I decided I wanted to go overseas and work with people who didn’t have advantages we had,” says Jody. Later, … Read more

Amina Abawajy’s visits to her parents’ homeland of Ethiopia are special. “I feel at home there. We got to see our story before it started. And how we’re doing today is shaped by the decisions … Read more

Stan Kutcher’s parents made separate treacherous journeys to Canada from Ukraine after surviving World War II. “My dad somehow made his way as a young man to a deported persons’ camp in Germany, got into … Read more

Miia Suokonautio didn’t grow up with the familiar pressures of immigrant parents wanting their children to succeed because of their sacrifices. “They didn’t come here to make a better life; they came on an adventure, … Read more

Annie Chau recalls an episode in grade two when a substitute teacher sent her to the “English as a Second Language” class. “Here I was Canadian born, and grew up in the English language. My … Read more

Henk van Leeuwen has a special piece of paper — a receipt for a deposit on a ticket his newly married parents purchased in Rotterdam to sail to Canada in January 1963. “It was here … Read more

A young woman with a cause. That’s Habiba Cooper Diallo, who at 12 became concerned about “obstetric fistula,” a hole in the birth canal caused by long labour, especially among impoverished women. Now 22, Habiba … Read more

That I am here is because of so many wild links,” says Rena Kulczycki, Community Development Coordinator at HeartWood Centre for Community Youth Development. “It’s a pretty amazing story.” Rena’s father was born in Warsaw … Read more

Justice John Bodurtha vividly remembers the day last summer when he called his parents in Ontario to announce he had been appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia. “My mother started screaming … Read more