Immigrant Stories: Alejandro Vasquez

Published by Program Manager on

Immigrant Stories: Alejandro Vasquez

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Alejandro Vasquez with his diploma in Bachelor’s Administration.

Meet Alejandro Vazquez, the second oldest in a family of four. He was born in San Luis Potosi, Mexico where he lived most of his life. In Mexico, he was able to go to college and obtain a bachelor’s degree in Administration. Although he had a calm life surrounded by friends and a good job, at 26 years old, he left Mexico in March of 2022 to join his family in the United States, specifically the Bryan/College Station Area. He remembers driving around and realizing how different the streets and houses were in the United States. In Mexico, the streets are more narrow, and houses are made of bricks. Adjusting to the environment in the U.S. has been a journey for Alejandro. For the first 8 months in the United States, Alejandro worked in the construction industry with extreme weather and conditions. However, Alejandro continued to persevere in this new environment, and eventually found his footing in such a difficult industry.

Alejandro on his way to BIIN.

Currently, Alejandro attends English classes at BIIN where he has been able to build friendships with his classmates who share similarities and interests. As a community, they are learning English and adjusting to the environment in the United States. Outside of English classes, Alejandro works for a company where he starts his day early at 3 am. After work, he picks up his child from daycare and then heads to English classes at BIIN in the evening. Alejandro first learned about BIIN on the radio through Jose Antonio Caraballo, one of BIIN’s long-term volunteers. He enrolled in English classes in September 2022. He stated that classes have helped him thanks to the support of his teacher, Jennifer Trejo. During the lecture, he converses with the volunteers and his classmates. Alejandro said, “there is quality in learning real-life situations.” Alejandro’s English has improved over the months and continues to meet his needs to reach his goal of English proficiency.

Alejandro is extremely grateful for the support he has received since coming to the United States.

Alejandro’s Goals

Alejandro hopes to be fluent in English and to advance in his work environment. Although he has progressed in his career, there is still a language barrier that has prevented him from receiving promotional opportunities. Alejandro hopes to purchase a home for his two boys and give them a better quality of life. With good spirits, Alejandro will be able to do this with his resilient personality.

To the volunteers: “Thank you for the time you dedicate to us every evening. I am grateful to every one of you because I got to this country with very little cultural knowledge. All of you have helped me open doors I didn’t believe I could. All of you do this wholeheartedly and I don’t believe you all get the credit you deserve.”

To BIIN Americorp Volunteers: Tania Barrios and Viviana Castillo, “thank you for being patient and friendly towards me. I am learning a lot from all of you. I have used both the ESL and IRA services. I have been able to accomplish one of my primary goals, which was to be stable within a company that seemed far-fetched in the beginning, but you all have helped me overcome my anxiety with interviews and speaking to people in English”.

Thank you to Viviana Castillo for interviewing Alejandro Vazquez and Alyssa Ramos for editing.