READ student Dominique grew up in Brazil after his family immigrated from France. His grandfather was a French ambassador to the U.S. military base there.
Dominique heard stories of Americans from his family. During World War II, the Nazis captured the beachfront house that his mother and grandparents lived in. They took his family outside and lined them up to execute them. Before the Nazis could kill Dominique’s family, American soldiers arrived and rescued them. Dominique’s grandfather was so grateful to the soldiers that he allowed them to take their house to use as quarters.
That moment helped shape the trajectory of Dominique’s life. His family moved to Brazil to be near the U.S. base in São Paulo. As Dominique grew up, he dreamed of coming to America. At the age of 33, he received his chance. He was hired by a large American company to help oversee their relationship with Brazil. They hired him because of his ability to speak Portuguese. Unfortunately, he did not receive the opportunity to improve his English literacy. He was a contract worker, and when his contract ran out, he wanted to stay in America. In order to become a citizen, he needed to pass an English literacy test.
In 2017, Dominique came to The READ Center. He knew that in order to pass the citizenship test, he would need to train and improve his English literacy skills. READ paired him with a 1 to 1 tutor.
Dominique and his tutor worked through a book of citizenship questions that helped him learn American history in addition to improving his literacy skills. “It was a fantastic experience,” he recalls. After meeting with his tutor for 8 months, he was ready. Dominique passed the test and became an American citizen!
Recently, Dominique returned to The READ Center. After achieving his citizenship goal, he has a new dream. He loves America and sees a way to help people through business. In his vision, he can bring manufacturing to America to help struggling communities. Now he is working to make that vision a reality.
“The American Dream is the values of this country, not the money,” Dominique explains. His plan is to unite Brazilian companies with American investors to bring new businesses into the struggling American towns. In order to do so, he knows he must improve his literacy skills.
“I want to be able to express myself better, read better, and start to develop my business,” he says when asked about his goals with READ.
The READ Center is changing lives through adult literacy. For more information on how you can get involved with The READ Center, consider volunteering as a tutor or donating. If you or someone you know would like more information about joining our classes, learn how to become a student or call 804-288-9930.
