A Day in the Life of an Immigrant Entrepreneur
Written by Raluca Besliu
Kyaw Swar Oo, a Burmese refugee, who arrived in the United States (U.S.) in 2004, is a man living his dream. In October 2013, he opened his own business, the Burmese Asian Market, the first Burmese store in Cleveland. At the moment, Oo is still growing his initiative and not quite able to support himself entirely from the Market. Oo continues to work daily as a sushi chef from 7:30am until 11:30am, visits the Burmese Asian Market until 12:30pm, where his wife works as the shopkeeper, and spends the rest of his day as an Uber driver until 8 or 9pm, which gives him an opportunity to meet interesting new people as well as tell them about his store. He spends his only day off, Saturday, with his wife and two-year-old daughter.
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Let’s Not Waste What Refugees Can Add to Our Communities
Let’s Not Waste What Refugees Can Add to Our Communities
A recent event at Cuyahoga Community College changed my views on refugees. I thought, like many other Americans, that refugees come to the United States with very few valuables, many challenges and more needs than gifts for their new homeland. That view changed when I sat at a table with four refugees at TRI-C. I quickly learned that three of the four were from Iraq and all were professionals - a physicist, a lawyer and a teacher. The fourth refugee, a man from Afganistan, had been an interpreter for the American military.
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Global Cleveland International Students Welcoming Night at Cavaliers vs Spurs
Over thirty international students from Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland State University, and Baldwin Wallace experienced an exciting night at the Quicken Loans arena with the Cleveland Cavaliers on November 19th. Global Cleveland worked with the Cavaliers to offer free tickets to international student, who were also joined by 15 volunteers and 90 ticket winners of Global Cleveland’s web-based “Tell-A-Friend” contest. Though the Cavs came up two points short of a win, the event was a great success for Global Cleveland. Getting international students out into the community to experience what life could be like if they lived here is one of the goals that Global Cleveland shares with area colleges and universities.
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CSU and Global Cleveland Collaborate to Train International Students on Linkedin
According to recruiters, LinkedIn is one of the most important tools for modern job seeking. Global Cleveland collaborated with Cleveland State University to provide international students a workshop with Cleveland area recruiters on how to effectively use LinkedIn. LinkedIn is recognized as the most popular professional social networking tool to screen and select job candidates. The event featured presentations on LinkedIn from Cleveland-based recruiters such as ERICO International, MetroHealth, Dakota Software, and the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District.
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GLOBAL CLEVELAND Welcomes New Board President and Director of Development
On November 20th, Global Cleveland’s founding Board president Baiju Shah passed the reins of leadership to David Fleshler. Mr. Fleshler has served as the Associate Provost for International Affairs at Case Western Reserve University since 2009. At CWRU, David works in partnership with faculty, staff, and students to enhance the university’s international focus. As Global Cleveland’s Board Chairman, he will work with Greater Cleveland’s corporate, civic and philanthropic leaders to expand the region’s international focus.
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Emily Stephens Arrived from Lithuania with $100 in Her Pocket In Her Own Words, Look Where She Is Today.
I arrived to this country completely on my own will, unaccompanied by any family, at the tender age of sixteen - with a dream and a crisp rolled-up $100 bill in my pocket. Landing at the Cleveland Hopkins International Airport on August 20th, 1993 was one of the best days of my life! My dream of coming to America finally came true! I had to pinch myself to verify that it was real. I have dreamed of coming to America since I was eight years old. I hoped and prayed for that to happen so much, that one day “the sun, the moon and the stars lined up!” OK, that is a sugar-coated version of what happened, it took a lot of work, sacrifice and some luck, in order to make that dream a reality. Through some connections in Cleveland I had an opportunity to showcase my artwork to Hawken School, who offered me a full-ride to their fine learning establishment, based on my artistic abilities and academics.
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Cleveland Welcoming Plan Coming Soon
Global Cleveland, in partnership with the City of Cleveland, held five community conversations across the city with area residents in October. The meetings focused on addressing what it means to be a welcoming city. After hearing from a panel of immigrants, refugees, and city officials, residents were encouraged to share their concerns and questions about welcoming international newcomers to the city.
Nearly 350 newcomers, city leaders, and current residents attended the meetings.
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Cleveland’s First Latino TV Show Debuts on WKYC-TV
Yo Soy Latino Cleveland, a new television program highlighting Cleveland’s Latino community debuted on September 1st on WKYC-TV 3. The weekly program airs every Saturday morning at 11am. Hosted by marketing specialist Myra Rosario and Puerto Rican actor Kenny Santiago, “Yo Soy Latino Cleveland” profiles individuals contributing to Latin lifestyle, food, and entertainment in Cleveland.
“Latino heritage contributes so much cultural beauty to the community” says Myra Rosario with excitement regarding the upcoming programs. The program is filmed live in studio on Saturday mornings and also includes pre-taped segments filmed by Kenny on location across the region. Feature stories have included a Spanish bakery, an old San Juan jewelry store, a Latino-owned break dancing studio, and a Latino boxing gym.
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NORTHEAST OHIO CAREER OPENINGS IN NOVEMBER 2014
OhioMeansJobs most recent job report listed 69,962 openings in Northeast Ohio through online help wanted postings. This number is consistent with recent monthly reports and among the highest number of postings the region has seen over the past four years. The report continues the trend for 2014 with monthly listings ranging between sixty-five and seventy thousand.
The top three occupational focuses in demand across Northeast Ohio are sales related (14% of job postings), administrative (12% of postings) and transportation/material handling (10% of postings).
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