Where are you from?
Nigeria (northern)
What was your childhood like?
Normal for the most part, asthmatic so did very little running around but pretty normal
What brought you to Cleveland?
My Dad was here in the 80s and worked with CWRU and the Veterans Administration Hospital. He went back to Nigeria in the Mid 80s and was invited back in the early 2000s by the same people to continue the work he did in the 80s. So we followed him back to finish our education.
What were your first thoughts about coming to the United States? Did those change?
Initially I had this idea of paved roads, no bad, roads, mansions, money everywhere cheap stuff. And got here and realized it was the opposite. It was really not that much more different from anywhere in the world. i.e. the movies hyped it.
What challenges did you face as transitioning here?
One of my biggest challenge was changing from imperial system to the metric system e.g. Celsius to Fahrenheit, centimeters and meters to inches and yards etc. Also the fact that you are looked at as inferior.
What is your occupation?
Applications Developer (Enterprise Content Management) or in layman terms, computer programmer.
How have other Clevelanders made you feel welcomed?
They have, I have always felt welcome here
What traditions or customs do you continue to practice?
I still practice most of my customs. I still speak my native tongue at home, eat the same foods, still perform most things and go to events just like back home (they are fewer here, but usually time permitting I find and go to them)
What do you love about Cleveland?
The quite homelike environment (great place to raise kids)
Why is it so important to welcome immigrants and refugees?
It exposes the residents to different cultures; also it shows the values of America. This is what it was founded on, different cultures and societies coming together as one.
Why is it important to travel abroad?
It exposes one to the elements, to different cultures and most importantly clears misconception
