Carlos Parada was born in Santa Cruz, Bolivia on February 7, 1986. When Carlos was only six years ol

Carlos Parada was born in Santa Cruz, Bolivia on February 7, 1986. When Carlos was only six years old, he and his mother left Bolivia for a fresh new start in the United States. They came directly to Cranston, Rhode Island and stayed with Carlos’s uncle until they were able to get an apartment.

Even at such a young age, Carlos remembers life in America as a struggle at first. He found difficulty adapting to the English based school system since he only knew Spanish at the time. Not only that, his mother placed him into first grade despite the fact that he was only six. He had cousins that were already in that elementary school and no one could baby sit for him if he attended half-day kindergarten.

Despite the obstacles, Carlos learned English quickly and was able to adapt well to the American culture. Carlos also had a lot of help from his cousin’s aunt who was the English as a Second Language teacher at the time and refused to even acknowledge Carlos if he tried to speak Spanish to her.

“She forced me to talk in English…She would say, ‘No try to communicate to me in other ways besides using Spanish.’”

In high school Carlos played soccer, volleyball, and tennis and stayed involved in the community. After graduation he found a strong passion for immigration related issues when he began volunteering at the Diocese of Providence as an assistant to the immigration caseworkers. While staying involved with the Diocese he attended Bryant University where he received a degree in finance. After graduation he returned to work for the Diocese full time. Currently he is an Immigration case manager  Carlos also takes part in a Bolivian festival here in Providence, Urkupina, by dancing to folk music.

Carlos broadened his horizons while at Bryant as he took part in classes that had him get involved with the community even more so than before. He took part in a management class where Carlos and his group worked with the Diocese of Providence where they ran a citizenship class and assisted twelve adults who were preparing for the U.S. citizenship test. Carlos and his team would help the adults with interviewing skills, grammar, and the history of the United States.

Through teaching the citizenship classes Carlos developed his skills as a leader while also preparing himself to become a U.S. citizen, which he will undergo next year. Carlos and his mother both received their residency four years ago, one of his biggest accomplishments.

“I think getting my residency to be here legally in the United States is important because if not I would have had to go back home and wait for my residency and that can take a long time… To go back home, to live somewhere where I didn’t grow up, would be out of my comfort zone.”

Having lived in Rhode Island almost his whole life Carlos considers himself American and wouldn’t want to permanently move back to Bolivia.

“Rhode Island is awesome; everything is so close by. I’m a big foodie; I love restaurants. I eat out a lot and I love coffee. I love coffee shops; Rhode Island has some of the best coffee shops. I like supporting local business and mom and pop shops. I like little hole in the wall places in Providence, and there’s a ton. There’s the Coffee Exchange, which has coffees from all over the world from South, Central America. “

His favorite restaurant is India, on Hope Street and a Bolivian and Peruvian restaurant, Los Andes, on Chalkstone Avenue. Carlos has an optimistic view on diversity and community, believing that society is becoming more progressive and that acceptance is more relevant each day.

“I think we are all immigrants ourselves. We come on a boat, plane… We come here to better our lives and better our families back home.”

Written and compiled by Trey Tremblay and Lauren Waag