Maria Pia Renda
Homeland?
Monreale, Sicily, Italy
Year Immigrated to United States?
1990
Age when immigrated?
26
Why did you leave your country?
I got married to a man who lived in New York
What had you heard about the United States? What expectations did you have?
I heard the US was a very big place and didn’t have close knit towns like my hometown in Italy. I expected my way of living to change.
Did you leave your family behind?
Yes
Where in the United States did you arrive?
New York
What was the journey like?
I had a good and easy journey, 9 hours on a plane.
What was your first job in the United States?
I was a housewife and a mom first and then I went to work in a cafeteria in a school.
Did you attend school in the United States? What was it like?
I went to a English as a Second Language class for one year. I enjoyed it and it helped me a lot and I also made a lot of friends in that class.
As time has passed, how does your experience in the United States compare to what you expected?
My experience was basically what I expected. The towns are bigger but life is some what easier.
Has your cultural identity changed? If yes, how?
A little bit, I still identify as Italian but I have definitely taken on some American aspects of life.
How do you maintain your culture and customs of your home country? Is it difficult to do so?
At home I speak Italian and cook homemade Italian meals and I have kept up with my Italian traditions. It is not hard for me to maintain my culture because it is a big part of me.
What was the best thing about your immigrant experience? What has been the most difficult or challenging? Are there any times you felt welcomed or unwelcomed as an immigrant?
I made a family here in the US. The language has been the most difficult thing for me to learn. For the most part I feel welcomed but there have been times that I felt unwelcomed when I got judged for not knowing how to speak properly or when I have not been understood because of my accent.
What do you wish more people knew about immigrants?
It’s a good thing that we come from different places around the world because we bring our culture for Americans to also learn from.
What are some important things people could do to make the process of coming to a new country better?
Not being judged so strongly just because we come from a different country and may have accents or do things a little different.
Is there anything else you would like to share?
Overall, I’m happy here in America.