Lizzie, Kenya

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Lizzie grew up in Kandu Bay Kenya, where she lived with mom, dad, and her siblings. When she was in secondary school (high school) her uncle, who lived in the US came to Kenya with some American friends they were so impressed by the hospitality of Lizzie’s family that they offered to sponsor her to come study in a US college (foreign students need to demonstrate to have enough funding from home to live in the US, since they can’t work on a student visa; alternatively, they need to be “sponsored” by an American citizen, who would be responsible in case the student couldn’t pay for college or life in the US). Liz decided that it would be a good opportunity, in order to have better future prospects, to get a degree from the US instead of Kenya, where college is not inexpensive. 

In 1981, at the age of sixteen, Lizzie came to Washington and started to study at Tacoma Community College. After TCC she got her BA in Economics from Seattle University and later, while working and raising a family, an MBA in Financial Management from City University, the only local college which offered night classes, allowing her to work in a bank during the day. After having her first child (she has a boy and a girl, both in college in the state of Washington) she realized that daycare costs were outrageous, and she would spend more in daycare than she made in her job. She got certified, and opened an In-home Child care, which she still operates.

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Occupation: In-home Child Care Provider (former credit analyst in a Bank)

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Family in the US (from Kenya): an uncle, a brother, and a sister

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Languages: English (Kenya’s official business language), Swahili (Kenya’s second official language), which are languages routinely taught in school, and Luo (her parents’ language). It’s common for people in Kenya to know at least 3 languages, the first two, official languages of the country, and at least one from the family.

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Favorite pastimes: listening to music, dancing, reading, and researching and helping people about financial issues (the latter is something she enjoys doing and is something she very much missed doing, and that would have helped her a lot when she first come to the US).

Favorite music: Afro beat and Gospel music.

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Language challenges: some issues in pronunciation of SH words, like “fish” which often sounds like “fis”(she thinks that’s due a special pronunciation in her village) or words like “walk” vs. “work,” the issue of which could also be related to British English spoken in Kenya.

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Could do without:

Lizzie chuckles when telling these stories, still she realizes her being a Black immigrant with an accent is the clear reason why they occurred. When working as a credit analyst at a bank, a lady who was waiting to be helped, soon after sitting with Lizzie asked to see a different analyst instead. Lizzie politely complied (she was busy with several people who wanted specifically her help) to be surprised when, the next time the lady returned to the bank, she asked to see her instead of the person she had seen that first time.

Again in the context of the bank, Lizzie was in charge of gathering certain specific financial information from people applying for a loan. She found that often some people were very uncomfortable sharing financial information with her, a Black woman with an accent, but since she would seek the applicants accompanied by a loan officer, the clients would eventually comply. Her white, US born colleagues did not have the same responses from people.

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Favorite expression: English “Oh my!”

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Objects:

• Kericho Tea: typical Kenyan black tea (grown and harvested there), which she drinks daily and reminds her of her grandfather, who worked as masonry worker in the town of Kericho.

• Outfit: typical Kenyan attire

• Bracelet: her daughter’s beaded Kenyan bracelet, which is meant to be kept on at all times. It's an object often worn by Kenyan born or Kenyan-American teenager and young adults as a symbol of their origins.

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Lizzie, Kenya

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Lizzie alikulia Kandu Bay Kenya, ambapo aliishi na mama, baba, na ndugu zake. Alipokuwa katika shule ya sekondari (shule ya upili) mjomba wake, ambaye aliishi Amerika alikuja Kenya na marafiki wengine wa Amerika na walivutiwa sana na ukarimu wa familia ya Lizzie hivi kwamba walijitolea kumdhamini kuja kusoma katika chuo kikuu cha Amerika ( wanafunzi wa kigeni wanahitaji kuonyesha kuwa na ufadhili wa kutosha kutoka nyumbani kuishi Amerika, kwani hawawezi kufanya kazi kwa visa ya mwanafunzi, vinginevyo, wanahitaji "kufadhiliwa" na raia wa Amerika, ambaye angewajibika iwapo mwanafunzi huyo hakuweza kulipia vyuo vikuu au maisha Amerika). Liz aliamua kuwa itakuwa fursa nzuri, ili kuwa na matarajio bora ya siku za usoni, kupata digrii kutoka Amerika badala ya Kenya, ambapo chuo sio cha bei rahisi. 

Mnamo 1981, akiwa na umri wa miaka kumi na sita, Lizzie alikuja Washington na kuanza kusoma katika Chuo cha Jamii cha Tacoma. Baada ya TCC alipata BA yake ya Uchumi kutoka Chuo Kikuu cha Seattle na baadaye, wakati alikuwa akifanya kazi na kulea familia, MBA katika Usimamizi wa Fedha kutoka Chuo Kikuu cha Jiji, chuo pekee cha hapa ambacho kilitoa masomo ya usiku, ikimruhusu kufanya kazi katika benki wakati wa mchana. Baada ya kupata mtoto wake wa kwanza (ana mvulana na msichana, wote katika chuo kikuu katika jimbo la Washington) aligundua kuwa gharama za utunzaji wa mchana zilikuwa mbaya, na angeweza kutumia zaidi katika utunzaji wa mchana kuliko alivyofanya katika kazi yake. Alipata idhini, na akafungua Huduma ya Mtoto wa Nyumbani, ambayo bado anafanya kazi.

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Kazi: Mtoaji wa Huduma ya Watoto wa Nyumbani (Mchambuzi wa zamani wa mkopo katika Benki)

Familia huko Amerika (kutoka Kenya): mjomba, kaka, na dada

Lugha: Kiingereza (lugha rasmi ya biashara ya Kenya), Kiswahili (lugha rasmi ya pili ya Kenya ), ambazo ni lugha zinazofundishwa shuleni, na Kijaluo (lugha ya wazazi wake). Ni kawaida kwa watu nchini Kenya kujua angalau lugha 3, lugha mbili za kwanza, lugha rasmi za nchi hiyo, na angalau moja kutoka kwa familia.

Burudani unazopenda: kusikiliza muziki, kucheza, kusoma, na kutafiti na kusaidia watu juu ya maswala ya kifedha (hii ya mwisho ni jambo ambalo anafurahiya kufanya na ni jambo ambalo amekosa sana kufanya kutoka siku zake akiwa benki. Pia ni jambo ambalo lingemsaidia mengi wakati alikuja kwanza Amerika).

Muzikiuupendao: Afro beat na muziki wa Injili.

Changamoto za lugha: maswala mengine katika matamshi ya maneno ya SH, kama "samaki" ambayo mara nyingi huonekana kama "fis" (anafikiria hiyo ni kwa sababu ya matamshi maalum katika kijiji chake) au maneno kama "tembea" dhidi ya "kazi," suala ambalo inaweza pia kuhusishwa na Kiingereza cha Uingereza kinachozungumzwa Kenya.

Angeweza kufanya bila: Lizzie anacheka wakati akiongea hadithi hizi, bado anafahamu kuwa yeye ni mhamiaji mweusi na lafudhi ndio sababu wazi ya kwanini zilitokea. Wakati wa kufanya kazi kama mchambuzi wa mkopo katika benki, mwanamke ambaye alikuwa akingojea kusaidiwa, mara tu baada ya kukaa na Lizzie aliuliza kuonana na mchambuzi mwingine badala yake. Lizzie alitii kwa adabu (alikuwa na shughuli nyingi na watu kadhaa ambao walitaka msaada wake haswa) kushangaa wakati, wakati mwingine mwanamke huyo aliporudi benki, aliuliza kuonana naye badala ya mtu aliyemwona mara ya kwanza.

Tena katika muktadha wa benki, Lizzie alikuwa akisimamia kukusanya habari maalum za kifedha kutoka kwa watu wanaoomba mkopo. Aligundua kuwa mara nyingi watu wengine walikuwa na wasiwasi sana kushiriki habari za kifedha naye, mwanamke Mweusi mwenye lafudhi, lakini kwa kuwa angewatafuta waombaji akifuatana na afisa mkopo, wateja wangeweza kufuata. Wenzake wazungu, waliozaliwa Amerika hawakuwa na majibu sawa kutoka kwa watu.

Maneno unayopenda zaidi: Kiingereza "Oh my!"

 

Vitu::

• Chai ya Kerichochai yakawaida nyeusi ya Kenya (iliyolimwa na kuvunwa huko), ambayo hunywa kila siku na kumkumbusha babu yake, ambaye alifanya kazi kama mfanyikazi wa uashi katika mji wa Kericho.

• Outfit: kawaida mavazi ya Kenya

bangili: binti yake beaded bangili Kenya, ambayo ni maana ya kuwekwa kwenye wakati wote. Ni kitu ambacho huvaliwa mara nyingi na kijana aliyezaliwa Kenya au Mkenya-Amerika na vijana kama ishara ya asili yao.

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The translation in Swahili is from a free online translator, so it’s probably wrong in many instances. I apologize in advance to any Swahili speakers!.

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Also, I apologize in advance for the imperfect pronunciation in the English recording