This isn’t my story, it’s actually my mom’s. It all started when the war over in Yugoslavia broke out. My mom was sent to America with only $100 in her pocket and a small suitcase. She is originally from Croatia, and she couldn’t speak much English at all; and if she did, very poorly. She worked 7 days a week at a bagel shop in Santa Monica, where she earned pay under the table. She went to Santa Monica Community College, where she learned English and lived with her brother. After her first year, she was transferred over to UCLA, where she graduated with honors. She is now the Director of Fundraising at Dana Farmer Cancer Institute, and owns her own home in Beverly, Massachusetts.