Immigrant Voices
An oral history project of the Community Integration Initiative from Aspen to Parachute explores the journeys of local residents and their families from their original homelands to the United States.
Adriana Ayala
Mexico
Mexican immigrant Adriana Ayala—recognized in 2005 as the State of Colorado’s English as a Second Language Teacher of the Year—describes how her teenage years influenced her dream to help young people succeed.
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Hank Bosco
Italy
Hank Bosco recalls the journey of his father Mike, who emigrated at age 12 from Italy to Newcastle, Colorado, where his uncle worked in a coal mine. Ambitious and civic-minded, Mike Bosco eventually bought and ran the Hotel Denver in Glenwood Springs.
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Stephen Bershenyi
Hungary
Emigrating from Hungary in 1903 as indentured servants of a Glenwood Springs rancher, the Bershenyis’ lives in the United States began with a harrowing journey across the Atlantic Ocean in the steerage of a passenger ship. The couple ultimately purchased the same ranch they worked as newcomers.
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