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One Neighbor’s Story – Fallou Ndiaye From Senegal to SW Ks

FALLOU NDIAYE

Hi, my name is Fallou Ndiaye.  I am originally from Senegal, West Africa.  I currently live in Garden City, Kansas. My story of coming to the United States began when I worked at the Embassy in Senegal because Senegal is the long ally of the United States. The last three Presidents visited Senegal, so when I work there, they welcome you and greet you in a respectful way and give me visa to get my chance to come here in the United States.

When I came here, I learned that the opportunities are open to everyone – to everyone who wants to move up, they give you a chance to do it. So, every place since then, I work more than a decade. I was looking for a job and they give me that job, the same job they provide to everyone.  So, even if I don’t speak the language at that time very clearly to them, they help me.  They help me and guide me and train me as they train American people to do the job like everybody.

I lived in the United States more than a decade in Detroit, Michigan.  In that city, I met the most beautiful woman and she is one of the great teachers in the country. And, we fell in love and got married and we moved here in Garden City, Kansas, and she is a teacher here in the public school.  I found in Southwest Kansas.  So, I found that Southwest Kansas is rich in cultural diversity.  We have friends from Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Uganda, Somalia, Eritrea, Sudan, and Ethiopia and they have all made Southwest Kansas their home.

The similarities between Senegal and Southwest Kansas from what I can see are the farmers because that’s what my family used to do.  So, they produce different ingredient, but how they do it is pretty much the same. There are some differences because you have better equipment here in the United States, but the similarities -- I used to be a farmer, so when I moved here to Garden City, that’s what I saw first. 

Something I would like American to know about immigrants as me is that we are hard workers. The foundation of immigrants is to look for a better opportunity, to look at a better life.  In order to have that, you have to be a very hard worker.  That is something American people have to about immigrants. 

My future hope is to keep a better life with my beautiful wife and build a family together and to stay forever.  It was a pleasure to share my story with you.  Thank you.