The political situation and the attacks on the media in my home country motivated my husband and me to come to the United States. We wanted to find a place to raise our family that would be safe. We left our families, jobs, and material possessions behind. The first months were hard, but our Heavenly Father never abandoned us as we learned to be humble, have patience, and move forward with faith.

Five months after arriving in the U.S., I found out I was expecting. My husband and I had waited five years for this precious miracle. Our son is now our main motivation to go on and progress in this country.

Because I had been a journalist in my home country, I had the wish and hope to study journalism in America. I started English classes at a high school, but I wanted to go beyond what they taught me. I decided to start classes at a community college, but we didn’t have the funds to pay for it. I talked to my branch president, and he referred me to the Deseret Industries training program.

This job was a great blessing. I feel that my English improved a lot. I gained skills in other areas, but overall, DI gave me hope for a better future. Thanks to the business partnership program at Deseret Industries, I did an internship for six months in the language production department at the LDS Church Office Building. After this internship, I was offered a position as a producer's assistant on-call in the same department. I also finished a certificate in graphic communications technology at a local college.

Elder D. Todd Christofferson taught the meaning of a consecrated life in his October 2010 general conference address, “A consecrated life is filled with work, sometimes repetitive, sometimes menial… but always work that improves, orders, sustains, lifts, ministers, aspires.” My experience with Deseret Industries reminds me of these words every day.