Story originally printed in the Winona Daily News or online at www.winonadailynews.com
Published - Thursday, May 08, 2008
Refugee finds success in Winona, earns nursing degree
For Angelina Zivkovic, learning medical jargon was like learning English all over again.
Zivkovic, a student at Minnesota State College-Southeast Technical, and her family lived in Bosnia-Herzegovina during the Yugoslav wars. They wanted to leave the war-torn region during the conflict, but they had to wait for the right opportunity. When it came, they jumped at the chance.
Twelve years ago, she moved to the U.S. with her husband and two daughters, knowing neither a soul nor a thing about the place that would be their new home. When the U.S. government sent her family a letter saying they would live in the Rochester, Minn., area, she said she had to look on a map to find the state.
“When I came here I knew three phrases in English: hi, bye and thank you,” Zivkovic said.
She has come a long way from those days, and today Zivkovic will join more than 160 students who will graduate from MSC-ST with a degree in nursing. It took Zivkovic five years to become a licensed practical nurse, and the road was not always easy, but in the end, the journey was worth it, she said.
“It was tough, but when you study hard and you get the help that I got, it just goes,” she said.
 Angelina Zivkovic, 41, of Winona, originally from Bosnia-Herzegovina, is earning a Licensed Practical Nursing Degree from Minnesota State College Southeast-Technical. (Photo by Melissa Carlo/Winona Daily News) |
That help started when she arrived in Winona with her family. Saint Casimir’s Parish helped them find a home, jobs, and to get their feet on the ground. A parishioner, Bob Olson, visited in the mornings and drove her daughters to school and Zivkovic to English classes.
She recalls the struggle she had creating a new life in a foreign land. When Zivkovic enrolled her children at Jefferson Elementary, she said she broke down and cried because she couldn’t understand what the staff members were saying.
Moments like that didn’t discourage her though: For the past 10 years, she has been an interpreter for Jefferson, helping students in English-language learning classes.
“I really love my job,” she said. “I love nursing, too, but I really love my job and everyone I work with.”
Busy enough with a family and two jobs — she also works at Sauer Memorial Nursing Home — Zivkovic decided to take classes to become a nurse. She was led, she says, by her desire to help others.
The medical terms and the long nights reading journals and textbooks frustrated a woman who came to this country when she was almost 30. Frustrated — not discouraged.
Zivkovic again credited others with helping her achieve: the kind teachers, students who led her through assignments she didn’t understand, and her tutor, Jenny Ahrens, who Zivkovic said was invaluable.
Her teachers, however, say Zivkovic deserves the credit.
“She works so hard,” said Susan Priem, a nursing instructor at MSC-ST. “I’m so proud of her.”
Though she needs to finish up a few classes to officially finish her education, Zivkovic will graduate today, and in the fall, she will watch as her oldest daughter goes to college.
“We came here to find a better life, and we’ve found that,” Angelina said. “Winona is our home now.”
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