Trauma, fear and addiction once isolated them, but they refused to be defined by their circumstances and pain. Students of past, present, and future candidly retell their stories of struggle to help others feel less alone.

by Sara Woelfel

When word got out that one student planned to share her family’s story of coming to the U.S. from Mexico for a 2017 feature in Stritch Magazine, the news triggered an unprecedented response. Within hours, seven other students asked to share their stories, too. Even more volunteered in the days that followed.

In the end, the “Daring to be DREAMers” digital series featured numerous impassioned first-person accounts of children brought to the U.S. for a better life. The eagerness and rawness with which these students recounted their stories revealed a glimpse into the immigrant community’s deep-down desire to be better understood and to take ownership of a narrative that so often negatively portrayed their loved ones. The students knew all too well the risks of sharing details of their personal lives, especially since some were undocumented. But they also understood the greater risk of remaining in the shadows, enabling others to own their narrative, choose their adjectives and cast their families in shame. They believed in the power stories have to unite, heal and inspire.

Three people connected to Stritch—students from the past, present and future—likewise entrusted Stritch Magazine to share their personal tales of despair and how they turned them into stories of triumph. Today, each speaks with a joyful, energetic spirit, expressing gratitude and hope despite their difficult days and trying circumstances. They discovered a sense of peace not because life became easier, but because they changed their perspectives and narratives. Their true contentment came not in avoiding suffering, but in finding purpose in their struggles by courageously and vulnerably telling their stories to help others feel less alone.