My parents fled the war in Bosnia when I was four years old, and after spending two years bouncing around refugee camps in Hungary and Denmark, we finally settled in Arizona. Arriving at the airport, we had one piece of luggage, a conspicuously bright blue plastic bag with a glaring “IOM” (International Organization for Migration) logo on it. As if our distressed faces did not already give it away, these bags highlighted the fact that we were newly arrived immigrants from a faraway place.

Our early years were challenging. We were in limbo during our time at refugee camps, where education was a secondary concern after shelter and food. When we finally settled in Arizona, not only did I not know English, I was a year and a half behind my peers in other subjects. Being called upon to answer questions and work in groups with the other students was a daily fear of mine, as I could not communicate with the others. After school, instead of going to the playground, I spent countless hours with my mother going over English grammar and vocabulary. We took turns testing each other.

During this time, my father worked the night shift at an auto assembly factory, where his daily commute consisted of an hour-and-a-half bike ride. My mother worked at a bakery, taking orders in English, despite knowing no more than basic greetings. Their paychecks went as quickly as they came. They had been successful entrepreneurs in Bosnia, so starting anew must have been frustrating. However, they remained optimistic and never showed a trace of worry or frustration. They continued to work seven days a week and eventually completed training certificates—my father as a machinist and my mother as a data-entry clerk—allowing them to find better jobs.

Overcoming my early frustrations and seeing my parents work their way from food stamps to home ownership made me believe that anything is possible. I enrolled in college—the first in my family to do so—and finished my studies in three years, summa cum laude. I attribute my success to the values my parents instilled by example: hard work and grit.