CALEXICO — Calexico resident Jon Harmon spoke no Spanish when he first attended Centro Escolar Integral de Mexicali, but is fluent today.
Skills obtained while studying in Mexicali led him to his job working as a manager in a Calexico maquiladora, or border town manufacturing plant.
He studied international business and has also worked in Monterrey and Guanajuato.
“Being bilingual and bicultural is the greatest asset that I have,” he said. “Being able to live in both worlds, both Mexican as well as in the United States’ cultures, is something very special, and I am very fortunate to have had that opportunity.”
While it was difficult at times, Harmon said the school’s community embraced him and helped him mitigate differences.
His English-speaking parents couldn’t always help him with his homework, and he wasn’t as good at soccer as his Mexican classmates.
Friends stepped in, though. That willingness to help an “outsider” navigate another culture isn’t always the other way around, Harmon said.
Outsiders in the U.S. instead are often offered a “sink or swim” situation, he explained.
“It’s really unfortunate that a lot of people here in the U.S. poke down at Mexico and say negative things without even knowing it. When you go down here and get in the thick of it, you get to see that these people are incredibly hard-working and intelligent,” he said.
Harmon’s parents said the benefits have outweighed the costs.
“You have the language absolutely, but we also wanted them to be sensitive to the culture of our neighbors,” Mary Harmon added.
The Harmons employed a driver who picked up the children in Mexico and took them to the school, often feeling like “salmon swimming upstream.”
It was difficult emotionally at times for the children, they said, and one morning when Jon asked for “corn flaques” for breakfast, they decided it was time to transition him back into the U.S. schools.
Some friends and family viewed the decision with trepidation.
“People say ‘what in the world are you doing?,’” Mary Harmon said. “But we had escape plans if the building was closed, if there was a natural disaster, if the bus broke down. We had contingency plans.”
“As a child of both worlds, you’re privileged to see both viewpoints,” Jon Harmon said. “There’s both sides to each culture, bad and good, and it’s really important to recognize that and represent what you think is special.”
“Because of this experience, it has provided me a career. This is what I will do for the rest of my life, bridge the gap between these two nations and hopefully provide a greater understanding between both of them.”
Staff Writer Chelcey Adami can be reached at 760-337-3452 or cadami@ivpressonline.com
Skills obtained while studying in Mexicali led him to his job working as a manager in a Calexico maquiladora, or border town manufacturing plant.
He studied international business and has also worked in Monterrey and Guanajuato.
“Being bilingual and bicultural is the greatest asset that I have,” he said. “Being able to live in both worlds, both Mexican as well as in the United States’ cultures, is something very special, and I am very fortunate to have had that opportunity.”
While it was difficult at times, Harmon said the school’s community embraced him and helped him mitigate differences.
His English-speaking parents couldn’t always help him with his homework, and he wasn’t as good at soccer as his Mexican classmates.
Friends stepped in, though. That willingness to help an “outsider” navigate another culture isn’t always the other way around, Harmon said.
Outsiders in the U.S. instead are often offered a “sink or swim” situation, he explained.
“It’s really unfortunate that a lot of people here in the U.S. poke down at Mexico and say negative things without even knowing it. When you go down here and get in the thick of it, you get to see that these people are incredibly hard-working and intelligent,” he said.
Harmon’s parents said the benefits have outweighed the costs.
“You have the language absolutely, but we also wanted them to be sensitive to the culture of our neighbors,” Mary Harmon added.
The Harmons employed a driver who picked up the children in Mexico and took them to the school, often feeling like “salmon swimming upstream.”
It was difficult emotionally at times for the children, they said, and one morning when Jon asked for “corn flaques” for breakfast, they decided it was time to transition him back into the U.S. schools.
Some friends and family viewed the decision with trepidation.
“People say ‘what in the world are you doing?,’” Mary Harmon said. “But we had escape plans if the building was closed, if there was a natural disaster, if the bus broke down. We had contingency plans.”
“As a child of both worlds, you’re privileged to see both viewpoints,” Jon Harmon said. “There’s both sides to each culture, bad and good, and it’s really important to recognize that and represent what you think is special.”
“Because of this experience, it has provided me a career. This is what I will do for the rest of my life, bridge the gap between these two nations and hopefully provide a greater understanding between both of them.”
Staff Writer Chelcey Adami can be reached at 760-337-3452 or cadami@ivpressonline.com
