Creating Success Natasha Ledbetter Created: April 10, 2009 @ 09:43 am
Natasha Ledbetter
• Wife and Mom
• Native of Brest, Belarus
• December 2008 ESL Graduate, CCC
• Currently enrolled in Adult Basic Education at CCC
Coming to America was not an easy transition for Natasha Yuzvuk Ledbetter. A native of Brest, Belarus, Natasha never dreamed she would be living in the United States. In Brest, she was working as a quality inspector at a clothing factory and raising her daughter, Lisa. In 2006 everything about her Russian way of life changed when she married an American.
Natasha will admit it definitely took her a long time to get adjusted to the U.S. way of life. She learned this first hand when her daughter, Lisa, became sick. “In Belarus if you are sick you just go to the clinic to see a doctor. You do not make an appointment. But here, in the U.S., you must make an appointment and that is hard when you do not speak English. I also could not make an appointment or explain to the doctor how my daughter was feeling when she was sick. It was scary for me and my husband was not always around to help me speak.”
Natasha’s family and friends understood her frustration and suggested she enroll in ESL classes at Cleveland Community College. Without English her Russian university education meant nothing in the United States. “I have a college education in business, economics and management, but if I can not speak English none of those matter here. I knew I must learn to speak English and CCC helped me do that. My ESL teacher, Mr. Sandy, was so helpful. He was patient and encouraged us to come to class every day to improve our English.”
Natasha is not completely satisfied with completing her ESL classes and is now enrolled in the Adult Basic Education classes. Once she completes her ABE she plans on pursuing her General Education degree (GED). “I want to continue my American education at CCC. I would not be so happy without knowing how to speak English. It has been hard, but fun. ESL at CCC was good for me.”
