“I am free-spirited and independent, as my decision to move to the US on my own underlines,” says Elise Caraveo, who left France at 21 to fulfill her longtime dream of coming to the United States. After stops in Philadelphia and New York City (where she earned her master’s at NYU), she and her then-husband moved to Westchester. Making lasting friendships has been Caraveo’s biggest challenge since moving here. “I find it hard to get to know more people as a single person with no kid and no dog in family-oriented Chappaqua,” she says. Working locally, as the practice manager for Alexandra Chan Katz, DDS, in Chappaqua, has helped, by giving her “the opportunity to know more members of my community.”
My Story: “I had always wanted to live in the US since I was a little girl and, for that reason, I decided to major in English in college to facilitate a move at some point, even though I wasn’t quite sure as to how I’d go about it…I would say my biggest accomplishment has simply been moving to a different country pretty much on my own. Though I had tremendous help in the beginning from my boyfriend, I still operated the move on my own, independent of my family, and I’ve stayed despite not having a family behind me to fall back on. At times it takes courage and guts to keep going.”
My advice to new immigrants: “Try to get involved in activities and organizations that are both from your home country as well as your host country. That said, I don’t follow my own advice.”
