Stefania & Cristhian

We live in a split-level, two story home at the end of a cul-de-sac in North Carolina. We moved here in 2020, and Cristhian picked our home for its large fenced backyard, plentiful trees and the great natural lighting. We have a beautiful backyard space with a large deck where we often host our family and friends for barbecues and get-togethers. Our community is quiet and feels very peaceful despite being a part of a major city. We are within walking distance of a large park where we enjoy taking walks. We are also a quick 20-minute drive to the city center where we enjoy attending art and music events regularly. Our neighborhood consists of families from a diverse variety of ethnicities.

Cristhian’s family lives in Colombia, he is the second born of three brothers. His mom, Alba, and his dad, Julio, are actively working to obtain a tourist Visa so they can visit the US and be present for our family journey. Stefania's parents, Zenon and Anna, are Polish immigrants living only 5 hours away in Northern Florida. Sebastian, Stefania's brother, lives close by and we see him often. We have a large and diverse group of friends who live nearby, many of whom are involved in art and music as well as coworkers of ours and members of our church family. Stefania still maintains friendships with people from New England, where she grew up. While Christhian maintains friendships from his upbringing in Colombia as well as contact with many friends he made during his years living in Brazil. We love to enjoy BBQs with our friends and occasional trips to either the mountains or the beach. We often use our vacation time to spend time with our families either in Colombia or in Florida. Our family vacations have been some of the most memorable moments of our relationship thus far.

Stefania was born in Connecticut to Polish immigrants who arrived in the US in the late 80’s. Growing up Stefania experienced Polish culture through the language, traditions and trips to Poland to visit family. Cristhian grew up in Bucaramanga, Colombia. After completing college he left for Brazil, where he lived and worked until 2016. Then he immigrated to the US through an opportunity within his work, Electrolux. Even though he is the only member of his family to leave Colombia, he has cultivated friendships with many Colombian and Brazilian people living here in North Carolina. It has been our joy to share our heritage with all our friends and family here in the US and we love to incorporate our diverse cultural backgrounds into our evolving traditions as a couple.