–dedicates it to immigrants the world over

GUYANESE-born Immigration Lawyer Kinda Velloza, who is now based in the USA, has published what is, arguably, a very important handbook every aspiring migrant should have in their possession before setting out in search of those proverbial greener pastures.

Titled ‘10 Things immigrants should know before coming America’, the book, which is essentially a compilation of stories based on a number of people’s experiences, was launched today, right here in Georgetown, at ‘Ultimate Image’ on Hadfield Street, Wortmanville, and is dedicated to her son, Kiand, and immigrants the world over.

“My book is very much different from other migration guidelines,” Kinda said. “After migrating, I and my clients have discovered that we were never educated or informed; information was not broken down. I had to figure it out on my own,” she told the Guyana Chronicle on Tuesday on the sidelines of an event at her alma mater, the former New Amsterdam Multilateral School.

“The book assists immigrants to transition in the United States; it’s my experiences as well as those of my clients, as, every day I am being consulted, persons have similar stories, and they are faced with similar hardships, whether they are from Guyana, Jamaica, and the other countries,” Kinda said, adding:

“So I decided to compile the ten most important things immigrants should know before migrating to the United States. And, the 70-page book will be updated over time.”

Among topics being addressed in the book are: ‘Gathering the Necessaries’; ‘Job Hunting’; ‘Filing your Income Tax’; ‘Obtaining a Degree or Certificate’; ‘Credit Cards’; ‘Commitment and Management’; ‘How to get Government Aid, if needed’; ‘Filing for your Citizenship or Green-Card renewals’; and, lastly, ‘How to bring your immediate relatives to the US’.

The book is available, Online, at Amazon.com, and costs US$19.97.

And while signed copies were available at today’s launch, those who may have missed the event and are still interested in having a copy can call the author @: +592 615 5007.

HOW IT ALL BEGAN
Prior to migrating to the US in 2005, Kinda was inspired to study law while covering the Courts as a ‘Cub Reporter’ assigned to the Berbice Assizes.

Just 16 at the time and barely out of school, she was attached to the Little Rock Television Station (LRTVS), where, under the tutelage of then Editor, Daniel Da Costa, she covered cases at the Magisterial and Judicial Courts, with a primary focus on criminal matters.

She was also instrumental in pioneering the Ancient County’s first-ever Online news agency, ‘Berbice News.com’ back in 2002, when local news was being broadcast daily through the unfailing support of the region’s business community.

Subsequent to her marriage and the birth of her son, Kinda migrated in late 2005 to the US, where she enrolled at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York.

Having opted to major in Criminal Justice, and excelled at undergraduate studies, she was invited by the college’s president to apply for a double degree programme. As such, she chose to pursue her Master’s in Public Administration.

“After graduation,” Kinda, who now resides in Atlanta, Georgia, recalled, “I successfully applied to the Charlotte School of Law in North Carolina; I graduated with pro bono honours, as I had joined the immigration clinic, giving free representation to persons from the Hispanic community who could have ill afforded to pay their legal fees.” Upon graduating from Law School, she applied for a post as an Associate Immigration Attorney with Taylor, Lee and Associates, a Law firm in Georgia, and got the job.

Today, three years on, though still in their employ, she has also launched her own law firm, Velloza and Associates, which deals primarily with assisting Caribbean immigrants with acquiring visitor’s visas, as well as consular and other immigration services.

During a brief visit on Tuesday to her hometown, New Amsterdam, Kinda made time to present 18-year-old Tyrek Tevin Thompson, a Sixth Former at her ‘alma’, with a scholarship so he could commence studies in law.

Last year, she’d made a similar presentation to aspiring lawyer, Anika Johnson, who’d secured a Grade Two in Law 1 at the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE).