Carmen Castillo’s work with the National Book Company brought her to Scranton when she sought to escape the noise of New York where she lived after being raised in Puerto Rico. In Scranton, she found a quiet and hospitable community in which to raise her family, and quickly got involved with church and local volunteerism programs.

When Carmen first arrived in Scranton, she could not find many restaurants that carried Hispanic cuisine, grocery stores with ingredients familiar to her, or a Catholic Mass in Spanish. Now, after years of diversification, she is hopeful that newcomers will not have to experience the hardship of being called “others.”

In her community, Carmen has found neighbors willing to help her at all hours because of the generosity of her late son, who himself had helped them whenever they needed. The spirit of reciprocity and acceptance she has found here is one she hopes to provide to any immigrant she comes across, with whom she finds much to identify – even though, as a Puerto Rican, she is quick to help educate people that the United States is her country of birth, since Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory.