…I think it may be worth mentioning that success is not necessarily a prerequisite to bring goodness to the world. I think we can do that each and every day by just being good to ourselves and others…
Is the American Dream still alive? If you speak to many of the immigrants we spoke to, who came to this country with nothing but grit, resilience, and a dream, they will tell you that it certainly is still alive.
As a part of our series about immigrant success stories, I had the pleasure of interviewing Catherine Delcin. Catherine Delcin is the Managing Attorney of Delcin Consulting Group, a boutique firm with a strong focus in Business, Civil Litigation and Intellectual Property Law. Passionate about entrepreneurship, communal success, and systemized equities, Catherine’s commitment to serving the respective needs within those spheres has enabled her to use her Psychology and law degree to contribute and serve her community as a Judge for Teen Court and an Arbitrator for FINRA.
Previously, she has consulted in life sciences, business and law as the Managing Attorney of Delcin Consulting Group — she has a proven track record of exceptional project management, presentation, authoring skills, maintaining, developing work plans and deliverables, and assuring that budgets and timelines are successfully met.
An international speaker and a published author, Catherine has contributed to Business Home Magazine, Life science publications: Outsourced Pharma and Pharmaceutical Online, Ezine Expert Author, AIMRI, San Francisco Trial Lawyer Magazine, and the American Bar Association Journal.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
Thank you. I appreciate the opportunity to share my story.
I grew up in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti with 3 siblings and my mother. My father at the time, traveled frequently between Haiti and the United States exporting goods such TVs, VCRs, radios, any type of electronics that was in high demand at the time. My mother raised us while my father concentrated all his efforts on affording us the necessities. Growing up then, life was full, full of laughs, full of interesting struggles, and most of all full of hope and expectancy for the future. Looking through the lens of the young girl I was then, I was quiet but self-assured. I was a bit of an introvert who became acquainted with the world of possibilities through books. By the age of 14 years old, I lived through wars, heartbreaks, rise and falls of empires, and fell in love, all through the penmanship of various authors.
I loved reading. I dedicated every bit of time I had to it. I used to read by candlelight because there were frequent power outages at the time. Then, not having electricity in Haiti, was as routine as brushing your teeth in the morning. We all got used to it. We used to scream “Yo bay kouran an!” excited when the power came back on. It was a little chant we used to do as kids. Then, my mom would always tell me to stop, or I would end up needing glasses if I continued to read by candlelight. I was undeterred. I would wait until after she was gone to continue reading. It was a bit of escape for me.
As a young girl, growing up in an impoverished country, it didn’t take much to become aware of the harsh reality that in some circles we were the less fortunate and in other circles there were people less fortunate than us. Still, there were still a lot of positive affronts, our tight knit family and beliefs in tow, we confronted lack with resolve, fear with love and conquered our challenges with steadfast determination.
Was there a particular trigger point that made you emigrate to the US? Can you tell us the story?
In 1991, a coup d’etat took place in Haiti. President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the first popularly elected president in Haitian history was overthrown. A dark day in Haitian history, regardless of what side you were on. So many people were killed, many more in hiding and some even fleeing the country. Although, our family was not highly political, we were afraid. Everyone feared for their safety. No was safe. Everything was shut down. All you could hear were gunshots everywhere. We slept under our beds and stayed home hoping and praying things would die out.
After what seemed like a long time [perhaps a month or so], my dad made difficult decision to send for my mother and send us to live with our grandparents outside of Port-Au-Prince. Besides sending us to our grandparents home in rural Jacmel to live, our parents decided that this was the beginning of the end for our story in Haiti. They filed the necessary paperwork for all four of their children to come to the United States.
Can you tell us the story of how you came to the USA? What was that experience like?
Five years after the initial application, we were all approved to come to the United States. Getting an approval to come to the US is no small feat. I am forever thankful to my father for his leadership of our family and bringing all of us here. On July 14, 1996, I recall getting on the American Airlines airplane heading to the land of opportunity. Dressed in a white linen skirt suit [It’s — Haitian thing. We love to dress up.], hair pulled back in a ponytail, I was confident that my life was about to change for the better.
We had a chaperone with us from church, and I remember her speaking for us because then, we didn’t speak English. When the stewardess asked what we would like to eat? I remember being happy to select the yellow rice option. When I received the tray of food. I held it in my hand. I was happy. Not because of the rice or anything in that tray. I was happy that I was given options and at my election, one of them materialized. That is the land of opportunity. That is the United Stated of America.
Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped make the move more manageable? Can you share a story?
Coming to America from a foreign country has its challenges. The main one being the language. I hold in the highest regards my ESOL [English to Speakers of Other Languages] teacher, Ms. Diaz. When I arrived to her class, I could not speak English. I remember the nurturing way she taught us. I remember her expectant gaze when we had to read out loud in class and her reassuring smile. Decades later, I am convinced that she helped establish the foundation for the communication skills that I would need in the long-term.
So how are things going today?
Things are going relatively well. I have tried my hands at various entrepreneurial ventures. My most current one is Delcin Consulting Group. The firm launched in 2011 to provide legal services to existing and aspiring entrepreneurs [for profit and nonprofit] in business formation, transactions and litigation. Over the years, the scope of the firm increased to offer additional services for civil & commercial litigation, intellectual property and several general practice areas including immigration.
Our firm offers a unique value proposition of hybrid services which includes a component of consulting in addition to the legal services for all of our practice areas. To date, our greatest accomplishments include sustaining long term client relationships, our litigation success rate, and the diversity and breadth of experience of our team. Our firm has offices in northern California, Los Angeles, and San Diego. I am excited to share that we just launched a new office in Washington DC.
How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?
That’s an interesting question. I believe that I have. I have served in various capacities for nonprofit organizations that have a mission that aligns with my beliefs, and I have volunteered as judge for Teen Court to help give youthful offenders a second chance.
I think it may be worth mentioning that success is not necessarily a prerequisite to bring goodness to the world. I think we can do that each and every day by just being good to ourselves and others.
You have first-hand experience with the US immigration system. If you had the power, which three things would you suggest to improve the system?
From my personal experience and managing our immigration law practice, I know that there are many impediments that obstruct the path of freedom to many. While I am thankful that we have a system, there are certainly opportunities for improvements. My top three suggestions are as follows.
- Shorten processing timelines.
- More humane process for children of detainees.
- A judiciary that is not hardened by their experience and the law but lean into humanitarian principles to help the most vulnerables.
Can you share “5 keys to achieving the American dream” that others can learn from you? Please share a story or example for each.
While there may have been many keys that significantly affected my journey to achieve the American dream. I believe that the following 5 keys were critical to my success.
- Position yourself to gain an advantage over any limitation that you may have.
When I arrived in the US, the school administrators decided to allow me to skip a grade because I tested well enough to be placed in the 9th grade. Although, I did not speak English, I was still placed in classes that required English language fluency to succeed. Then, I made the decision that to succeed, I needed to not only know English as well as my American classmates, but know it even better than them. I made a plan to learn a set of new words per day by reading the dictionary on a regular basis. My interlude with the dictionary lasted throughout High School. The following year, I received the outstanding award for my ESOL, English class. When I graduated with relevant rankings, I earned a vocational degree in addition to receiving my high school diploma.
2. Have Faith!
No matter who or what you believe in this world, you need to have faith. Faith is the belief for things that we hope to materialize. It’s that everything is going to be OK belief, in spite of the odds. My faith has helped me out of the worse predicaments. I have had times where I lost faith in myself, God, and sometimes even humanity. Out of these moments, I found the simplest joy in discovering that when my faith is tested, I am the closest to becoming a better version of myself. I was struck by an illness in 2013, and it took every bit of faith, love and support of my family to bounce back.
3. Work harder and smarter than the rest.
No one I know work harder than my father. I have watched my father work hard for decades. Whether it’s carrying heaving boxes of TV from the port to the mache [market] to sell, working construction jobs, or dishwasher jobs, the man works. He’s always working. He always finds something to do. My mom and dad worked two jobs to purchase their first house. I have learned from both of my parents to work harder and smarter as team. They did not just work hard, they had a strategic plan and saved enough to pay off their house and now my dad is retired, and my mom is soon to retire.
There is working hard just to work and then there is working hard to obtain a specific outcome. The latter is working smart. I cannot emphasize enough the value of working smart. While I try to balance the needs of my family with my work schedule. I am keenly aware of the continuing and evolving need to work the necessary hours to accomplish my personal and business goals.
4. No matter how big or small, count the wins!
Little wins count, sometimes more than the big ones. They establish a pattern of success that allow you to believe that you will continue to win. When we grew in Haiti, our family held some beliefs regarding the appropriate attires that women should wear. One such belief is that women should not wear pants. When we came to the US, even in the winter, we were still not allowed to wear pants. Beyond the weather, my older sister and I wanted to wear pants to school. Everyone wore pants except for us. We tried to convince our parents, but they were not budging. We knew that we would get in trouble if we disobeyed our parents [ not the kind of trouble where you get a time out- Much more serious than that]. One day, I decided “On ne donne pas la liberté on prend la liberté.” a phrase that means freedom is not given it is taken. I decided to wear pants to school regardless of punishment and continued doing so until my dad acquiesced and allowed me and my sister to wear pants to school. Decades later, the women in our family are free to wear whatever they want.
5. Spread the good news.
Do not be afraid to share your story with the rest of the world. We all know about the American dream because of the people that came before us who told us about it. Don’t let the dream die with you. Write the book, write the article, tell the world. It’s not about bragging. It’s about letting others know that it is possible. This year, I was presented with a unique opportunity to be part of a book collaboration with Dr. Jhonny Wimbrey. This project will highlight the extraordinary stories of 12 individuals and their paths to success. Standing on the Shoulder of Giants Featuring Catherine Delcin will be released in early 2025.
We know that the US needs improvement. But are there 3 things that make you optimistic about the US’s future?
My life evidences the fact that anything is possible is the United Stated of America. I think we should always be optimistic about the US’s future for the following three reasons.
- Historically, the United States has an uncanny track record of coming out on top.
- The people that make up the melting pot of the country bring their goodness to it and contribute in largest to the rest of the world which in turn position us to be world leaders in certain spheres.
- We are a nation “under God” as stated under the constitution. The founding fathers were clear and cognizant of the fact that America falls under God’s rule, and through God, there is joy, peace, love and an unwavering optimism for the future.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
I would love to meet Tyler Perry, [ not Madea, — -Though I love her]. I would love to meet him because I am inspired by his journey and would love to glean from his leadership, creativity and business acumen
What is the best way our readers can further follow your work online?
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!
Catherine Delcin of Delcin Consulting Group: I Am Living Proof Of The American Dream was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.