Nyakade (nya-ka-day) Tot, Coon Rapids
Nyakade arrived in the US in 1998 as part of an arranged marriage to an older man selected by her uncle in South Sudan. While the America she had seen in magazines created a sense of hope for her future, the Iowa winter she encountered quickly dispelled that dream.
After moving to Minnesota and settling into an apartment to raise her twin boys and daughter with her husband, Nyakade realized her hope of attending school and learning English wouldn’t happen either. The wheels of fate began to turn the day the eviction notice arrived. A rent payment from the county bought her a little time, but soon Nyakade found herself and the children in a homeless shelter in Minneapolis. She learned English one word (and county department) at a time, while balancing a divorce, GED program, work, and child care.
Now living in Coon Rapids, Nyakade shares her home with other displaced African women who have left abusive relationships.
