Open Letter of Gratitude to His Honor Congressman Danny K. Davis
Your Honor Congressman Danny K. Davis! Last Sunday, October 28, 2018, became one of the most memorable days in my life. That was the day when the Chicagoland community and international heroes received spectacular Global Community Oscars at the Eighth Annual Congressional Awards Gala that took place at Meadows Convention Center in Rolling Meadows, Illinois. Your Honor, I was one of those lucky people whose work you noticed and recognized. Thank you, Your Honor Congressman Danny K. Davis, for the Journalist of the Year Award! I will cherish it forever!
The Annual Congressional Awards Gala celebrates the achievements of minorities for the eighth time already, and I do consider myself as a minority. I was born in Russia and have experience working as a television journalist in my home country. I came to the United States in March, 2002, and since then I have been dreaming about becoming a journalist again. After going through a lot of difficulties and obstacles I finally started writing again. On November 11, 2018, my brand Articles by Natalia Dagenhart will celebrate its 5th Anniversary. Your Honor, this award became a great honor for me. It is also a great gift that I received just a few days before celebrating the 5th anniversary of my brand. I deeply appreciate Your recognition of my work and my effort. Also, I would like to note that the Congressional Awards Gala, which is the largest Multi Ethnic Festival in Chicagoland, is a very beautiful event and I really enjoyed it.
Your Honor, I know that historically multi ethnic people have played an important role in shaping the foundation of the City of Chicago and the United States of America. The cultural enrichment that this city, this state and this country has received from multi ethnic individuals is impossible to overestimate. African Americans and Mexicans, Latin Americans and Irish, Germans and French, Greeks and Ukrainians, Russians and Filipinos, Scandinavians and Nigerians, Indians and Vietnamese, Chinese and Koreans, Ghanaians and Sri Lankans, Pakistani and Middle Eastern, Japanese and Bangladeshis – these Chicagoland ethnic communities, as well as others, are represented at the Congressional Awards Gala every year.
Your Honor, being an independent writer from Naperville and focusing on writing about cultural and social events happening in the Chicago area and in the world, I post my articles on DailyHerald.com, Patch.com, and some other media sources. I also have experience contributing my articles to the website of Chicago Tribune. I write because I know that my articles make a difference in people’s lives. In my writings, I try to highlight the achievements of Russian people and collaboration between Russians and Americans.
Being a Russian immigrant, I strongly believe that people of different origins and with different backgrounds have a lot in common. There are more things that unite us than divide us, and I try to show it in my articles. We all are immigrants in some way, either ourselves or through our ancestors who by force of different circumstances or by their own will came to this country. Many of them sought to realize their American Dream by coming to this country and shaping its identity today. This is the core meaning of the United States – to give people an opportunity to discover their talents, develop their skills and make this land a better place to live.
Thank you, Your Honor Congressman Danny K. Davis, for recognizing my work and my effort! Thank you for the Journalist of the Year Award! It means a lot to me. This is an award that I will always treasure. Receiving it motivates me to work even harder and write more articles that will make a positive impact on our diverse and beautiful community. I am happy that my articles make a difference and contribute to shaping a positive and friendly multicultural environment in the Chicago area. I will always write about things that unite us, and I will always be devoted to my profession.
Last Sunday I realized one thing: it is not important where we came from and what our origin is. What is important is how we live our lives and what we do to make this world a better place. I will keep writing as long as I can and will always do it from my heart.
Sincerely,
Natalia Dagenhart
Please, watch Natalia's speech here: