June, 1997 Hartford Courant
Honors |
Tania Monteiro Brings Heart and Generosity to Central
By Biliana Dimitrova
"I've always dreamt of coming to America to accomplish my goals," said senior Tania Monteiro. "It was impossible for me to stay in my country, because there are no colleges or universities and the competition to go to a college in Brazil, or any of the European countries is big," said Monteiro, a native of the Cape Verde Islands off the coast of Africa.
Now Tania is working hard to put herself in a position which will help her go to a college and get a good education. She has joined the partnership program with Housatonic Technical Community College and is active in several extracurricular activities.
"Tania is a wonderful girl. She has a lot of good ideas, a great personality and a good heart. She is very kind and generous," said Criterion advisor Mr. Frank Alagno.
In addition to being a staff writer for The Criterion, Tania is hosting the cable access TV program "Sodadi di Cabo Verde," which is aired Wednesdays on Channel 34 at 6:30 p.m.
The program was started by Pedro Cardoso. "We don't receive much help from outside. Pedro spends all his money to put on the show," said Tania. The show draws information from the latest music, magazines, and newspapers sent from Cape Verde, and informs Cape Verdeans in Connecticut about the issues their homeland is facing.
"The show is recorded, but it is hard work to put it together. First, I was very nervous and worried that I'd make a lot of mistakes, but now I'm getting used to it, and my skills are improving every time," said Tania.
"It's amazing she can speak so many languages. She also loves to talk and she is very interesting. It seems like she knows everybody, because she has tons of friends and acquaintances," said her Criterion colleague Nicole Belasco.
Tania speaks French, Portuguese, English, Creole, her native language, and understands Spanish and Italian. She is involved with the French and Cape Verdean Clubs at Central. For the Cape Verdean Club, she helps collect new or used school supplies such as books, pens, and bags to send to the students who can't afford them in Cape Verde.
In April Tania went to Hartford to recite French poems in a competition. "Although I didn't win any award, I felt very happy, because it was a wonderful experience for me for me to meet people there."
Tania works as a volunteer on the weekends in the Birdcraft Museum. She helps organize parties for small kids and teaches them about bird migrations. "I participated in the building of an exhibit called the "African Journey." I'm proud that I was able to show my knowledge and have a good impact on the visitors," said Tania.
Many people respect her and enjoy her sense of humor. "She is good company and helps people out. Tania has a great attitude and she dances very impressively. I love her accent when she speaks in French, because I'm from France and enjoy speaking in my language," said Sardouh LeClerc.
