Transcript:

Clara Matonhodze:
Hello, everyone, and welcome to Roots, Routes, and Voices voices that shape America, a Cincinnati Compass podcast. I’m your host and creator of the series Clara McDonoughton.
Bryan Wright:
And I’m Bryan Wright, executive director of Cincinnati Compass and your cohost. Before we dive in, the views and stories shared on this podcast are those of our guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cincinnati Compass. We believe every voice has a place, especially when it shapes the future of our cities.
Clara Matonhodze:
Let’s get into it. Joining us on the podcast today is Daniela Patterson, chief marketing director at Eighty Four Fifty One. Thanks so much for joining us today, Daniela. You’re welcome. One of the shared components of the American immigrant experience is establishing roots. If you could give us a snapshot, Daniela, the love story that started it all. Let’s start at the beginning. Where were you in life when you met your now husband? Was love across borders something you ever imagined for yourself?
Daniela Patterson:
No. I did not. It’s actually a very good question. I was in my late twenties, and I have dated and had relationships before. And, was in the stage of my life where I said, you know what? I’m gonna focus on my career. I’m gonna focus on my work and I will take a break from dating. And at that time, I was leading marketing for Lego in Switzerland and was just kind of focusing on work. And, one summer, I took a trip to the United States because before I started my work life after my master’s in Switzerland, I went to The United States and had an internship at an ad agency in Denver.
Daniela Patterson:
And, I made very great friends, friends for life, but I had to go back to Switzerland after a year due to the work visa that I was expiring. And, that summer, I went back to visit my friends that I made there. My brother, at that time, was working for a Swiss Swedish company in Richmond, and I stopped at his house to visit. He was married, and he was a newlywed. And, I just loved hanging out with him. So on my last day of my trip, he said, let’s go down to Virginia Beach Beach and hang out on the boat. There are a couple of friends that are gonna come, and we’ll have a great day. And I thought, great.
Daniela Patterson:
So we all went, and we were on that boat. And, there was this guy walking in with his, his, jet skis under his arm, and he was all cute and, walked in there and introduced himself as Chris. And, we immediately clicked
Clara Matonhodze:
Uh-huh.
Daniela Patterson:
And had a great time, you know, with the group, having fun on the boat, enjoying the day in the sun, going out for dinner. And you could tell throughout the day, there was chemistry, and it was, like, intense and lots of conversation, lots of one off conversation. And, I remember he telling me later on that he talked to one of his friends in one of the, you know, side conversations he had. Like, I really like her. What should I do? Like, oh, the friend was like, forget about it. She lives in another country. Like, forget about it. Just move on.
Daniela Patterson:
Like, don’t even think that this ever has a future.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. Exactly. Like, this will expire soon.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. So to answer your question, my head was not at all in that space.
Clara Matonhodze:
Uh-huh. Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
I did not think about getting married. I was never in my vocabulary.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. Yeah. So can you take us back to a moment then that you knew this relationship wasn’t, you know, just another chapter, like, I’m not into marriage, but, you know, this is going to be a whole
Daniela Patterson:
new book. I mean, what basically happened after that evening, I had to fly back the next day.
Clara Matonhodze:
Oh, no.
Daniela Patterson:
And so I chain I exchanged phone numbers, and I left him a voice mail, basically saying, hey. I’m at the airport. Just wanted to say it was really nice meeting you. I had a great time. You’re a very nice guy.
Clara Matonhodze:
Mhmm.
Daniela Patterson:
And here’s my phone number in case you wanna ever reach out. Mhmm. You know, remember that’s the time, you know, the Internet wasn’t up and running yet. The communication across Pond was the fax machine. And so he saved that voice mail, by the way. Oh, you did? Yeah. For years.
Clara Matonhodze:
Does it still have it now?
Daniela Patterson:
I don’t think so. I don’t think so. But then I went back, and that was on a Sunday. On Monday, he called me and we talked for two hours. On Tuesday, he called me, and we talked for two hours. On Wednesday, he said, I would love to take you out for a date. I will be in Zurich on Friday. Are you ready? Are you gonna pick me up at the airport? Can we go today?
Clara Matonhodze:
Was he scheduled to go back to Zurich, or is this just him going, I’m coming to see you?
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. That was I’m coming to see you. So at that point, it can either go really well or it’s a disaster.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
You know? Yeah. But it went really well. And so our first date was two weeks long, and it went fantastic.
Clara Matonhodze:
What were your conversations like?
Daniela Patterson:
Oh, everything. Like, we talked about everything. Like, we were pretty mature for our age and and were in relationships before, and so we were very comfortable talking about everything. Yeah. I remember I had a voice over job I had to do for advertising for Lego.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
And I went to the studio to oversee it. And I brought him with me because we didn’t wanna spend any minute apart, and I just introduced him as the intern from The United States. It was just fun. They knew.
Bryan Wright:
It was just fun.
Daniela Patterson:
Uh-huh. And I think it just develops. And for us, communication was the key
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
And just talking a lot about everything. There was a Swiss telephone that was still on the government. There was no privacy, a private, privatization of telecommunications. Uh-huh. So I found out that I had to call a computer in France that would connect me with my phone, which then connected me with Chris in The United States.
Clara Matonhodze:
Oh my god.
Daniela Patterson:
But it was still very expensive. I was Yeah. Broke. I spent every money I had for food Mhmm. And fun on phone calls.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. Oh my gosh.
Daniela Patterson:
So our relationship was built through communication early on.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. Yeah. I remember those days of, like, phone cards, like, a $10 phone card. Yes. Where I was like Yes. A lot of money to just spend on calling somebody. So that was so right off the bat that there was a lot of commitment right off the bat. Yeah.
Clara Matonhodze:
So did you wrestle with any doubts at all, or was it an easy decision?
Daniela Patterson:
I mean, it’s not. Like No. Yeah. Once you start to kind of think about, okay, what does that actually mean? Uh-huh. You know? But he, I remember when he was there for the first time when he came to visit, the next day, my dad’s birthday party happened. And I brought him and introduced him to my father and to my family and just said, you know, this is Chris. Uh-huh. What I forgot to tell is that he went to school with my brother, so they were friends.
Daniela Patterson:
Okay. And they had a connection.
Clara Matonhodze:
Uh-huh.
Daniela Patterson:
And, my brother actually thought when he met him that he would be a good match for his sister, me. Oh, yes. So there were some connecting points or pieces that just made it easier Uh-huh. Because there was a level of comfort because they were friends. But we didn’t tell my brother, until we were about eight months into dating.
Clara Matonhodze:
Oh, wow. So did your brother think when you came back that he was going back to Zurich to see you?
Daniela Patterson:
No. He didn’t know.
Bryan Wright:
He didn’t know. He didn’t know.
Clara Matonhodze:
He didn’t know.
Daniela Patterson:
He didn’t know. Without telling him. It was all, you know, on the cover. We did all that.
Bryan Wright:
So how was your father’s reaction when he was meeting him? Was he like, oh, this is just another guy? Was he aware of this? I mean, two hour intimate daily conversations or was it No.
Daniela Patterson:
He was not aware. He was just you know, my dad is very open. He was a very open man. He passed, eighty years ago. Oh, I saw that. Yeah. He was a very open man, and, I introduced him as this is, my brother’s name is Andy. This is Andy’s friend.
Daniela Patterson:
He’s visiting from The United States, and he’s staying with me. I had a guest room. Uh-huh. So, and he he was very
Bryan Wright:
I have all the questions.
Daniela Patterson:
But he was very open. And my parents like, a part of my history too is that there is a connection to The United States. Uh-huh. My parents met as two Swiss, met at the Swiss club in Boston and started dating and got married in Boston. Uh-huh. And when I was a baby, I was born in Switzerland, but I spent the first year of my life in Pittsburgh. So there’s some emotional connection to The United States that always has gone through our family.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
So he was just open and very welcoming.
Bryan Wright:
That’s fine. So that’s a choice to say this is Andy, like this is Andy’s friend.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah.
Bryan Wright:
Not this is someone I met in The US who came here to visit. That’s a big part of the story that you just didn’t share, and I feel like that’s a choice, and so I mean, imagining if I’m Chris, how do I respond to that? And, like, was it a thing? Was it not a thing?
Daniela Patterson:
It was one day into it. You know, it was like he came, it was the next day. So we’re still getting to know, you know, each other. And, at that point, I wouldn’t say we declared that we’re dating. Okay. Though that word was not in the Swiss vocabulary. The whole dating, that’s a whole other story.
Clara Matonhodze:
What would you have said?
Daniela Patterson:
Like, what’s Like, we’re just getting to know each other. We’re friends, but, you know, you don’t have, like, this whole dating ritual or at least that didn’t exist when I was coming along, in Swiss culture.
Clara Matonhodze:
I wonder if it’s like Zimbabwean culture. So I come from dating as also, like, a foreign concept. You don’t like, you just don’t date without an and you date in order to get married. Right. So, like, once you started dating someone, everyone is now waiting for that date when you’re getting married. Like, you just don’t date. So, is it the same, Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
It’s similar, like and you don’t yeah. You don’t go out on dates and play the game. You don’t date multiple.
Clara Matonhodze:
It’s it’s just
Daniela Patterson:
like yeah. It’s not a concept or a word that was even in my vocabulary.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
So, it was never a topic with us. We were just like, he came to visit. We’re getting to know each other, but we’re not a couple yet. You know? We are getting to know each other. Yeah.
Bryan Wright:
So, I mean, I mean so we’re talking about, like, cultural expectations, right, about relationships Yeah. That each of you grew up with. And so yeah. It sounds like it was kind of a clash, but not really. So I’m just how did you negotiate that? Was it what at what point did I mean, at that point, you know, when you introduced him to your father Yeah. That is that you were just talking.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. And we were just in love. Nobody thought about the future. Nobody thought what that meant. We were in the moment, in love, being crazy, you know. But he had to leave. I knew he had it after those two weeks. You know?
Clara Matonhodze:
Wow. Alright. So, Daniela, that’s really interesting about the roots of your love and, transitioning a little bit to maybe the route. You know, the podcast is roots, roots, and voices. Right? So take us through the route of, now you’re you’re in this relationship, and you are deciding that maybe we’re moving to The US and you have moved to The US. What was the biggest adjustment when you first arrived in The US? Oh, there
Daniela Patterson:
There were many. And, it took a while for us to decide as a couple, would we start our life in Switzerland or in The US? And I felt like it was easier for me to adjust to The US than for him to come to Europe because of language, and I felt like I, you know, I already lived in The US, during my internship. But there were many, many, many. I remember vividly going to the grocery store for the first time. I was so overwhelmed by all the choices and the size and bread. For me, bread is like a core root of everyday breakfast food. Not having fresh bread or, you know, the one the bread in the plastic. And, so the bread was definitely a challenge.
Daniela Patterson:
Very simple simple things. Yeah. And then living my life in a car attached to it. Like, I was used to using public transportation. I was where we lived and we started our life in Atlanta. We went through a whole process of choosing where we would start.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
And we started in Atlanta. And we lived quite in the city, but I wanted to go to work by bus or subway, but I couldn’t. And so, like, those were big changes, not being able to walk a lot and walk to and, farmers markets and Yeah. And food supplies. And there were so many things that were really challenging to adjust to.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. You know, you talked about the bread. In my own experience, I remember one thing. And to some extent, even now, what surprised me about bread in America is that it never goes bad. Yeah. Like, it goes bad after weeks. Yeah. You know? And I was so used to bread that it’s like, if you haven’t eaten bread in three days, it’s going bad.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. You know? And I remember just going for weeks and weeks, and I’m like,
Bryan Wright:
Yeah. You want the bread to be able to get it.
Clara Matonhodze:
Doesn’t go bad. Right.
Daniela Patterson:
But one outside of the relationship challenges, you know, I started working. I worked at the Coca Cola company in Atlanta
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
In marketing, I started working. And, I was a foreigner. You know, my English wasn’t perfect. I had an accent. And so I would people would look at me from the outside, and that would pretty much fit in. There were maybe some style choices that I had that were different or, but the moment I would open my mouth and they would hear my accent, you could just see, oh, oh, where is she from? You know? Yeah. It was always a good icebreaker or story opener, like, where are you from? And I could talk about it. Mhmm.
Daniela Patterson:
But, you could tell people would react to my accent.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. You know? Was it a negative or positive reaction?
Daniela Patterson:
I would say mainly positive.
Bryan Wright:
Okay.
Daniela Patterson:
They’re so cute. Yeah. And, you know, yeah. But there were also negative reactions to it.
Clara Matonhodze:
Uh-huh.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. And I had to present in English in business situations and, you know, like, my English was not as fluid as it is today. So there were challenges for sure. Yeah.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. And I also remember I’m talking about it today, the throwaway line, how are you? Uh-huh. Like, people would ask me, how are you in the elevator? And I thought, I need to enter how I am, you know? Yeah.
Clara Matonhodze:
Like real. Yeah. Like real. Yeah. Not real. Usually. Like, oh, I’m fine.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. I didn’t realize that that was just a part of saying hello, you know?
Clara Matonhodze:
So you’d go onto a dare trail about how your day is going.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. Yeah. And open about, you know, it’s not as good as I thought it would be or yeah, it’s fantastic. You know?
Clara Matonhodze:
And you could see the people like, oh, man, she’s really answering my question.
Bryan Wright:
So you moved to Atlanta for work Yeah. And Chris neither of you were from Atlanta, but ended up there. You talk about this kind of cultural difference and was there a moment when you thought, what have I done? Like, how did I end up? Why is this the right choice that I made to be here? Like, obviously, choosing to be together, but you have a choice of where. But yeah. But, like yeah. What was that? What was that like?
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. So we, we actually drove with the car all the way up to Portland, Maine and looked at every big city and decided, should we live here or not? Not? And then ended up in Atlanta. He spent, after college, some years there, and so there was some familiarity that he had. My only negotiation was I needed an airport that has a direct flight to Zurich. So I can hop on a plane. Yes. And I always would put money aside to be able to do that. So if I felt, like, terrible and my heart was broken and I needed to go, I would hop in a plane.
Clara Matonhodze:
Alrighty. Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
And he walked with me to the airport. At that point, it was before 09:11. You could actually walk to the gate. Mhmm. And I vividly remember we looked through the window, and there was this Swiss airplane that leaves at 08:00 at night. And he said, here it is. You can get on it
Bryan Wright:
Mhmm.
Clara Matonhodze:
Any day.
Daniela Patterson:
Mhmm. So that that was and there were moments, yes, where I was like, wow. What are we doing? But you just have faith that it will all work out.
Bryan Wright:
So what years were you in it? You mentioned pre pre 09/11. What years were you in Atlanta?
Daniela Patterson:
Ninety Seven through 2003.
Bryan Wright:
We were in Atlanta the exact same time. I moved from Atlanta to I’m sorry, from Nashville to Atlanta for college, and I was there in ’97 to, well up to 02/2001 Yeah. And then moved back. Yeah. So that’s wild. Yeah. And that was a very different city
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah.
Bryan Wright:
Then than it is now, but still it what you know, it is a a more cosmopolitan city but still very rooted in US culture and
Daniela Patterson:
Southern culture.
Bryan Wright:
Southern culture. Mhmm. But still growing from after the Olympics, Music was starting to be right?
Daniela Patterson:
Mhmm
Bryan Wright:
It was a hub for music in The US and internationally. Yeah. But it’s still interesting to have that happening, but you’re sharing your experience of people recognizing an accent. Like Yeah. Yeah. That’s what’s interesting. I was kissed about the time. Yeah.
Bryan Wright:
Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
And you yeah. I worked in a, you know, in a global corporation. Yeah. Coca Cola. Yes. But in the headquarters, we were southern Americans that ran the business. You know? Mhmm. So you still yes.
Daniela Patterson:
We did a lot of business with all the bottlers and all the divisions globally, and that’s what attracted me to the job. I could travel, and I was able to work with different cultures. That always has been kind of my drive.
Clara Matonhodze:
Mhmm. So apart, do you think you experienced any culture shock? Like, I know there are those Yeah. Things like the bread, you know, that’s a, like, curiosities, but you feel like you experienced real culture shock. What was that like?
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. I mean, you know, you’re newly wed. Right? So you go through the challenges of a fresh marriage. Right? You know, where, all the sprinkles are gone. You’re, like, in real life, and you have some challenges that you have to work through. So I remember our first argument and being able to argue in English and making a point.
Bryan Wright:
Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
And I love to use metaphors when I speak, and I I, messed up the metaphor I wanted to use in a way that was so funny to him that he had to laugh in the middle of it. I’m like, why are you laughing?
Clara Matonhodze:
Uh-huh.
Daniela Patterson:
And just, like, funny little little things like that. The culture shock was, I think I just wasn’t aware that it was happening, but it was happening.
Clara Matonhodze:
Uh-huh.
Daniela Patterson:
You know? You just, you try to fit in. You try to adjust. You, you’re homesick. Mhmm. You start crying. You don’t know why. Like, I was on the phone with my family, and I was just missing everybody. So it was hard.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. It was really hard.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. So, you just had me remember a conversation I had with a friend about, when you say your first argument was in English. Yeah. You know, I’m in an interracial marriage. And one of my friends when I first started dating my husband, she’s like, how do you do that? I’m like, what do you mean how do you do this? Like, what do you know, she was trying to figure out, like, do you have things in common? I’m like, of course, we do. You know? It’s like, okay. I have one big issue. What do you say when you’re mad at him? You know? And I’m like, are you telling me? Him.
Clara Matonhodze:
It’s like, no. It’s not the same. You have to be able to curse someone. Yeah. In your language Yeah. Because in English, it’s all very polite. Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. And I have definitely applied that. I’ve cursed in Swiss German Yeah. And have used that. But,
Bryan Wright:
So that’s how he knows how you’re really mad.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. Yeah.
Clara Matonhodze:
You made answers. Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. That’s an incredible story, Daniela. Culture Shock is real. We’ll continue our conversation with Daniela after we take a break.
Bryan Wright:
To everyone at home, we appreciate you for joining us today. If you haven’t already, please subscribe to Roots, Routes, and Voices That Shape America wherever you stream your podcast. Visit www.CincinnatiCompass.org to sign up for our newsletter and stay connected about upcoming community events.
Clara Matonhodze:
Our producers are Asim Mishu and Jane Muindi, Sound engineering and mixing provided by Hardcast Media, Onset engineers, Peter and Audrey, and eleven twenty seven Media. A very special thank you to the Forest Park branch of Cincinnati Hamilton County Public Library for hosting. And to the Carol Anne and Ralph v Hale Junior Foundation for sponsoring our podcast. I’m your host, Clara Martinose. Thanks for listening. Alright, Daniela. So this is really exciting and interesting. Thanks so much.
Clara Matonhodze:
But, we have a couple we have some rapid fire questions for you that we just wanna go through. What was in your suitcase when you first came to America?
Daniela Patterson:
Probably closed for two weeks and, I had my wedding dress over my arm and I immigrated to Washington DC and that was all I had with me. And then I had furniture, small pieces of pictures and little things that were in a container that were shipped over.
Clara Matonhodze:
Awesome. Awesome. A wedding dress. Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
Yay. Yep.
Clara Matonhodze:
Alright. Skyline chili. Love it, hate it, or still confused by it?
Daniela Patterson:
I’m still confused, but I have to confess, I’ve never really tried it.
Clara Matonhodze:
Oh my gosh. How is that possible?
Daniela Patterson:
We have to go. I’ve been in the restaurant, with, you know, with friends and the kids have soccer practice, but, I always chose the Greek salad, which is really good.
Bryan Wright:
So you’ve been in the building, but you had a chance to order this magnificent, strange meal, and you just chose you chose not to. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Claire, you’re right. We have to go.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. We have you gotta eat the, I don’t know, the ground beef always yeah. You gotta eat that.
Bryan Wright:
I’m so confused. I’m so confused.
Clara Matonhodze:
I’m so confused. I’m so confused. I’m so confused by it, but okay. Yeah.
Bryan Wright:
So what was your most Cincinnati since we’re talking about Skyline, right? What’s the most Cincinnati thing that your partner introduced you to?
Daniela Patterson:
Well, my first baseball game was in Cincinnati, so for sure that, but, I remember also, we tried together. Gera? Gera? Oh, yeah. Gera.
Clara Matonhodze:
That’s jamming. Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. I was very intrigued by the ingredients, and I’m like, wow. I have to try that. And it was not bad at all. It was not bad at all.
Bryan Wright:
I love it. I’ll have it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. Yeah. Yeah. It’s delicious. I don’t know what it is, but it’s great.
Clara Matonhodze:
I only like the spicy getter. I never liked getter until I discovered that there’s a spicy getter. That’s the only one that I eat.
Bryan Wright:
And apparently, it is in indigenous to hear from German immigrants in Cincinnati in the region. So I think it’s, like, some meal and
Daniela Patterson:
Pork?
Bryan Wright:
Pork. Yeah. It’s delicious. So you mentioned a baseball game. Florence y’alls or the Cincinnati Reds? Is that the game you went to?
Daniela Patterson:
Cincinnati Reds.
Bryan Wright:
Okay.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. But it didn’t last very long because I just got bored, and I didn’t understand it. And I was like, what’s happening? And, so we left after our hot dog and the beer, and we had dinner there. So it was nice, but, I’m not a family, we always were more oriented towards soccer than baseball.
Bryan Wright:
Sure. It’s a very since, soccer town now as well, which is great. Yes. Did you ever attend the opening day parade? It says I love parades too.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yes.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. The rest of the parade, we did do that, through work or with the kids. And, yeah. So it’s a very big sports town. For the size of it, we were actually surprised how, how big the teams are and diverse, you know, between, ice hockey and and football and and, soccer. Yeah. Yeah.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. Baseball. If your life story had to state you in Cincinnati, where could this statue be?
Daniela Patterson:
I think we’re not statue people. So, I would probably think of
Clara Matonhodze:
Like, what’s your favorite place in Cincinnati?
Daniela Patterson:
Of a location, like, maybe, a beautiful tree. But we had so many in those years that we have been here now almost 20. We have no more than 20. We have so many great memories and places that we were, with our kids alone on dates, Alt Park by the river Oh, yes. Sharon I love that. Sharon Woods, Summit Park. Mhmm. Like, there’s so many areas that we have now memories made together and we have history.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah.
Bryan Wright:
That’s great. Do you have a favorite hidden gem in Cincinnati for a romantic date night?
Daniela Patterson:
No. We love foodie people, so we love going to restaurants. I mean, the food culture is amazing with what Sean Robert has developed and I was always a fan of him and and just was so close to the way I was growing up with food.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah.
Daniela Patterson:
And so, everything that came out of that and all the restaurants that are popping up and and the areas like in Summit Park now, we have, Sebastian’s Bakery who makes bread and pastries the way I’m used to. And it’s beautiful. It’s wonderful. Yeah. So I love supporting local businesses and local entrepreneurs, and great restaurants.
Clara Matonhodze:
I have to try Sebastian’s. Do they have fresh bread that
Daniela Patterson:
Yes. They do.
Clara Matonhodze:
That goes there?
Daniela Patterson:
They do.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. I would love to try that.
Daniela Patterson:
Yeah. They have beautiful bread.
Bryan Wright:
Awesome. That’s great. I just know we’re getting close on time, and I’m just so thankful for you taking the time to talk with us, and with every story that you’ve told us today, I just hear strength and confidence in everything. And I know it’s not always that way, but I just feel, again, I feel like there’s just so much strength and confidence in the stories that you’re telling and that it’s inspirational for others to hear. It’s moved me, and I just am thankful for you taking the time to talk with us today.
Clara Matonhodze:
Yeah. Daniela, thank you so much for joining the port today and sharing your story. I really enjoyed getting to learn about your love story across borders and just seeing how it all developed and the life that you have built here. We definitely need more of that in the world. We think, you know, love across borders. Nothing can beat that. Right?
Bryan Wright:
To everyone at home, we appreciate you for joining us today. If you haven’t already, please subscribe to Roots, Routes, and Voices That Shape America wherever you stream your podcast. Visit www.cincinnaticompass.org to sign up for our newsletter and stay connected about upcoming community
Clara Matonhodze:
events. Our producers are Asim Mishu and Jane Muhendi. Sound engineering and mixing provided by Hardcast Media, Onset engineers Peter and Audrey, and eleven twenty seven Media. A very special thank you to the Forest Park branch of Cincinnati Hamilton County Public Library for hosting. And to the Carol Anne and Ralph V. Hale Junior Foundation for sponsoring our podcast. I’m your host, Clara Matonose. Thanks for listening.