Kofi Sallar’s journey to the United States began with a mere $20 in his pocket and a one-way plane ticket from Ghana to New York City.
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College of Pharmacy graduate Kofi Sallar, Pharm.D., celebrates with his sister, Ami Joseph, left, and Cheri White, right, after hooding ceremonies on Friday, May 9. Also pictured are Dr. Sallar’s nieces, Allyson Joseph (being held by her mother) and Kimberly Joseph. |
Now, more than seven years later, Sallar is the proud recipient of a doctor of pharmacy degree from the University of Nebraska Medical Center and is preparing for a career with Indian Health Service in Gallup, N.M.
The youngest of six children, Sallar was persuaded by one of three sisters, Ami, and his only brother, Tony, to join them in North America. Ami, who lives in New York City, and Tony, who resided in Vancouver at the time before moving to New Orleans, purchased Kofi’s airfare to a new life in America.
“I had a borrowed suitcase and 20 dollars given to me by my cousin, but that’s all I needed,” said Sallar, who at age 21 left Accra, a city of more than two million people in western Africa, and moved to New York City to live with Ami.
Life in the “Big Apple,” with 8 million residents, proved to be overwhelming to him. He worked several jobs during his two years there and attended Lehman College in the Bronx for a semester, but he longed for something different. He wanted to live someplace where things were less congested and where life was simpler. Heeding the advice of his friend, Wisdom Loh, that “someplace” turned out to be Omaha, where he would eventually begin classes at UNMC’s College of Pharmacy.
“My life in New York was stressful. I was working 48 hours per week and trying to go to school at the same time,” Sallar said. “It was tough trying to get from one place to another. Then my friend (Loh) told me about UNMC and Omaha and so I went to the library where I worked to read about the area. Then one day I just packed my belongings and moved here.”
Sallar laughs when asked what his friends in New York thought of his decision to move to Nebraska. “People who live in New York think it’s the center of the world. It’s where everything is happening, so they wondered why I would move to Oklahoma, which many of them would confuse with Omaha.”
Sallar, though, has never been confused about his decision, nor has he second-guessed his move to Omaha. Instead, he has made the most of his situation. Aided by a four-year scholarship provided by Pfizer Inc., Sallar has thrived at UNMC. At this year’s Scholastic Honors Convocation, he received the Bradley G. Wulf Memorial Award for displaying leadership, dedication to pharmacy, professionalism and a sense of humor.
“I think one of the lessons I’ve learned at UNMC has been the ability to work with other members of a team to achieve goals,” Sallar said. “I’m the kind of person who usually likes to do things for myself, because I feel I can always do something better than others. But I’ve learned to let go and to trust others to do a share of the work.
“The other great thing I’ve learned in Omaha is how to make family out of friends.”
By meeting the Rev. Don White and attending services at his Christ Family Church, Sallar has learned socialization skills and has gained many friends who have treated him like family. Members of the congregation have opened their homes to Sallar and have allowed him to do anything from laundry to stopping in for dinner. “It’s just been such an incredible blessing for me to get to know them.”
Ami and Tony, as well as two nieces and a cousin, were present at his graduation ceremony. Sallar said one of the toughest aspects of adjusting to life in the United States has been the small amount of time he has been able to spend with his own family. Although he has been able to return home to Accra to see his mother, Esther Degadzor, and three sisters who still live there, he had not seen Tony in six years.
“Being away from home and family members is difficult, so you have to have a coping mechanism in order to deal with it.”
Sallar now feels he’ll be able to make a similar adjustment when he begins his professional career as a resident at the 112-bed Gallup Indian Medical Center in mid-June.
“I’m living a dream right now, and I’m looking forward to the next part of my life,” Sallar said. “I’m living what I so passionately sought when I moved to America. I had a dream and a passionate desire to reach it, and family and friends have helped me to achieve it. I came from nothing. The ‘American Dream’ is still possible.”