Haitian man’s family thrives in WO with a whirl of activities

I met Georges Carraha and three of his four sons in Degnan park on a beautiful Friday afternoon. His sons immediately ran to the playground while Georges and I sat down for our interview. We started talking about Georges’ life in Haiti. He grew up in a strict Catholic family. His background is interesting; his father had roots in the Middle East and his mom had Haitian parents. His parents were merchants and Georges had to start helping them early in his life. As a 10-year-old, he would work with his parents during his lunch hours, after school and on Saturdays.

“This made me who I am and made me understand responsibility at an early age. I never had time to get in trouble. I learned to stay focused.” he says.

Maybe it was the strict upbringing; maybe it was all the work he had to do because as a young adult Georges rebelled against his parents and took up an offer from his aunt and godmother who lived in New York City. She had asked him to come to the United States and stay with her while he got his education.

To a young, rebellious man this sound­ed great. Said and done! Georges packed his bags and left for America.

What was the hardest thing when you came to the U.S?

“It was all so different from Haiti. I came from a strict Catholic upbringing where you just did as you were told. It was a shock to me that the children here would get choices in what to eat and what clothes to wear. Even the adults were not satisfied; ‘my coffee is too hot’ and ‘my beer is too cold’. In Haiti we were just happy, grateful and respectful. So it was very different for me.

Also, I thought that it was a very mate­rialistic way of thinking. Here, everything was about money, which was not the case in Haiti.

It was also different to me that people spent so much time inside. In Haiti we are always outside but here people are inside watching TV.”

Georges, as any international student who wants to study in the U.S., had to take a TOEFL test (Test Of English as a Foreign Language) in order to be admitted to the niversity. So he started out in an ESL class in order to learn English and prepare for the test. He passed and started at the CUNY colleges, finishing in media studies with a degree from Hunter College.

After receiving his degree, Georges started in television and has worked in the same field for 20 years. There is where Georges met his wife, Joyce Thomas, in 1996 when they were co-workers. They struck up a friendship that later on turned into love and the rest, as they say, is histo­ry. Since 2002 the family, with their four sons, lives in West Orange.

What brought you to West Orange?

“We lived in Kew Gardens, Queens, and we needed more space for the kids. We were looking for a place where the kids could get a good education, a place which was closer to the city, since my wife works nights and has to drive to work. We also wanted an integrated town. We looked at some different towns but West Orange stood out with its diversity, school system and it was also a lot more affordable than some towns around here.”

When the Carraha-Thomas family came to West Orange they immediately became involved in the community. Georges has coached Mountain Top League soccer for many years and he is a stroke and turn swimming official for the YMCA and the USA Swimming. The boys are all out­standing in different ways. The oldest son, Tyler Thomas, 19, is currently attending Rutgers University in New Brunswick and plays on the football team. Julien, 7, is the YMCA state swim champion in his age group. Ryan, 11, is on the safety patrol at Gregory Elementary. He also plays trumpet in the school band, sings in the chorus and is in advanced arts. One of his pieces is in the arts show at Gregory. Dario, 7, is active in soccer and swimming. All of the boys are swimming for the West Orange Wave. The family also consists of two grown chil­dren, Brandon, 28, and Arielle, 21, both of whom live independently in New York City.

What do you love about West Orange?

“ The diversity. We never feel like minorities here. It is an open and liberal town and the same goes for the people here.”

What would you want to see forWest Orange in the future?

“I would love to see more businesses here in West Orange. We would love to spend our money in town but we are forced to spend it elsewhere when it comes to din­ing and entertainment. I want to see more choices in West Orange.”

You can’t have an interview with some­one from Haiti without asking about their family, and I did.

How is your family back home?

“It is hard for them psychologically and in many other ways. I am from Petionville that was hit hard by the earthquake, so it is hard, but they are physically OK.”

Our interview is over and Georges quickly collects his sons. He has to hurry because tonight is one of the workshops which he needs to attend in order to get his license to volunteer for the traveling soccer league in West Orange.

The Carrah-Thomas family is one more family that has chosen to make West Orange their home and is giving back by helping out in the township. In my quest to feature West Orange residents from all over the world you will meet many, many more.