Growing up in Rwanda, it was a dangerous place for young men. My parents were so scared I would get kidnapped by Congolese soldiers, and forced to join M23, like so many other boys my age. So when a friend told me there was an asylum community in Maine, I took my chance.

When you're fresh off the boat, you'll do anything to make it. I have worked in or trained for more jobs than I can count. I was a fashion model back in Rwanda. I learned how to use a forklift, to do factory work. I worked on fishing boats in Alaska, in coal mines, hotels. But my heart was always set on cooking.

A nonprofit here, the Fork Food Lab, opened their doors to me and gave me access to their professional kitchen. Now, I grill a Rwandan dish called brochette, and serve it up in the parking lot. It's a party every afternoon around the tent. At first, it was mostly other Africans, who missed the foods they had grown up on. Now, everyone comes. We are blending cultures, expanding what the cuisine of Maine looks like. It's a real American story. And just like the Fork Food Lab has helped me, I'm paying it forward, giving this community affordable food with incredible new flavors.