A better life in Worthington

• Ernst Coriolan

Ana Anthony/Daily Globe Ernst Coriolan is shown with the Haitian flag, one of his few reminders of his native country.

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WORTHINGTON — The sole reason Ernst Coriolan and his wife, Carol, moved to Worthington was to job-hunt.

Today, Worthington remains home for both of them.

A Haiti native, Coriolan resided in the capital city of Port-au-Prince, where he said living conditions were impoverished.

The Caribbean country was formerly colonized by the Spanish and French, occupied by the U.S. and under a 29-year dictatorship.

Around the time the notorious dictatorship of physician Francois “Papa Doc” Duvalier and his son, Jean-Claude, or “Baby Doc,” ended, Coriolan was ready to leave his native land.

He met Carol at an orphanage in Port-au-Prince where they were employed. In 1990, the Coriolans moved from Haiti to the U.S. They lived in Carol’s hometown, Algona, Iowa, for a short period of time before moving again — this time to Worthington.

“I helped her father with farming but someone suggested that I apply to Campbell Soup,” he said.

While the Campbell Soup company did not have a vacancy then, Coriolan found employment at the former Monfort (JBS).

Having a job in the U.S. is a privilege compared to the situation in Haiti, where jobs were and still are scarce.

“Growing up in Haiti wasn’t easy,” Coriolan said, adding he comes from a family of four siblings. “We were very poor. Some days we had food and some days we didn’t, but that’s how we lived. I think Haitians are blessed because not everybody can live that way.”

Getting an education wasn’t easy, either. In a country where K-12 education isn’t free and poverty is widespread, Coriolan said students would attend school for a few months and stop when their families couldn’t afford it.

Students are taught in French, but the country maintains both Haitian Creole and French as its official languages. At home, Coriolan’s family spoke Creole, but he learned French while in school.

Upon arriving in the U.S., he knew he needed to learn English. From attending school to relying on Carol, who is an English teacher, Coriolan began picking up the language.

“After two years of being here I had my first child, so I learned English with my child, too,” he said with a laugh.

Coriolan and Carol have four children, all of whom have been exposed to a certain degree of their father’s heritage.

“Somehow the culture will still be lost among the kids,” he said. “The one thing they do love is Haitian food. I enjoy cooking Haitian food.”

His two older children have visited their father’s home country. Coriolan tries to visit as often as possible, too, but the country’s political instability worries him.

As he spoke about Haiti, there was a hint of sadness and disappointment in his voice.

“It’s not safe there,” he said. “The country can offer you nothing. Especially after the earthquake, every day that passes, we’re still not going anywhere. We’re breaking down.”

After about 22 years in Worthington, Coriolan has settled in well here.

“Algona was really small and even after we moved here, we didn’t know anyone at first,” he said.

Coriolan is the only Haitian in town, as far as he knows, but he’s fine with that. With his family here, Worthington is home especially because it’s where his children grew up.

Daily Globe Reporter Ana Anthony may be reached at 376-7321.

Tags: our diverse community, news, haiti, coriolan