My name is Omar Rodriguez, I was born in Venezuela, the son of university professors and part of a very close-knit family made up of my mother, father, older sister, younger sister, and me. Since I was born, I’ve always had an affinity for art, drawing, and music. I grew up, and as I did, things in my country became more and more difficult — rising prices for food and other goods made life in Venezuela very hard.
In 2016, I was around 15 years old when we decided to leave the country. It was a very dramatic time because we were activists against the government of Chávez and Nicolás Maduro. We moved to Ecuador, which became my home for three years. But then the pandemic hit and everything got worse — my parents were unfairly fired from the universities where they worked, my grandmother was diagnosed with cancer, and our debts kept piling up. We had to make a difficult decision, which was to move to the United States.
In 2021, I made the move. I arrived in Dallas, Texas, and began building my life from day one. Everyone in my family worked — including me — the only one who didn’t, obviously, was my younger sister. That helped us pay off debts, afford my grandmother’s treatment, and gave us another chance to rebuild our lives. You could say we did what was best for us.
Now, I’m studying at Dallas College. I have a degree in Art and Design focused on 2D animation. I’m still learning, and I love what I do. Life takes turns, and I hope the next turn is the best one yet.