Her goal: make the most of life while she’s here

In her third semester at Lee College, Nadege St. Marie is studying business. One day, she would like to open a bakery.

“I’m from Saint Lucia in the West Indies. I’ve traveled within the Caribbean, but never to another big continent before coming here two years ago. I probably wouldn’t have done it by myself, but I have family here. It’s me and my older sister. We came together.

“I was looking for a different experience, a chance to explore the world a little. Somebody told me once that you need to travel in order to have really lived. Because you get to see different things, you hear different things and you meet different people. That’s what I’m trying to do. I have only one life to live, so I’m trying to live it to the fullest that I can.

“I’m 27, but I feel as if I’m 19. Especially when I’m around younger people here at the college, I feel really young as well. I try to take life one step at a time, and I try to enjoy all the experiences. Because you never know what will happen. You see young people with different problems in life, some of them even passing away. So I try to enjoy my life while I’m here.”

— Nadege St. Marie