Borderless Opportunities

Hans Frank-Holzner ’21, Fergus Falls, Minn.
Majors: Political Science, Global Studies, French, and Spanish

Please tell us about yourself.

I am a member of the cross country and track and field teams. I am also a member of the French Club and Pi Delta Phi (ΠΔΦ), the National French Honor Society.

I grew up in a very multicultural home. My dad was born in Mexico, but his parents were Italian immigrants from the northernmost part of Italy known as Sud Tyrol where German is spoken. Thus, my father grew up speaking German, Spanish, Italian, and English. He later learned Arabic, Naba (a sub-Saharan tribal language), French, Hebrew, and Latin. Needless to say, we were a multilingual household with my dad speaking to my older brother and myself almost exclusively in Spanish, while my mother spoke to us in English.

In 2001, my family moved to Chad, Africa, where I would spend the next 10 years of my life. My parents were missionaries, with my father specializing in linguistic development and Bible translation. In 2007, my mother underwent an emergency medical evacuation, as she was pregnant with my youngest sister and suffering from malaria. Miraculously, my sister Katie was born at full term with no complications. After some months, we moved back to Chad. In 2008, a violent civil war broke out in Chad causing us to flee the country, first to Cameroon, and then to the U.S. until the situation resolved later that summer. In 2009, my family moved to Albertville, France, where we spent a year learning French.

We moved back to Chad the following year. Having endured an eventful past three years, my family decided to take a yearlong furlough to the U.S. This turned indefinite when we realized that my father would have to seek U.S. citizenship, which he was granted in the summer of 2016. Transitioning to life in the U.S. was difficult for me, but I have learned to embrace my multiculturalism.

How did you become an interpreter for Borderless Midwest and what does this position entail?

Early on in my freshman year, I was contacted by Pastor Mark Johannesen, a member of the Borderless Midwest leadership team, asking if I would be interested in serving as an interpreter for an upcoming trip. I learned that I had been recommended to him by one of my former deans at Hillcrest Academy. One of my duties was to interpret for our various team members as they interacted with the local communities in the Baja California region of northern Mexico. This was important because it facilitated a cross-cultural interaction. Being able to communicate allowed us to serve the local church by helping them to facilitate programming targeting vulnerable women and children. It was an exhausting and yet utterly rewarding experience. It is a joy to use the gifts we’ve been given to serve those around us.

How do you BREW?

Some of the ways that I’ve been able to BREW throughout my time at Concordia have included my work as an interpreter with Borderless, the time I spent in Washington where I worked with Jubilee USA Network, an interfaith advocacy group, on international financial reform advocacy, my semesters abroad, and leading a confirmation small group at Triumph East Lutheran Brethren Church. Overall, I think BREWing is less about the resume-boosting and more about the attitude with which we live our lives.

How did you decide what to study and why is it important to you?

I chose French and Spanish because I wanted some formal education in them, as I had grown up speaking them but had had little opportunity to study them. I chose political science and global studies because I am passionate about global issues and human cooperation on an international level.

What are your plans for after college?

I aspire to attend graduate school to pursue degrees in the fields of law and international relations. I would love to take some time before graduate school and serve in Chad once again. Perhaps as a volunteer teacher at the school in my hometown of Bokoro. Overall, if I’ve learned one thing throughout my life, it is that plans do not always work out the way we intend. We thus must live our lives with open minds, open hands, and open hearts, walking forward trusting the author of our lives, and growing through the joys and trials alike.

^{Published January 2020}