Anja Philipp-Lathan, Immigrant from Aachen, Germany
Anja is an immigrant from Aachen, Germany, a city on the boarder of Holland and Belgium. When Anja was 24, she first came over to the United States. She was interested in spending some time in an English-speaking country to improve her language speaking skills as well as complete an international work experience. After the standard English was taught through school, Anja then took two more classes to be trained as an international business assistant. Despite taking on an exciting experience, Anja’s parents were sad to see her travel so far away for work. Life in the city of Aachen for the Philipp family was very good and satisfactory, but Anja wanted to be adventurous and step out of her comfort zone of her beloved hometown.
Arriving in Charlotte, NC in 1993, Anja’s plan was to complete an internship for one year with an international economic development firm she had started working with in Aachen. At first, the limited public transportation and need for a car unlike Aachen was one of the more challenging aspects to acclimate too. She rented a one bedroom apartment in Charlotte. About one year later, Anja met Greg Lathan during a meeting at his office in Durham regarding possible expansion of his business to Europe/Germany. At that point, Anja began dating Greg and soon after, moved from her current apartment in Charlotte to the Triangle with Greg. She began to take up different jobs in the Triangle, volunteering at international non-profits and an art gallery in downtown Raleigh. In June of 1996, Greg and Anja were engaged.
That year during Christmas, Anja returned to Germany to prepare for a permeant move to the US. Everything had been going smoothly until Anja’s return to the US. She was stopped and questioned by INS in Pittsburg regarding her visa status despite hiding her engagement ring in her bags. She currently only possessed a student visa, will plans to apply for a green card once married. The officers questioned Anja and found out about her engagement. She was left with two choices: get sent back to Germany to sort out the situation, or stay in jail to wait for a lawyer. To prove their engagement, Greg assembled a book of letters, photos and other evidence of their relationship. After six months, in June of 1997, Anja finally received a temporary visa; therefore, her deadline to get married was 90 days. Anja and Greg were married August 8, 1997 with two other couples and a minister present. In 2002, she began the process of becoming a citizen when she learned she would be able to keep her Germen citizenship.
Anja visits her family once a year in Germany, along with her family and occasionally will travel alone for a special celebration.
