No older than 12 months, Victor Kangara stepped onto the airplane accompanied by his mother and two older brothers. The airplane was headed for the unknown. The Kangara family was leaving behind all they knew in Kenya to start anew in America.

John Kangara had already established himself in Michigan. He was a student at Eastern Michigan University.

“He came here first,” Victor Kangara said. “After he had a place to live we came over.”

   
The Kangara family didn’t stay too long in Detroit. Many immigrants were migrating to the big cities in America and Kangara wanted to be away from that.

“He wanted to do his own thing and not be associated with one group,” Kangara said.

Kangara’s father and mother also took the next step in becoming American citizens three years ago.

“They had note cards and studied them,” Kangara said. “There was stuff that I think people from here wouldn’t even know.”

Young Kangara has made the best of his parent’s decision to move. He has excelled academically. He has a 3.75 cumulative grade point average; the only student enrolled in AP Spanish and has big plans to go to Michigan State University next fall and has no official plans but wants to study psychology.

“I have no idea what I’ll end up doing,” said Kangara.

Along with excellent academics, Kangara has taken advantage of the opportunities of the track team. He has been on the track team for the past two years and this is his first year sitting on the sidelines to watch his fellow track mates. Kangara has a heart murmur that is not serious, but cannot be stressed.

“My valves don’t move regularly, it only flickers and I have an irregular heart beat,” Kangara said. “In my case it’s not serious.”

Kangara lives in the shadows of his two older brothers Will and James who are both in the armed forces. Will being apart of the army living in Lansing and James who apart of the Air Force and stationed in South Carolina.

“My dad has high expectations, it’s just kind of expected out of me,” said Kangara.

The same could be said for David Kangara who will be a freshman here at Jackson High next year.         

This school hasn’t seen the last of the great Kangara’s. Victor Kangara has done well in leaving his little brother with big shoes to fill. No matter what it is that Victor Kangara decides to do in the future, there is no question that he will succeed while taking advantage of the opportunities and sacrifices his parents made for him when he was just a year old.