“We’re just as driven,” : DACA student talks about giving back, overcoming and his hopes for the future
By Diana Leyva
Photos by Diana Leyva
On Gallatin Pike, in Madison, Tenn., there is a small, family-owned Salvadoran restaurant called “El Pulgarcito,". It is here where Trevecca junior, Cristiam Lopez, spent six years, washing dishes from 8 a.m. until 10 p.m.
Lopez was born in San Vicente, El Salvador, he immigrated to the United States with his family when he was just 2-years-old.
An engineering major, Lopez was granted Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or DACA, in 2016. He is one of the 7,650 DACA students residing in Tennessee.
In 2014, his family was able to open “El Pulgarcito” after years of having managed their church kitchen.
From 2010 until 2014, Lopez along with his siblings Daniela and Jefferson Lopez would help their pa...