About The New Immigrant’s Manual/El Nuevo Manual del Inmigrante

The Immigrant’s Manual / El Manual del Inmigrante to be launched in Tennessee Contains people’s responsibilities regarding every day life in the US Poleo Publishing, a local company formed by Paul Van Cotthem and wife Leonor, both immigrants, longtime US citizens and Tennessee residents for the last 18

years have put together the first English-Spanish immigrant’s manual in the US. It is design to help members of the Hispanic community and people from other cultures that read English to learn how this country functions in every day life, avoiding stress due to change, undergo unnecessary expenses, payment of costly fines and, even, hiring professional services in order to solve judicial or health problems. The Manual also provides a complete description of the United States and how the government is organized to serve its citizens.

Mr. Van Cotthem saw the need of this educational tool while doing interpretations, at his spare time, for The Tennessee Foreign Language Institute for the last ten years at, Courts, attorney’s offices, jails, churches, hospitals, hotels, corporations, farms, etc.  He has a BA in Marketing Communications and 35 years experience in Latin America, and is a member of TAPIT, The Tennessee Association of Professional Interpreters and Translators,

The Immigrant’s Manual / El Manual del Inmigrante, a 48 page publication, is written in plain words and using examples from all over the country, to facilitate the understanding of the rules and norms to the reader. Also, that long time residents and, even, those born here, see the manual’s usefulness, share their experiences with the new arrivals and help them in the integration process, “because everybody’s goal has to be to live in harmony” says the manual.

Paul Van Cotthem, of Belgian descent born in Colombia, is fluent in English, Spanish and French. At his arrival to Tennessee, he participated in groups related to immigration like, Unamonos, the Scarritt-Bennett Center, the Nashville Chamber of Commerce and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.  It was here he created in 1995 BUENOS DIAS, Nashville’s first news publication in Spanish. Later he joined Vanderbilt University library, where he retired after 10 years of services. Leonor Van Cotthem, also retired from Vanderbilt, is the Coordinator of this initiative.

The Immigrant’s Manual / El Manual del Inmigrante will be presented Thursday at the Loews Vanderbilt Hotel. It will be sold in places most frequented by Hispanics like Aurora Bakery, Las Americas, MexiCali and El Rodeo markets, and Monterrey Restaurant, and also through the web at www.Poleopublishing.com.