New York.– Yulkendy Valdez of Dominican Republic, Miguel Blas-Matus of Mexico and Jorge Muñoz of Colombia were named "Immigrant of the Day" by the US immigration portal ILW.COM.

Until four years ago,Yulkendy Valdez, now age 14, lived with her family in a town south of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. With hopes for a better life, her family came to the United States when she was 10 and settled in the St. Louis, Missouri area.

Yulkendy Valdez had to learn English from scratch. She did. Last week, Yulkendy, now an eighth-grader,  won first place in the Post-Dispatch Spelling Bee. She will travel to Washington, D.C., in May to participate in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.  Keep in mind that she has only spoken English for four years.

Miguel Blas-Matus grew up with seven siblings in a one-room, dirt-floor house in his homeland of Juchitan, Oaxaca, Mexico. He completed medical school in Mexico but came to the United States and had to face many immigration and professional challenges.

Jorge Muñoz is a school bus driver who, in his spare time, feeds the down-and-out arroz con pollo in Jackson Heights, Queens. His nonprofit, An Angel in Queens, feeds the needy of all-backrgrounds who have come from around the world.