VIDEO: Living proof of the American dream now has a home inside Lexington Firehouse #7. Nihad Smlatic recently completed his probationary period, but that’s not the only thing he’s accomplished of late.
“I can’t believe it’s finally here, I’m a U.S. citizen,” he said from the station house on a Tuesday morning between alarms.
The 25-year-old came to America, with his family, from Bosnia and Herzegovina 9 years ago.
“I was confused, trying to learn the way of the United States. Basically had to start from scratch,” he said of his first few months and years in America as a teenager.
The family settled in central Kentucky, and he immediately went to work, eventually earning his high school equivalency diploma.
“I was working random jobs - restaurants, warehouses,” he said of his initial job opportunities.