The Unangsts hiking in the El Yunque National Forest

Brian Unangst ’00 and Evelyn Garcia Unangst ’14

San Juan, Puerto Rico

The chance to introduce their children to a new culture was one that the Unangsts couldn’t pass up.

Brian Unangst ’00 has worked in the pharmaceutical industry for nearly 20 years, the last 6 at Bristol-Meyers Squibb. When an opportunity came up within the firm to move to a site in Puerto Rico, Brian and his wife, Evelyn, decided to take it. “We have 9- and 12-year-old sons, and we felt it would be enriching for the whole family to experience a different culture,” says Brian. “Professionally, I saw it as an opportunity to gain additional skills and knowledge working at another manufacturing site.” The Unangsts moved to San Juan on January 2, 2019.

Brian, who majored in biology at Moravian, works in manufacturing science and technology for Bristol-Myers Squibb as a site lead, overseeing a group of scientists and engineers responsible for providing technical support to the manufacturing areas. “The site primarily manufactures parenteral biologic products (sterile injectable products), which includes aseptically filling those products into vials and syringes,” he explains. “Additionally, we inspect and package the products.”

Evelyn earned a BS in nursing from Moravian and later completed a master’s degree at Drexel University to become a family nurse practitioner. She has enjoyed working as a nurse practitioner in the United States; unfortunately, Puerto Rico does not currently recognize the profession, and Evelyn is unable to work in her field. Still, life in San Juan is good.

The Unangsts live on the beach in an area of San Juan called Condado and can walk to school, restaurants, grocery stores, and many local attractions, so the rhythm of their day-to-day is more citylike than what they were accustomed to in their Pennsylvania suburb, but the transition to their new lifestyle has been smooth as they explore and immerse themselves in San Juan’s culture.

The boys attend the Robinson School, an international school that accepts students from Puerto Rico as well as from around the world. English is the primary language, but students are required to take daily Spanish classes. “The children there are very welcoming and friendly, so the boys acclimated very quickly to their new environment,” says Brian. “We are grateful it was a relatively easy transition. It highlighted for us how challenging it must be for students who speak very little English to adjust to American schools, where there are a limited number of people with whom they can communicate easily.”

For the Unangst boys, the Robinson School has been a conduit to many new experiences. In the cafeteria, they have been adventurous in trying foods very different from what they were used to in their Pennsylvania schools. The school encourages voluntarism, which has introduced them to people of different socio-economic statuses on the island, and their classes have opened their minds to new views of the world. “It has been interesting to me to see them learning subjects like history from a different perspective—less US-centric and from the point of view of another culture,” says Brian.

And then, of course, there’s the snorkeling and boogie-boarding—not the usual after-school activities in Pennsylvania. Living in Puerto Rico has indeed been an enriching experience for the Unganst family in all ways.

 

Brian Unangst ’00, Evelyn Garcia Unangst ’14, and sons Gabe and Ben at the 16th-century fortress Castillo San Cristobal

Brian and Evelyn with their mixology diplomas at the Bacardi tour

Inside the Metropolitan Cathedral Basilica of Saint John the Baptist, the oldest cathedral in the US