Her desire to see the world, have an exciting future, and grow in knowledge and experience were the main reasons that brought Lucrecia to China in 2018. She happily took the opportunity when she earned a scholarship after being a finalist among hundreds of applicants. Currently, she is studying Environmental Engineering at Tsinghua University in Beijing. Richard Lucrecia is a young lady who comes from a small Caribbean country that belongs to the Greater Antilles on the island of Hispaniola, Haiti. Haiti is situated on the western side of the island of Hispaniola. It’s a country with a very unique culture influenced by Spanish, French, and Africans who inhabited the island hundreds of years ago. The beautiful tropical landscape and the Caribbean beaches are just some of the many things that Lucrecia misses from her country, but the one thing she misses the most is Haiti's reach gastronomy. Her favorite dish is black rice and goat meat accompanied by a salad and macaroni and cheese.
Moving to China was a very exciting event, but challenges always present themselves, and more so when people don’t speak the language you are used to. Lucrecia didn’t know any Mandarin before coming to China but she has taken the time to learn the language and has made impressive progress since she arrived. Despite the difficulties, Lucrecia has had many good things happening while being here. She has met interesting and supportive people and has had the opportunity to start her own business: LRs Kremas. Being far from home and having no way to access some of the food from her country, Lucrecia woke up one day craving one of Haiti’s traditional holiday drinks, Kremas. This is a traditional creamy liquor drink that people serve during social gatherings with cake or cookies. People also love to keep a bottle at home to sip from time to time. The original flavors in this drink are coconut crafted with vanilla flavors, cinnamon, lemon juice, condensed milk, and rum! “It’s one of Haitians’ favorite drinks so, I thought of making it myself and selling it to my country mates here. I got great feedback from them which gave me the chance to turn it into something bigger. Slowly other people from different countries started tasting and loving Kremas too. I have participated in various exposition where I have received positive comments on the beverage and this has motivated me to do better each day for my small business.”
Lucrecia is gaining experience and growing in the business world; however, it’s not an easy task, as she is juggling student life and entrepreneurial life. Her Kremas liquor beverage is handmade so it takes Lucrecia time to fulfill orders. She prioritizes quality over quantity as well as providing good services to her growing customers. Lucrecia dreams of a future as a successful entrepreneur, expanding her Kremas business to the world while simultaneously developing ways to create sustainable and eco-friendly businesses. She also mentioned she would love to become a wife and a mother. One of the most important things she hopes for is seeing herself happier, smarter, successful, kind, and loving.
Lucrecia encourages her fellow citizens to come to China and learn as much as they can. As she says “China is full of opportunities, you have to be smart and wise enough to find them and use them at your convenience. It’s not all rainbows and sunshine but one thing about Haitians is that we are resilient and hardworking people. We all have the potential to take this opportunity and go back home one day to make our beautiful island a better place”