The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 31
NEWCOMER DELIGHTS
AS SEEN ON
THE COVER
TheRoanoker.com
HI
! MY NAME
I
S
Within the space of
a few short weeks, Ambruzs' partner found a
job in the city, the pair
bought a house near
Morningside Park, and
Ambruzs discovered
the perfect retail space
for his new venture-
Downshift Bikes, a
commuter-geared cycling shop and cafe.
Although the people
of Roanoke originally
sold the city to the pair,
cost of living played a
huge role and allowed
them to not only buy
a house, but start up a
brand new business at
the same time.
These days, Ambruzs is busy running Downshift Bikes
and exploring Roanoke through the lens
of bicycles and good
f riends. Downshift
Bikes itself serves as
a gathering place with
its attached café where
one can grab a cup of
coffee or share a pint
with others. For someone so new to Roanoke, Ambruzs has
certainly made it his
home and is excited
to share it with other
newcomers. As he so
succinctly put it, "the
people here are the best
part of Roanoke," and
Roanoke is certainly
lucky that it can now
count Ambruzs as one
of its people.
EMILY SAVOIE DIROMA
PUTTING THE COMMUTE IN COMMUNITY
R
OANOKE IS SURPRISINGLY blessed with a plethora of higher education choices within a one or twohour drive from downtown. For a medium-sized city in a rural part of the state, 25 different colleges
and universities are located within the greater Roanoke region-something that brought one couple
together after a year spent four states apart.
Emily met Tom DiRoma in graduate school at Indiana University of Pennsylvania near Pittsburgh, where
both were working toward their degrees in Student Affairs in Higher Education. A unique degree, the program prepares students for careers in higher education, and the couple knew that their odds of landing jobs at
the same university-or even in the same region-were slim.
"When we looked for jobs, Tom was able to find one at Lynchburg College as the Assistant Director of
Student Involvement, but I ended up at Georgia Southern in Statesboro, Georgia," she explains. After a year
of traveling back and forth between the two states, they knew something needed to change, and fast.
Each applied for jobs closer to the other, but Emily lucked out first and was hired by Ferrum College to
be its Coordinator for First Generation Success. With almost 50% of Ferrum's student body comprised of
first generation students, DiRoma's role was not only crucial for the college's success, but also allowed her to
live with her now-husband. Since the two work in polar opposite directions (Ferrum is 45 minutes south of
Roanoke while Lynchburg College is just over an hour northwest of the city), "most of our time is spent in a
car," DiRoma laughs.
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2018
31
http://www.TheRoanoker.com
The Roanoker - January/February 2018
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Roanoker - January/February 2018
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - Intro
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - Cover1
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - Cover2
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 3
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 4
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 5
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 6
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 7
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 8
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 9
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 10
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 11
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 12
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 13
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 14
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 15
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 16
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 17
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 18
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 19
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 20
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 21
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 22
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 23
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 24
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 25
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 26
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 27
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 28
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 29
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 30
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 31
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 32
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 33
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 34
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 35
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 36
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The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 47
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 48
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 49
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 50
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL1
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL2
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL3
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL4
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL5
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL6
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL7
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The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL9
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL10
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL11
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The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL14
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The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL21
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The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL30
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL31
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The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL33
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL34
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL35
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL36
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL37
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL38
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL39
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL40
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL41
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL42
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL43
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL44
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL45
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL46
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL47
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL48
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL49
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL50
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL51
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL52
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL53
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL54
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL55
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL56
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL57
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL58
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL59
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL60
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL61
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL62
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The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL64
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL65
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL66
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL67
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL68
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL69
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL70
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL71
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL72
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL73
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL74
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL75
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL76
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL77
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL78
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL79
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL80
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL81
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL82
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL83
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - VL84
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 51
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 52
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 53
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 54
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 55
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The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 64
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 65
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - 66
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - Cover3
The Roanoker - January/February 2018 - Cover4
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