By Maia Bentz

“My family is very untraditional, to say the least,” Van Denburgh said.

She is the second oldest of nine children and also has a foster sister. Unlike typical families, however, six of her siblings have been adopted.

Her parents started looking into adoption when Van Denburgh was eight years old. She has two black siblings, two Latino siblings and one Native American sibling.

“We’re a very multicultural family,” she said.

Having such a diverse family has given Van Denburgh the privilege of always being very culturally aware.

“We believe in one race — the human race,” she said.

Van Denburgh said there are lots of prejudices and stereotypes she and her family have had to overcome.

Another challenge for her family is that her siblings have behavioral and/or mental disorders and many came from abusive homes and traumatic childhood experiences.

Her father stays at home to take care of the children. However, tuition at St. Ben’s is more than her dad makes in a year.

Therefore, Van Denburgh helps put herself through college. She receives scholarships and financial aid and also works on and off campus.

On campus, she works in the technical department for the Fine Arts Program, and off-campus she works as a patient care assistant for children with special needs.

“I love my family because we don’t fit into any sociological norm. We break them all,” Van Denburgh said.

Her family experience is part of the reason she chose a sociology major. Her family is a good example of societies and cultures functioning as one, she said.

With her major, Van Denburgh plans to obtain her counseling certificate and become a child-family counselor “to help families like mine,” she said.

In addition to becoming a counselor, Van Denburgh hopes to pursue her dreams of becoming a professional opera singer.

“Music has always been my passion,” she said.

She started performing at the age of six and began taking private lessons by age 13.

“In high school I had the realization that singing was more than just a hobby for me,” Van Denburgh said.

She also did a lot of theater in high school, and opera was the perfect way for Van Denburgh to combine her two passions into one.

At CSB/SJU, she performs in the opera workshop. It’s a class on campus that puts on a
performance at the end of the year.

Last year, it was Steven Sondheim’s opera “Side by Side,” and this year she performed in three American 20th-century one acts.

“I think I’m an unusual character,” Van Denburgh said.

It’s not every day you meet someone like Van Denburgh. She has a diverse family that has opened her eyes to the world in a new way.