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Ben Sterciuc

@bensterciuc

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Christ follower, husband, father, papa, pastor, teacher, RN, Dr., entrepreneur, Born in🇷🇴Made in 🇺🇸, founder of @vitalsol, @elevationc, @awakenseattle

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Immigration Is NOT a Right, it is a Privilege!

This is my opinion as an immigrant to the United States.

I had no right to come to America. Yet America offered me the privilege of a U.S. visa to enter the country as a political refugee.

I did have a right to live a free life, without oppression or persecution, in my birth country of Romania. Unfortunately, the communist government of the Socialist Republic of Romania—where I was born and raised—did not treat me justly. As a result, I was faced with a life-or-death decision: either continue to suffer under an oppressive regime or escape across the border and find my way to a refugee camp, where I could plead my case for asylum in America.

Most of my friends know my story—how I attempted to flee, was captured by Romanian soldiers, arrested, imprisoned, beaten, persecuted, and oppressed… and how I was finally able to escape in June 1989. I made it into Hungary—barely—and then into a refugee camp in Vienna, Austria.

Even as I was fleeing communist Romania and eventually reached a refugee camp, I was praying and hoping that, after applying for asylum and being heard by the American Embassy, I might somehow receive the favor—the privilege, the gift—of a visa to immigrate to America. By the grace of God, and through the mercy of the U.S. representatives who interviewed my wife and me, we were given that privilege in November 1990.

We were so overwhelmed by the news that I could do nothing but cry and praise God for answered prayers. We knew that we would finally be free. We understood that we would be safe and, for the first time in our lives, experience the true meaning of freedom—free from an oppressive government and protected instead by the American system.

My wife, our son, and I arrived in Seattle with hearts full of hope—not with a sense of entitlement, but with deep gratitude. We knew we had no right to America. That posture of thankfulness shaped every decision we made as we began our journey of integrating into the American way of life.

Part 2. continues in the first comment…

#immigration #privilege #America taken in Kirkland, Washington by @bensterciuc

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7 months ago

Three generations of Sterciuc men!

Welcome to our world, my dear grandson Cruz Ioan Sterciuc!

P.S. My father IOAN would have loved your middle name! Thank you Flavius for honoring my father and creating a great legacy!

#sterciucadventures taken in Kirkland, Washington by @bensterciuc

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6 months ago

Lia finished and won 2nd place in the Triple DECA Ultra Triathlon Continuous, women’s category, in Italy!

Today, on October 13, my amazing, petite yet mighty lady (#13), makes history by becoming the 1st American to ever complete this race!

Help me congratulate Lia for completing the following distances in this race:
Swim🏊‍♀️ 114 km ✅( 71 miles) in 94 hrs
Bike 🚴‍♀️5400 km ✅(3,375 ml) in 497 hrs
Run 🏃‍♀️ 1,266 km ✅ (792 ml) in 408 hrs

How could she race for 42 days? For 1,003 hours?

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13.

Thank God it is done!
Thank you all for your support!

#tripledeca #ultratriathlon #italy #sterciucadventures taken in Sirmione, Garda Lake, Italy by @bensterciuc

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2 years ago

Two years ago today, Lia finished and won 2nd place in the Triple DECA Ultra Triathlon Continuous, women’s race, in Italy!

On October 13, 2024, my amazing, petite yet mighty lady (#13), made history by becoming the 1st American to ever complete this race!

Lia for completing the following distances in this race:
Swim🏊‍♀️ 114 km ✅( 71 miles) in 94 hrs
Bike 🚴‍♀️5400 km ✅(3,375 ml) in 497 hrs
Run 🏃‍♀️ 1,266 km ✅ (792 ml) in 408 hrs

How could she race for 42 days?
For 1,003 hours?
Ask Lia…

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13.

Thank God it is done!
Thank you all for your support!

#tripledeca #ultratriathlon #italy #sterciucadventures by @bensterciuc

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3 days ago

Baby Cruz’s Dedication Sunday

“The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you;
the LORD turn his face toward you
and give you peace.”
Numbers 6:25-26

#babyCruz #babydedication #generations #legacy #sterciucadventures taken in Kirkland, Washington by @bensterciuc

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4 days ago

When you read the Bible and encounter a dilemma…

#Bible taken in Kirkland, Washington by @bensterciuc

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7 days ago

Thank you ALL of our Chicago friends for showing up for Golf for HOPE and supporting our VITAL mission around the world. The turn out was good, the community is growing and the weather was amazing, yet above it all, because of you we can continue our mission to #dogood and #createhope around the world!

Many thanks to our extended family TIBU for hosting us and making this weekend special.

P.S. thank you @betaniachicago for the privilege of preaching the word of God in your Sunday services. May it produce fruit!

#onmission #golfforhope #elevateJesus by @bensterciuc

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11 days ago

After 2 months of travels…
This is how our grandchildren reacted to our return home:

#sterciucadventures #Flora🌹#domnicuța #stella #babyCruz taken in Kirkland, Washington by @bensterciuc

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13 days ago

Happy Anniversary, Benisor. ❤️
If there’s one thing life has taught me, it’s that time is the most precious gift we’re given — and the most beautiful part of my life is that I get to spend mine with you.
I’m so grateful we’ve chosen to live our adventures now, not later.

Because later, the legs get slow.
Later, the coffee gets cold.
Later, the dessert can lose its flavor
Later the mountains are too tall.  Later, people get old. Later, life comes to an end. And sometimes, later quietly becomes never...
So what do we do with the time we’ve been given?
We say yes to the trip.  We take the long way.  We stay a little longer. We make the memories. We choose each other — again and again in every season.
Because later, when we'll be old and grey, we’ll look back and realize that the greatest luxury wasn’t having more time… It was choosing to truly live the time we had.

And I’m so grateful I get to hold your hand through the ordinary days and the extraordinary ones.
I get to live this beautiful life with you — my best friend, and the one I want beside me for all of it.

Here’s to this life, this love, the memories we’ve made this summer, and all the places we haven’t been yet.
Because one day, when we look back on all of this, I don’t think we’ll wish we had worked more, waited longer, or saved life for another day.
I think we’ll be grateful for the moments we said yes to...
The mountains we hiked (reluctantly). The sunsets we watched.
The ferry rides we got sick on.
The miles we walked. The coffee we shared.
The extra desserts we ate.
The laughter, the challenges, the quiet mornings, the crazy adventures…and through it all we kept telling ourselves: "LET'S GO FOR IT. WHAT'S THE BEST THAT CAN HAPPEN?!"

I thank God for you, for us, and for this beautiful life we get to share.
Happy Anniversary, my love. ❤️
And if I could choose all over again, I’d still choose you. Again and again and again.
Love you!❤️ by @bensterciuc

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15 days ago

Congratulations Eddie and Georgiana!
May the Lord bless your Marriage.

Such a great time to celebrate with family in Romania!

#sterciucadventures #familyiseverything taken in Cluj-Napoca, Transylvania, Romania by @bensterciuc

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19 days ago

The home where I was born…
Stood there silent and resilient
Smiling siblings waiting eagerly
Everything seemed the same
Yet mama wasn’t there… no more
And nothing was the same

#goinghome #granicesti #bucovina #sterciucadventures #familyiseverything taken in Granicesti, Suceava, Romania by @bensterciuc

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21 days ago

Lia conquered another mountain in Switzerland 🇨🇭!!!

She just finished the Wildstrubel by UTMB:
🇨🇭Distance: 55 km mountain trail
🇨🇭Elevation gain: 3,300 m or 10,827 ft
🇨🇭Start: in Adelboden
🇨🇭Finish: in Crans-Montana
🇨🇭High point: ~2,789 m / 9,150 ft crazy!
🇨🇭Burned 7,000 calories
🇨🇭Time: 12 hr 23 mins!

She cried when she finished…

Lia was one of the very few people in her age group and represented the USA 🇺🇸 with great honor!

@utmbworldseries
#sterciucadventures #ultraLia #utmbworldseries #wildstrubelbyutmb taken in Crans Montana, Alpes, Switzerland by @bensterciuc

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a month ago