At Argo Translation, we believe language connects people in profound ways. When we translate words, we're building bridges between cultures, communities, and individuals. We recently asked a few of our members to share their stories about what translation means to them personally and professionally. Their responses reveal how language creates human connection in many different forms.
Giving voice to important stories
"My favorite project that I've worked on [was] transcribing a series of videos that were in Spanish. We were transcribing them and then translating them into English," recalls Audrey Barker, one of our project management team leads.
These weren't routine documents. They were intimate interviews with men sharing their experiences as immigrants living with HIV in the United States. Through their native Spanish, they expressed deeply personal stories about their diagnoses, family conversations, and struggles navigating healthcare in a new country.
"I just love that project because it's such an important issue. And the client is doing a real service by trying to raise awareness and reduce the stigma surrounding that," Audrey explains.
In this case, translation did more than convert words between languages; it amplified voices that might otherwise go unheard and brought critical issues to light. This ability to facilitate understanding of complex human experiences is what makes translation work so meaningful.
Connecting across generations and backgrounds
For Morgan Reyes, another project management team lead, translation's power lies in its ability to connect people across various generational, technological, or educational divides.
"I love the random personal projects that might come in where someone finds letters written by their great-great-grandfather, and they want to know what they mean," Morgan shares. "I love those because you feel like you're connecting people across generations with that."
This connection to family history represents just one aspect of Morgan's translation work. She also finds fulfillment in educational projects that serve communities.
"I really enjoy doing school projects. I love knowing that this is something that's going to be helping families, helping kids, and helping everyone understand what a child needs, and keeping that affordable for the school district."
Beyond preserving family histories and supporting education, Morgan has worked on projects that bridge technological gaps, showing how translation can address multiple types of barriers simultaneously.
"We did a series of e-learning projects once, and they were to help the older generation know how to use the internet and how to use their computer. It was so fun to work on it and just know that you were helping people in the end."
Each of these experiences demonstrates how translation extends far beyond converting words into different languages. By bridging communication gaps, translation creates meaningful connections between people that would otherwise remain impossible due to language barriers.
Creating connections through language
While some of our team members work directly with translation projects, others experience the power of language in more personal ways. Meghan Furlong, our marketing manager, discovered how Spanish could create an immediate bond with someone she met for the first time.
"My favorite language story is the first time I met my boyfriend's mom," Meghan shares.
“When I meet her, I said, 'mucho gusto, es un placer' (it's a pleasure to meet you), her jaw just dropped, and she gave me the biggest hug. It was such a sweet moment.” That simple greeting in Spanish created an instant connection that has lasted. "It was the start of a very nice relationship between us," Meghan explains.
Beyond this special first meeting, Meghan continues to maintain her Spanish skills through various activities. She watches Spanish news and explores Spanish-language music.
Meghan's story perfectly illustrates how language skills extend beyond professional translation work to create meaningful personal connections that enrich our lives in unexpected ways.
The human impact of translation
Our team members' experiences reveal how translation changes lives in different contexts:
Audrey's work with HIV-positive immigrants demonstrated translation's power to amplify crucial healthcare experiences that might otherwise remain unheard. She helped create understanding around complex challenges faced by vulnerable communities.
Morgan connected generations through translated family letters and made educational resources accessible to diverse families. Her projects preserved cultural heritage while ensuring information reached everyone who needed it, regardless of language barriers.
Meghan's story showed how language skills create immediate personal bonds. Her Spanish greeting to her boyfriend's mother sparked a connection that grew into a meaningful relationship sustained through shared language experiences.
These stories represent what drives us at Argo Translation - not just technical accuracy, but the human moments that language makes possible. By focusing on the people behind the words, we deliver translations that matter.
