America is home to millions of immigrants and refugees who share our blessings of liberty. They came to enjoy the same rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness that should be the birth right of all mankind. Today, in honor of July 4th, I wanted to share a special story with you. This is my friend, Michael. He’s got an interesting tale to tell. At the turn of the century, Michael’s great grandfather, stowed away on a merchant vessel to the US. He arrived in California and later met Chiang Kai-Sheck, the Leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party. His Great Grandfather then joined the cause, fought and died in China in battle against the communist regime. However, this was not how Michael came to be born in the US. It wasn’t until 1920, that his Grandfather, Keng Lem, came to the US on a merchant ship. Keng enlisted to fight with the US in WWII in the Asian Theater. Listen as Michael shares his grandfather’s journey and what the American Dream means to him.
Amy Tran-Calhoun (she/her/hers) is the proud daughter of Vietnamese refugees. Aware that there is no social justice without racial justice, Amy has devoted her career to developing anti-racist leaders. Listen as she shares her parents' stories and how they turned their circumstances into resilient growth. Today, Amy wears many hats including Chief of Staff at Diversity Talks, a consulting company that provides youth-led antiracism professional development for adults, racial equity coach with Dallas TRHT, trainer with the Center for Racial Justice in Education, and independent consultant. Amy is most excited and joyful when she’s eating delicious food and spending quality time with her loved ones.
This story sounds familiar. Her family secretly snuck out in the middle of the night and piled into a single wooden boat with over 20 people. What's atypical of their escape was the calm waters and relatively easy 2 day journey to the refugee camp. This was the only easy part on their journey to the US. Kim shares her family's story of how the Communists ripped away everything from her father's family and how like many refugees, they started over with the help of a compassionate and generous community. She shares how she transformed from a fragile, frail little girl into a fearless young girl who learned how to speak her mind and stand up for what's right. Today she owns a successful business and has a passion to help alleviate financial burdens for individuals in the local DFW community. Kim is the youngest and only daughter in her family. She was the first and only one to obtain a bachelor's degree. At 24 yrs of age, she started in real estate and now her entire family is in the business with her. She is a mom to 3 beautiful boys and has been married for 14 years to the very first guy she ever brought home to meet her dad. She grew up in DFW and calls this is her home sweet home. You can find Kimberly at Kimberly Adams Realty.
Imagine building up a career as a renown artist in your country with your work displayed in the Hong Kong Museum of Art, then making a decision to leave everything, move to a completely different country and starting over. Instead of using clay and creating with your hands, you are now using them to pour cement into molds, day in and day out. This is just one part of the story. Meet Annabel Tsang. She was born in Hong Kong and immigrated to the US when she was 7. Her parents reinvented themselves multiple times over, being the example of evolution and change for their daughters. I invite you to listen as she shares about her family and about the importance of creating change in a positive way, especially within our communities. Thank you Orchid Giving Circle for the opportunity to highlight these wonderful women who are a part of the organization. You are invited to the Power Leadership Forum on May 7th. Go to www.orchidgivingcircle.org to register for the event. Annabel Tsang is a Consumer Packaged Goods sales executive based in Frisco, TX. Annabel graduated with a Communications degree from U.C. Davis, and most recently moved to Texas after seven years in New York City. She loves to learn about world history through travel. Petra, Jordan and Angkor Wat are two of her favorite places visited. Annabel loves to grow hydroponic plants, cook one pot meals and facetime with her one year old nephew.
Jin-Ya Huang is a descendent of refugees who escaped mainland China from communism. She and her family resettled in Taiwan where “Girls are like buckets of water you pour out” The value of a woman was not considered an investment you can get back, and being one of 6 girls, Jin-Ya’s parents knew they wanted a different life for their daughters. Her parents were offered an opportunity to move to the US when Jin-Ya was 13. Through two of her biggest, darkest moments - as a survivor of domestic abuse and the loss of her mom - Jin-Ya shares how she has turned her crisis into something incredible through her organization called “Break Bread Break Borders”. Listen as she tells her story of how she continues to rise up making a huge impact in the community and abroad. Jin-Ya Huang is a social impact, community development, and creative innovator with a focus on the intersection of equity, design, and social justice work. She is the founder of Break Bread, Break Borders (BBBB), a social enterprise empowering refugee women economically through the storytelling of food and culture. She is an acclaimed interdisciplinary artist who has shown in galleries in Dallas, Miami and New York. Her work examines her Asian identity and diasporic immigrant experience. Jin-Ya is an accomplished, published writer and public speaker. Her work has been featured at the Bush Institute, Dallas Innovates, Amon Carter Art Museum, Texas Lyceum, Slow Food USA, Toyota of North America TAASiA Corporate ERGs, Airbnb International, and TIME Magazine. You may contact Jin-Ya and learn about her mission at www.breakbreadbreakborders.com
Karyne Nguyen is a proud Vietnamese-American, with roots in Saigon, Vietnam from her parents, Jay (Nhan) and Jane (Danh). She is a diversity, equity, and inclusion professional and an Inclusion Institute™ Certified Diversity Practitioner. In her career, she focuses on fostering a culture of inclusion in all aspects of the team member experience at Mr. Cooper Group, a home loan company based in Dallas, TX. She enjoys contributing to the North Texas community through nonprofit volunteerism, civic engagement as a member of the Mayor’s Star Council leadership cohort, and public service where she serves as a Commissioner on the City of Carrollton’s Neighborhood Advisory Commission. In her free time, she enjoys doing design and craft projects. Connect with Karyne on LinkedIn.
Brave 7-year-old Lauren Vuong escaped Vietnam with her family and 57 other refugees on a small wooden fishing boat at the end of the brutal Vietnam War. After 10 days at sea, they were lost and depleted of food, water, and fuel. Death seemed imminent. From seven miles away, a U.S. flagged cargo ship spotted them. The captain ordered their rescue and changed the course of 62 lives forever. Finding The Virgo is the story of Lauren’s decades long search for the heroic captain and crew of the LNG Virgo who saved her life and the lives of the other refugees. This story of compassion and gratitude traces the Vuong family's journey from the shores of Vietnam, through their perilous journey at sea and eventually to their resettlement in America. For more information about Lauren and screenings for Finding the Virgo, go to https://www.findingthevirgo.com/
“When you talk about the American dream, it was more than a place where you become wealthy … it was a place where you would not be killed.” Her mother told horror stories of babies being taken by their feet by German soldiers and slammed against brick walls. There is not even a shadow of a doubt that the Holocaust happened. Isabell shares with us about her family’s life after surviving the holocaust. Biography: sabell Rossignol grew up in Louisiana where she was not afraid of the swamp or gators! In the bayou state, Isabell learned discipline, self-reliance and problem solving, good practice for public relations and marketing. Isabell Rossignol is a results-driven public relations professional with years of experience managing the brands and reputation of her extensive, and impressive, list of international clients. She excels in creating strategies for global communications, leveraging international resources to create an integrated approach for external outreach and launching businesses and products. Specializing in word-wrangling, storyboarding and concise billboard messaging, Isabell is able to weave a campaign around a single word.
“We were forced out of our home into the direction that gunshots were directing us with.” The first 8 years of Thear’s life were spent in war and refugee camps. When the Khmer Rouge took over Cambodia, her parents and 4 siblings were forced out of their homes and sent into different labor camps. Thear, too young to work, stayed with her grandmother. After 4 years under the rule of the Khmer Rouge, it’s a miracle that their entire family survived as millions of people died during this time. After the Khmer Rouge were driven out, they walked for months not knowing where to go or what would happen. They would walk during the day. Find a place to sleep on the roadside at night. Ate soup with a few grains of rice and bugs. Thear recounts her family’s journey survival, strength and the resilience of the human spirit. Today, Thear is Ernst and Young’s Americas Advisory Talent Leader creating a work environment for 18,000 professionals to grow their careers and build a better working world. She is also a member of the Orchid Giving Circle, where Asian women pool their resources and leverage their networks, to award large community grants that support social change and services for the North Texas Asian community. You may contact Thear HERE.
Seema Deshpande came from humble beginnings. From a small town in India, she was determined to move to the US to get her Masters Degree in Electrical Engineering. While in the states, she fell in love and got married. Unbeknownst to her, this change in marital status also changed her immigration status and was told she had 10 days to work a miracle or get deported. Terrified, she went to her employer, and they helped her find an immigration lawyer, who would end up rewriting Seema's fate and making US her home. Decades later, their paths crossed again, this time, in an unexpected serendipitous way. Today, Seema is the the Director of Systems Technology Development for Texas Instruments. You can connect with her HERE.
“If anybody was educated, if you could speak a different language, if you wore glasses, you were executed.” Mey’s mom had to make herself ugly and unappealing so that she wouldn’t be a target of rape. Children were taken away from their families, brainwashed and trained as soldiers to fight for the Khmer Rouge Entire families were massacred and millions of people died from illness, execution and starvation. Mey takes us through her parents’ story of escape out of Cambodia and their journey to the US. Today Mey is Managing Counsel of Employment & Labor at Toyota Motor North America, where she provides advice & counsel, works on strategic company initiatives, conducts training and manages litigation. She was named D Magazine’s Best Lawyers in employment law, Rising Star in Employment and Labor Law by Super Lawyers Magazine and made the Hot List of Lawyers of Color, Inc. You can get in touch with Mey HERE.
14 million people were displaced and 1 million people died during the Partition of India. Neena Newberry shares the story of her family’s history, a time of insane violence because of a religious partition line; the separation of India and what is known today as Pakistan. That was just one of the many struggles her family has overcome before finding their way to freedom and peace. After her parents married and had children, Neena’s dad, who was highly educated, migrated (without his family) to England where he worked night shift at an ice cream factory. When the family was reunited, the suffering didn’t stop in England. Racial discrimination and ignorance affected their children in the form of bullying and physical violence. So, they picked up and moved to the US, where they had family connections and community. Such an inspirational story of courage and perseverance. Today, Neena is the Founder of Newberry Executive Solutions where she coaches executives (VPs and higher) for some of the world’s best organizations. She is a twelve-time award-winning executive coach, speaker and author. A former Deloitte Consulting executive with over 25 years of business and leadership development experience, Neena excels at simple, proven solutions to achieve unprecedented business and career results. She launched Newberry Executive Solutions to pursue her passion for helping women be successful. Over 75% of her clients get promoted, and she gets rave reviews from Fortune 500 companies. Neena has been honored by the Dallas Business Journal, the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, and the Global Excellence Awards, among others, and has appeared in national media including Fortune, ABC, CBS, and Fox News. She is the author ofShow Up. Step Up. Step Out. — written up by Southwest Airlines President Emeritus Colleen Barrett. She serves as an inaugural advisory board member of the TWU Institute for Women’s Leadership, chair of the Akola advisory board, and a member of the Texas Women’s Foundation Economic Council and the United Way Community Impact Committee. You can contact Neena HERE.
Carina Reyes is the middle child of 9 children. Her parents had successful careers in the Philippines while under the dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. Even though she was from a upper middle class family, her parents feared that the conditions of the country would only become worse with this corrupt government. There would be no future if they didn't leave soon. Carina’s father during this time was also part of a political opposition group. Right before things took a turn for the worst and her father’s friends were captured or mysteriously disappeared, Carina’s dad made the difficult decision to leave the Philippines first to seek political asylum in the US. Two years later, he was reunited with the family in San Jose, California. Carina shares the story of how this family of 11 has emerged from poverty to prosperity. Today Carina leads a consulting practice and helps people transform their business into the digital world. She is on a mission to make sure other immigrants and refugees get the help they need to accelerate their lives out poverty and into a future they would be proud of. You can reach Carina on LinkedIn and hear more about her story here.
As a girl born last into a traditional Chinese family in the 1960s -- when boys were valued over girls and birth order often decided a child’s future in the culture -- Cynthia learned about the concept of inequity. She was fortunate. Her family moved to America when she was a year old, so she had access to education from kindergarten through college. The births of many girls like Cynthia, however, were viewed as burdens eliminated through adoption. Other girls who remained with their families were brought up to be wives or caregivers for their parents, while their male counterparts received education and resources. Thoughts of these girls and other people who are devalued because of their gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, economic status or other personally defining characteristics, dismay and motivate Cynthia. She wants to change the world for them through her position and relationships. Today, she is the executive director of The Boone Family Foundation and uses a $5 million annual budget to support nonprofit organizations that advance equity for women and girls, improve the educational quality of life for children and promote environmental stewardship. Cynthia is also a Founding Member and Chair for the Orchard Giving Circle, whose mission is to increase awareness of the local Asian population, community needs and knowledge about philanthropy.
My dear friend Carmen Pei shares about the loss of her mom who suffered with depression and took her own life. This is not a topic she shares openly very often. I asked if she would be vulnerable and courageous to speak about how the aftermath of mental illness has affected her life growing up in the hopes of helping someone else who feels alone, scared, ashamed, lonely, unworthy ... know that the answer doesn't have to be you ending your life. Thank you sweet Carmen for talking so openly about your mom, your journey and I am so proud of you, strong soul. Today, Carmen and her husband Jon own a chain of boba tea stores in Texas called Fruitealicious. If you go to their website and read the first few lines, you'll understand why people are in love, with the drinks, their mission and of course the people.
Senator Tina Maharath shares about the physical abuse by the hands of her father, what life was like without her mom and two brothers after they were killed in a car accident and living with depression. It has not been an easy journey for her. When she ran for office, the odds were stacked against her, this Laotian American girl, the daughter of refugees, won the hearts of the people. Today, Senator Maharath is the first Asian-American state senator in Ohio, and the first Asian-American woman in the General Assembly. She is a force to be reckoned with and her story will both break your heart and make you smile. It's one of those narratives that you won't forget.
Grace Koo’s family story is a fascinating one. Grace’s great grandfather was a martyr. He was killed for trying to set up a Southern Baptist church in Korea. Her family fled to Manchuria to avoid persecution of their religious beliefs. Grace shares about how her family was sponsored over to the US and her life growing up here - one of constant struggle; trying to figure out where she fit in. After dropping out of pharmacy school, she moved to Seoul, Korea where she trained as a pastry chef in several Michelin Star restaurants, truly following her passion as a creative and now living her best life. Today, Grace is the owner and chef of 9 Rabbits Bakery in Dallas Texas, named by Big D magazine as the Best Sweets Shops in 2018. I can’t wait for you to meet her!
Mary Ann Thompson Frenk is the daughter of the former 7-11 Corporation founders. She was born in Mexico, adopted by these amazing people. She is one of the most humble, genuine, passionate and giving people I have encountered. I strongly feel like it is important for people to be aware of this. Why? Because while her history is intriguing, she has created her own legacy - one I wouldn’t be able to match, not in this lifetime! Mary Ann shares with us about her family’s history and their unexpected tension and problems with the KKK, growing up adopted from Mexico, and how humanitarianism has just been a part of her life as a child. While there is much more to this story, she has taken these values her family has taught her and continues to live and create a life full of purpose. Mary Ann is literally on a mission to change this world. Today, Mary Ann Thompson-Frenk is a humanitarian, conscious-capitalist, published writer, internationally award winning sculptor, (recognized by the Buckminster Fuller Institute for being the first artist to innovate on geodesics to create the human figure), human rights/environmental activist, social-responsible investor (including Women That Soar and multiple eco-conscious startups) and frequently requested international speaker. She has spoken at and moderated forums around the globe including for NEXUS at the United Nations and White House, Parliament of World Religions, TEDx, The Club of Budapest, the Cordoba Initiative, The Temenos Academy of Integral Studies and was the keynote speaker for 64th World Congress of Women Entrepreneurs in November 2016. She serves as President and co-founder of The John Philp Thompson Foundation and as President for The Memnosyne Institute, an international non-profit she co-founded with her husband, Joshua. Through it, they have supported programs around the world focused on empowering humanity to address the challenges of an increasingly interconnected world - leading them both to be identified by three-time-nominated-Nobel- Peace-Prize Dr. Ervin Laszlo as two of the “21st Century Visionary Thinkers” leading innovative humanitarianism for their “social acupuncture” model. She has been published in various magazines including The Transpersonal Psychology Association's “The Transcender", YPO's Real Leaders Magazine which recognized her as a “Real Young Leader to watch on the international scene, contributed chapters to various books including “Dawn of The Akashic Age: New Consciousness, Quantum Resonance, and The Future of The World” by Dennis Kingsley and Ervin Laszlo, “Developing A Global Agenda: Expert Insight from the inaugural STEP Global Congress” collected by STEP, “Sparks of Genius: Powerful Sparks of Creative Insight from 100+ Global Thought Leaders” collected by Julie Ann Turner, and most recently contributed the USA portion of Mirela Sula’s newest book titled, "50 Inspiring Voices of Migrant Women" addressing the current human rights challenges of immigrant women in the USA, serves as the editor for “Empower” Journal, and has been on the cover of other publications including London’s “Global Woman”, “Mujer USA”, “Femme International”, Argentina’s “Revista La Auténtica”, Belgium’s “Business Fit Magzine”, and “Forbes Mexico”. She has received numerous awards for her humanitarian work. Most recently, in 2018 she was Awarded the Inspirique Award at Harvard University and presented the Civic Pioneer Award at the United Nations in November which is one of the highest awards a female citizen of the USA can receive and is entered into the congressional record. She is currently working towards setting up “Memnosyne Mexico” in an effort to further the reach of The Memnosyne Institute’s humanitarian work and empower communities in Mexico, pursuing ordination as an interfaith minister and her most recent regional goals include continuing The Memnosyne Institute’s GreenSourceDFW and FoodSourceDFW initiatives, working with Rev. William Barber’s Poor People’s Campaign, hoping to establish Eco-Eco, a B-corp, with her collaborating partner, Tania Arrayales Rodriguez, aimed at creating economically feasible ecologically responsible homes for the lower tax bracket within the state of Texas and launching the Memnosyne Institute’s Campus for Humanity in Dallas, Texas starting with it’s Center for Outreach designed by architect Keith Critchlow.
"Our Vietnamese names were butchered before we arrived in America. “Tram Nguyen” looked like a fragmented sentence to me on our refugee paperwork. Cutting out half of my name was like truncating my identity and mutilating what remained. Trâm quickly degraded to Tramp or Tram (the mode of transportation). In English-speakers’ struggle to say my name – Trum[p]? Tram[p]? – and my struggle to explain, I settled on “Can you say trombone? It’s kinda like that: Trom.” And I learned to live with an unrecognizable caricature of a name. Nguyen was especially challenging. N-gu-yen. Nu-gen. N-guy-en. What? You can say “Win”. Win? Yes, that’s good enough." (The Fob Blog Written by Angelina Tram Nguyen) After I read the first few paragraphs of Angelina's new blog, I wanted to hear about her experiences and her perspective as a first generation refugee. Sometimes it's uncomfortable to hear the truth, and Angelina certainly doesn't hold back. You can subscribe to her blog at The Fob Blog I think that there's plenty to learn from each other no matter how culturally sensitive we all think we are!
Quynh Chau Stone is a firecracker! Her story will touch many of you and it is one of the most compelling and lengthiest podcasts because I couldn't decide what to cut out. At the age of 13, she left Vietnam with her four brothers for 13 days without any food or water. They were captured by pirates, robbed and then stranded on an oil derrick. Once she was finally sponsored over by her dad, she endured months of physical abuse at the hands of her father. Yet through the worst years of her life, she never gave up. There is SO MUCH suffering that she has endured, and yet, here she is haven risen like a phoenix. She has survived many death defying obstacles, and I truly believe she is an angel on earth. Her LOVE is contagious and when you meet her, you can't help but adore her. She's one of those people who has nothing to hide, a straight shooter and will tell you like it is. Quynh Chau Stone is a mother, educator, entrepreneur and advocate. As the president and founder of The Source of Hope, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with more than 4 years of tireless service to Dallas-Ft. Worth underprivileged communities. Quynh Chau tackles the critical issues of how to restore “under-dogs” hope to start all over again. The Source of Hope delivered over 1000 meals monthly to the homeless and actively works with partner organizations to serve the most vulnerable in the Dallas – Ft. Worth communities. To learn more about The Source of Hope and how you can collaborate or be a sponsor, click HERE