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 4

Turning Their Circumstances Into Resilient Growth

Jun 17th, 2021 40m 15s

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

Moving to America to Move Up

May 12th, 2021 39m 29s

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 c

It's Never Too Late to Reinvent Yourself

May 4th, 2021 37m 29s

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

Her Mission: Break Bread Break Borders

Apr 25th, 2021 45m 56s

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 ba

Anti-Asian Racism: Help Stop the Violence

Apr 21st, 2021 48m 29s

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

Rescued at sea at 7-years-old

Jun 15th, 2020 43m 17s

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 im

And Then There Were 3

Dec 30th, 2019 43m 6s

“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 again

Eating Bugs On The Journey To Freedom

May 2nd, 2019 33m 19s

“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

People Come Into Your Life For a Reason, Season or Lifetime

May 1st, 2019 28m 31s

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

Surviving the Cambodian Genocide

Apr 30th, 2019 32m 4s

“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 fa

Every Struggle Becomes a Strength

Apr 29th, 2019 33m 40s

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 wha

The Journey From Poverty to Prosperity

Apr 24th, 2019 38m 20s

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 condition

Big Purpose, Big Title, Big Mission

Apr 9th, 2019 32m 29s

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 famil

Nonprofit Leader. Social Justice Illuminator. Relationship Cultivation Enthusiast.

Apr 8th, 2019 32m 29s

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 -- she learned about the concept of inequity. Cynthia's f

Scar Tissue Left From The Past

Apr 4th, 2019 50m 2s

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

The Unlikely Woman Who Won the Race for Senator

Mar 13th, 2019 42m 34s

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.

It All Started With Her Great Grandfather, a Martyr

Mar 6th, 2019 42m 26s

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 sh

This world owes us nothing, yet we owe it to the world to make it a better place

Jan 18th, 2019 35m 32s

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

Fitting In As A FOB

Nov 6th, 2018 49m 19s

"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 qu

Relentless Determination to Survive

Oct 24th, 2018 1h 2m

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 wi

Granddaughter of the Dragon Lady

Oct 4th, 2018 50m 23s

Meet Sarah Porkalob. She's funny, witty, bold and beautiful. I think she's going to be my new west coast BFF. Sara is an artist activist and award winning solo-performer based in Seattle. She served as Intiman Theatre's 2017 Co-Curator and is t

A Calculated Plan With Unexpected Surprises

Sep 7th, 2018 48m 53s

Uyen's parents planned their escape from Vietnam for 10 years after the Fall of Saigon. One failed attempt after another only motivated them to find new ways to leave a country that was no longer "home" to them. Even during the "successful" mom

From Being a VP of a Bank and Biology Professor to Workers in a Factory - Sacrifices Made By Immigrants

Aug 2nd, 2018 41m 16s

Nikki's dad was a Vice President of one of the Banks in Vietnam and owned a chain of gas stations. Her mom was a Biology Professor. They were incredibly successful and well off until the Fall of Saigon when the Viet Cong took everything away. I

My Family is a Melting Pot

Jul 26th, 2018 40m

"We invited all of my dad's family to join us in church for our ceremony, unsure if our Muslim family would feel comfortable coming. They showed up, alongside our Jain friends, our Jewish friends, our Hindu friends, our non-denominational frien