Miss Utah USA’s first minority beauty queen aims for the best in life

Posted on November 16, 2010 by comm5775

Story and slideshow by CHLOE NGUYEN

Whom do you picture when someone says, “Miss Utah USA”? Do you picture a beautiful, tall, blond-haired beauty? Does the image of the all-American-girl-next-door come to mind? Given Utah’s history of beauty queens, you would have been correct. But there is one queen who does not fit the typical description – Soben Huon.

Crowned as Miss Utah USA on Nov. 12, 2005, Huon is by all means American. She is a native of Texas, but she doesn’t have the blond hair or the fair white skin. She has brown eyes, dark hair and sun-kissed skin. Huon is a Cambodian American beauty with the confidence, right talent and attitude for the winning title.

Since 1952, when the pageant coronated its first queen, 57 women have been crowned Miss Utah USA. But Huon was the first, and still remains, the only Asian minority to represent the title at the national Miss USA competition. She is also the first Cambodian American to win a state title in Miss USA history.

“I was raised to embrace a really rich Asian heritage,” Huon said in an e-mail interview. “At home, I learned the Asian way of life and at school, I learned the American way. I feel as much American as I do Asian.”

And to prove she’s got the confidence, Huon entered the competition for Miss Utah USA. She figured it would be a great opportunity to network if she were to win.

But Huon admits she didn’t expect to be awarded the title. She told her mom, who was in California at the time, not to come to the pageant because she didn’t have confidence in winning. But when her name was announced for the crown, Huon had to find a phone fast, to relay the exciting news. “Since then, I learned never to underestimate myself again,” she said.

Huon was unaware she was poised to be the first minority titleholder for Utah until a friend mentioned the fact to her. “By then, I was already mentally prepared to go forward,” she said. “I took a chance and went for it and figured that I can always walk away from a wonderful experience.”

She believes that if ethnicity had been a factor in selecting the winner, then the pageant would have suffered for its lack of diversity. “A person cannot change where he comes from,” Huon said. “But he can certainly change his ideology and opinions.”

Huon was crowned at the age of 22, when she was a senior at Brigham Young University in Provo – she subsequently graduated with a bachelor of arts in political science and international relations. The beauty queen, now 27, was described as a “very kind and determined person” by the Miss Utah USA organization.

Jessica Whitehead, executive assistant of the Miss Utah USA organization, had great things to say about Huon. “Out of the contestants that year, Soben was the most unique and exuded confidence on stage,” she said.

The Utah USA beauty pageant is a competition that selects Utah’s representative for the Miss USA pageant. With a successful history at the national level, Utah has had 20 placements in the top 15 at the Miss USA competition as of 2009. According to the Miss Utah USA organization, ethnicity does not matter as long as the participant is a citizen of the United States, has never been married and has no children.

“We have had several minorities and immigrant participants in the pageants,” Whitehead said. “I do not think that one’s race, religion or background will determine if they will win the pageant.”

Each contestant is judged in the categories of swimsuit, evening gown and interview based on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest. From there, the top 15 are chosen to compete again in the swimsuit and evening gown segments on the final night. The top five are then selected based on their performance during the onstage question and answer. “We want[ed] someone that will work hard as Miss Utah USA,” Whitehead said. “[And] will represent herself and her state well at the Miss USA pageant.”

Huon has proven that minorities living in America can make a name for themselves in a country where the white majority rules, at least when it comes to beauty pageants. “I think it gives hope to several other people and encourages them to go for their dreams,” Whitehead said.

And although Huon did not place in the Miss USA nationals on April 21, 2006, in Baltimore, Md., this hasn’t stopped her dream and goal of being and doing her best.

Huon moved to Europe in 2009 for an apprenticeship and will be completing her master’s degree in international relations there in 2011. She is currently residing in Berlin, Germany, playing the role of the American expatriate, enjoying learning about the European cultures and sharing her own with the people there.

“There’s something sizzling in Berlin since the Wall fell 21 years ago,” Huon said. And she wants to be a part of the indescribable historical social change that is occurring in the capital of Germany.

Huon plans to travel across the European Union while she’s there studying – she’s even got a “Places to Go before I Get Married” list. She has already crossed off countries like France, Italy, Spain, Austria and Switzerland from the list.

She’s traveling the world, but she hasn’t forgotten her roots. Huon says she’s still very much Asian, as well as American, even with all of the cultures she’s experienced so far. “I feel like I really stick out like a sore thumb at times, particularly when I am the only Asian in a group of Anglo students or when I am the only American in a group of Germans,” Huon said.

But she says in the end, these experiences just make her even more grateful to live in a time where the progression of diversity is occurring nationally, as well as internationally.

Huon says her minority status hasn’t stopped her from achieving what she wants in life. It’s something she cannot change, and wouldn’t want to. Instead, she focuses on things she can change, like doing her best in her studies and enjoying life as it goes by. The sash and crown were a representation of what she worked hard for, Huon said. And she felt the greater Asian community was excited there was going to be an Asian American representative at the Miss USA competition.

Huon believes her win sent a message to the rest of America that Utah is becoming more diverse. She wants to let minorities know they shouldn’t be afraid to be different and never let the fear hinder them from doing what they want to achieve.

“Be grateful that you are living in an age and society where the majority rules,” she said. “But the ever increasing endorsement of diversity paves a way for minority to have a voice.”

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Eunice Jones: hard work changes life from rags to riches

Posted on November 11, 2010 by comm5775

Story and photo by LAUREN CARTER

Eunice Jones received her first pair of shoes at 13 years old. They were a gift from her sister, in honor of Jones graduating from the sixth grade at her school in the Philippines. Little did they know, Jones would later receive multiple awards and hold several positions across different business areas in Salt Lake City.

Eunice Jones at the University of Utah.

Jones grew up being the seventh oldest of 11 children, in a very poor family. She was raised in a house that had no running water or electricity, and had to boil water before being able to drink it.

“Food was very, very sparse,” Jones said. “I never saw frozen food until I came to America.”

At a young age Jones started working for money. She would clean her grandparent’s house every weekend for 25 cents. She went on to start selling bags of salt for 25 cents and 50 cents at the local market. And during summer school Jones sold bags of fried dough dipped in sugar to her classmates.

Jones saved up her hard earned money in a piggy bank. And at the end of the summer she had enough money to buy school supplies for her siblings and herself.

“My parents could not give us anything but education,” Jones said.

Jones’ three older brothers and her older sister moved to Manila, Philippines, on scholarships. They gave all of their incomes to Jones’ parents, which eventually brought the rest of her family to live with them in a two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment, in Manila.

“Life changed when I went to Manila,” Jones said. For the first time in her life, Jones’ family had running water, television, electricity and public transportation to get to school.

Jones’ sister sent her through college in Manila. She graduated in the top-10 of her class and was given an apprenticeship at a local press.

Jones later became the single mother of two children. And in 1986, the Los Angeles Hyatt offered Jones a working visa. She left her sons with family and had to leave the Philippines within 30 days of the Hyatt’s offer.

“I only had a suitcase, $50 in my pocket and a dream,” Jones said.

Jones worked for the Los Angeles Hyatt for three years before being able to obtain visas for her two young sons. In 1989, Jones went home to bring her children to live in Las Vegas, where she was working at the Hilton.

Jones got married in 1993 to Blake Jones and two years later the family moved to Utah. Eunice Jones got a job at the Salt Lake City Hilton, where the family lived in the general manager’s suite for two months before buying a house.

“When we lived in the Hilton, it was weird because everyone was cleaning our room,” said A.J. Jones, Eunice Jones’ 24-year-old son.

After Eunice Jones had worked for the Hilton for one year, she said that her work was not challenging and decided to change her career.

She started attending real estate school at night and graduated in 1996. She began working seven days a week as a Realtor. And one year later, Eunice Jones received the Rookie of the Year Honor in real estate.

“If you meet 10 people everyday, you will grow your database,” Eunice Jones said. “My production just started to rise.”

Eunice and Blake Jones opened their own Re/Max office in 2003. They opened it with one Realtor and it grew to be 70 Realtors and independent contractors, before the market crashed.

In addition to her work as a real estate agent, Eunice Jones also plays a large role in the Asian community of Utah. She was the first women president of the Philippine-American Association during her 1999-2001 terms. And she is a co-founder of the Utah Asian Chamber of Commerce.

“I am so honored and happy to be part of this community,” Eunice Jones said.

Jones is currently serving on the Asian Advisory Council and recently gathered members of the community to start a dance group that performs traditional Filipino dancing. Her hope is that it will help keep the culture alive for the different generations of Filipinos who are in Utah.

“She just does it to help people out,” A.J. Jones said. “It is very honorable work that she does.”

Eunice Jones would like to retire from real estate in ten years. Her goal is to buy land in the Philippines so she could live there six months out of the year. “She moved here just for my brother and I. She misses her life and she sacrificed a lot for us,” A.J. Jones said, in support of his mother’s dream of returning home.

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American dream true for Utah woman who went from poverty to community leader

Posted on November 11, 2010 by comm5775

Eunice Jones speaks with University of Utah journalism students about her life.

Story and photo by DANA IGO

As a child growing up poor in the Philippines, Eunice Jones paid for school supplies by selling fried dough rolled in sugar to the local townspeople.

Now Jones, 51, sells properties as an associate broker of a Re/Max Masters franchise in Salt Lake City.

How she moved from living in a hut in a seaside village to living in Utah as a distinguished member of the community is a true story of success that begins at her roots.

“My parents always told us that they could not give us anything but education,” Jones said.

As the seventh of 11 children, she was used to feeling hungry and going to school barefoot. Her family’s home had no electricity or running water and she often did school work by the dim light of a gas lamp. Yet her parents made sure she and her siblings studied hard and went to school every day.

Her parents’ strong emphasis on education pushed Jones to excel and in 1980 she graduated in the top-10 of her class at the University of Manila with a degree in marketing.

In 1986 she was offered an opportunity to work in the United States as a catering manager at the former Hyatt Wilshire in Los Angeles.

Jones, a single mother, had to leave her sons, Thomas, 2, and Andrew, 2 months, with her mother and sister in order to move to the U.S.

Even though she had to part with her children, the chance to come to America was something she couldn’t refuse. With the help of her friends and family, she scraped together the money for airfare and got on a plane to California.

“I only had a suitcase, $50 in my pocket and a dream of a better life,” Jones said about her arrival in the U.S.

Los Angeles was like nothing she’d experienced before. She saw a washing machine for the first time. Her friend’s mother had to help her figure out how to use it and it didn’t turn out well – ­ all of her clothes shrank. Until she got her first paycheck, Jones had to borrow everything from friends.

She moved to Las Vegas to work at the Las Vegas Hilton in 1989. It was there that she felt secure enough in her job and situation that she obtained visas to bring her sons from the Philippines to join her.

In 1995 Jones remarried and moved to Utah with her new husband and children. She was hired by the Salt Lake City Hilton, but the work wasn’t challenging so she took real estate classes at night in order to switch careers. A year later she received the Better Homes & Gardens Rookie of the Year award. She opened her own Re/Max franchise in 2003.

When she and her husband divorced in 2009 she sold her franchise to Re/MAX Masters, where she now works as an associate broker.

Aside from real estate, Jones also devoted considerable time and energy to the Asian community of Utah.

She is a leader in the Utah Filipino community and organizes the Utah Asian Festival. In 2005 Jones and Judge Raymond Uno founded the Utah Asian Chamber of Commerce, which helps bring Asian businesses together throughout the state. Jones is also head of the Asian Advisory Council, which is a part of the Utah Office of Ethnic Affairs.

Jones’ story is a testament to the American dream and she has no regrets about coming to the U.S.

“My lifestyle [in the Philippines] was not as free as it is now,” she said.

Her son, Andrew “A.J.” Jones, 24, feels the same way. He has visited the Philippines twice with his mother and says it was a humbling experience.

“It was definitely a culture shock for me to see 12 people living in a small home, or in their shop/home on the side of the road,” he said.

A.J., who is currently working on a bachelor’s degree in education at the University of Utah, also attributes who he is today to his mother. In high school, when he wanted to play sports, his mother would tell him grades came first. Now he balances sports and school as a Little League coach at Olympus High School. He says his mother set the example for making education his focus.

“She has taught me to be very passionate and to want something,” he said. “She wanted a better life for us and she knew this was the only way.”

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Catholic Community Services helps refugees in Utah

Posted on November 9, 2010 by comm5775

by LAUREN CARTER

Approximately 1,000 Asian refugees take solace in Utah every year, according to the State of Utah Refugee Office. Most of these refugees come from Third World Countries, and have lived in refugee camps for the majority of their lives.

The majority of these people were driven from their homes because they did not support the ruling class that was currently in power. Some refugees are from the formal ruling class and ended up living in camps because their group was thrown from power, said Linda Oda, the director of Asian Affairs in Utah.

According to the State Department’s Foreign Affairs Manual, all refugees go through a several year process before being allowed to come live in the U.S. This process involves the work of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Department of State’s Bureau for Population, Refugees and Migration.

It usually takes about three to four generations for a refugee family to become in tune with the American way, Oda said. This transition involves learning English, taking life skills classes, learning American culture and establishing a life in the U.S.

Since 1945, the Catholic Community Services of Utah, has been helping refugee families throughout the first year of their lives in Utah.

“Utah is considered a welcoming state because we have organizations that truly advocate refugees,” Oda said.

When a refugee is relocated to Utah, their case is assigned to CCS or the International Rescue Committee. CCS and IRC are the only two agencies in the state of Utah that are allowed to handle refugee resettlements, said Rebecca Van Maren, the former assistant volunteer coordinator for CCS who also worked with Bhutanese refugees.

CCS’s work begins before the refugee or their family arrives in Utah. CCS finds out information about the family to arrange housing for the family. This information involves knowing the number of people within the family, and if they have any children, knowing the ages and gender of the children. CCS makes sure that the house is ready for the family to move in upon arrival, including fully furnishing the entire house, Van Maren said.

Van Maren said when refugees arrive, CCS sends a case manager to greet them at the airport. From the airport, the case manager then helps the refugee and their family get settled into their new housing. The refugee’s case manager’s job is to help the refugee and their family adapt to American life, and are available for the first year that the refugee is living in the U.S.

“Their case manager is primarily the person who is explaining the services that CCS provides,” Van Maren said.

CCS’s goal is to help the refugees and their families reach a state of self-sufficiency in Utah. This goal is achieved through taking classes, creating a stable life within the community and with the help of their case manager. A case manager’s help can range from signing the refugee up for classes, to explaining how to shop at a grocery store.

One of the biggest difficulties that refugees face is not being able to speak or understand English. CCS can find education classes that teach people who are 90 years old, down to small children the English language, Oda said.

“Without English these people will never get anywhere,” said Maung Maung, an Asian Advisory Council member in Salt Lake City.

CCS offers life skills classes that refugees can take. They also can coordinate volunteers and interns to mentor and visit with the families. These mentors can go to the refugee’s home to teach them basic life skills, as well.

CCS has job developers, who will work with the refugee’s case manager, to find employment for the refugee. These job developers can also help refugees write resumes in English, because a lot of CCS employees speak multiple languages, such as Vietnamese and Mandarin Chinese.

They also offer a refugee foster care program for children. This program provides guardians until the child’s family can be found or until the child reaches 18 years of age.

CCS occasionally works in conjunction with other agencies in Salt Lake to provide opportunities for people from other countries, Van Maren said. Over the summer, CCS provided filing work for Koreans who were here for a three-month language learning internship, she said.

They also offer an array of assistance programs, which include help with immigration status, substance abuse treatment facilities and many facilities to help provide basic services and goods to low-income and homeless individuals all across Utah.

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Former Miss Asia Utah says pageantry is more than beauty

Posted on November 9, 2010 by comm5775

by KENDRA WILMARTH

Lipstick and nylons fly across the room. Hairspray pollutes the air as women hold down aerosol nozzles sculpting each strand of hair in place. Women glide down runways with chiseled smiles and a glimmer of confidence in their stride. But this isn’t a fashion show, this scene is one of hopeful women competing at local beauty pageants to be considered for a crown identifying them as the next year’s titleholder.

In Utah countless pageants are available for young girls and women to compete in. Pageantry has become a popular outlet for women to get involved in their community, while at the same time earning scholarship money.

Miss Asia Utah is one of these pageants. The program began in 2008 and now takes place every June when the Utah Asian Festival is held in Salt Lake City. Asian women aged 17 to 25 are given the opportunity to showcase their talent and elegance while on stage. The pageant is open to anyone who is at least 50 percent of Asian descent and willing to be a role model for her community and the Asian-American community.

“We believe that these young women have a responsibility to do something in the community, it’s not just a pageant,” said Agnes Higley, chairwoman of Miss Asia Utah, in a phone interview.

Higley said the pageant is a way for women to personally develop. The program helps women gain and maintain confidence as well as high self-esteem. According to the pageant’s mission statement,  participants through this program will be able to foster relationships through friendship and cultural interactions. Higley said one of the main reasons for starting this pageant was the lack of knowledge in younger generations about their ethnic roots.

“There’s a lot of Asian-Americans who were born here, and they don’t know a lot about their cultures,” Higley said.

Women competing will also learn to understand about their own heritage and embrace others in their cultural differences. According to the mission statement, the pageant promotes intercultural unity among Asian-Americans in Utah. Judges pick winners based on talent, national costume, evening gown and eloquence in interviews. Each year different sponsors finance the pageant and provide the winner with a unique scholarship amount.

courtesy of Nicole Abalos

Abalos wins crown and title of Miss Asia Utah in 2009. Courtesy of Nicole Abalos.

Nicole Abalos was crowned Miss Asia Utah in 2009. The University of Utah student and former ROTC cadet says the program is a great way to showcase the diversity and multicultural societies here in Utah. In an e-mail interview Abalos said pageantry brings young women from all over the state to represent their ethnic heritage and unites them in many different ways.

Abalos became involved in pageantry in 2007 when she was given the title of Miss Philippine. Although she is one-half Filipino, one-fourth Japanese and one-fourth German, Abalos was mainly raised with Filipino traditions and also speaks some Tagalog, a major language in the Philippines.

Many doors have been opened for Abalos since her crowning, including opportunities with school, volunteering and even job interviews. Through the preparation of the pageant Abalos says she learned more about herself, was able to gain confidence and the self gratitude from helping others. Winning the pageant gave her not only a window to become a role model in her community, but also was an educational experience.

“The pageant has taught me a great deal about my ethnic roots which include, respect to elders, giving back, and keep traditions through every generation,” Abalos said in her e-mail.

Abalos, now 20, competed for the title of Miss Utah USA on Oct. 22. While she had hoped to receive the crown, for her it wasn’t about winning.

“It’s about finding who you are and why you should be the face or example of communities within the state,” Abalos said.

The Miss USA program is gaining more cultural depth. The current Miss USA is the first Arab-American titleholder. The 2010 Miss Utah USA is Russian and the previous winner was Bulgarian. Abalos says she believes it’s exciting to have contestants with such varied cultural backgrounds competing in pageants.

“This just proves how diverse our country is and the opportunities available to everyone,” Abalos said.

The former Miss Asia Utah says being involved in these competitions helps her learn from many amazing women who live around the state. Although Abalos didn’t win the title of Miss Utah USA, she said she will continue to be a great example and leader.

“I work hard for what I deserve and give back to those less fortunate,” Abalos said. “Hoping to be a role model to younger girls is all I could ask for.”

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Educating the community about Filipino culture through dance

Posted on November 4, 2010 by comm5775

Story by RICH FAHEY

Filipino children in the Salt Lake Valley are getting involved in a new dance group as a way to help maintain tradition. Kulturang Pinoy Ensemble, or Filipino culture ensemble, gives Filipino youngsters the opportunity to learn traditional dances, and educates the community about the culture as well.

“We have a lot of young Filipinos growing up here, and we’d like for them to learn their culture,” said Teena Jensen, vice president of the Kulturang Pinoy Ensemble, in a phone interview. “It’s also a way to keep them out of trouble.”

The ensemble was developed at the end of August 2010 when some Filipino families became concerned that their children were losing their heritage. Jensen was a dancer in a similar Salt Lake City program that discontinued performances in 1998. The group’s main focus was to educate others about Filipino culture. While the new ensemble is following in their footsteps, it is a learning tool for both the audience and performers.

Dancers performing Sayaw sa Bangko, or the bench dance, at the fundraiser. Photo courtesy of Teena Jensen.

The Kulturang Pinoy Ensemble currently consists of 10 children between the ages of 13 and 18. The first performance was held on the evening of Sept. 11, 2010, during a fundraiser to raise money for costumes and props. The girls will wear a balintawak, which is a long dress with butterfly sleeves and a brightly colored overskirt that matches the sleeves. The boys will wear a chino, or brightly colored shirt. When the children outgrow them, plans are in place to pass the costumes down to younger children in hopes of getting more people involved in the ensemble.

Jensen said the program has seen a lot of interest from parents and children alike. When fully developed, the ensemble will have children as young as 5 years old dancing with the group.

“The younger ones come out and watch their brothers and sisters and say, ‘when are we going to start dancing,’” Jensen said.

However, it’s not just about the dancing. The ensemble also encourages the youngsters to learn the Filipino language. During each practice and performance, the children are given a Filipino word of the day. The group includes children who are from the Philippines, as well as those born here. The interaction between them is good for both groups, especially those learning the Pinoy language, Jensen said.

“It’s also learning respect from other Filipino children,” she said. “In the Philippines they respect their parents more than some of the children here do.”

The Philippines are made up of more than 7,000 islands, which creates diversity between the various areas. Jensen said each island has a unique dialect and is like a totally different culture. These different cultures allow for variety in the dances. Each dance has its own meaning and represents a story. Every performance is divided into suites that feature a dance native to a particular area or Filipino culture.

In an e-mail interview, Jensen said one dance suite the ensemble will perform is the Barrio Fiesta Suite. This is comprised of four different dances. The first is the Pista, which displays the lavish preparation for a party. Next is the Gala, also known as the Boholano. This dance comes alive with the clashing of pans, pots, plates, ladles and brooms with firewood, pails and knives to represent a wedding. The third dance is the Kalatong, a popular dance from the province of Batangas that uses bamboo percussion tubes. The finale, and perhaps the most well known of all Filipino dances, is the Tinikling, named after the Tikling bird. For this part the dancers imitate the bird as it avoids traps set by farmers.

The ensemble plans to perform the Barrio Fiesta Suite and others at schools, churches, fundraisers and any time the opportunity presents itself. However, the ultimate goal is to dance at the Living Traditions Festival in May and the Utah Asian Festival in June.

“That’s one of the main reasons for the ensemble, because people were asking – how come there are no Filipino groups performing at these events?” Jensen said.

Eunice Jones, president of the Kulturang Pinoy Ensemble and chairwoman of the Utah Asian Festival, said, “It’s not going to be just a dance group for one organization. It has to be for the whole community.”

Both Jensen and Jones are excited to share the Filipino culture with the community through the Kulturang Pinoy Ensemble.

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Utah Asian Chamber of Commerce looking to expand scholarship program

Posted on November 4, 2010 by comm5775

Story and photos by KAREN HOLT BENNION

Growing up near a small village in the Philippines, she would often go to bed on an empty stomach. She spent her summers selling snacks like a vendor at a baseball game just to earn enough money to buy school supplies. She and her 10 brothers and sisters got by without running water or electricity. The only positive aspect in her life was the looking forward to each new school year. For Eunice Jones, education would be her salvation.

Eunice Jones discusses her life, past and present, with student-journalists at the University of Utah.

In her early teens, her parents moved the family to a small apartment in nearby Manila. Jones said the two-bedroom, one bathroom home seemed like a far cry from their “humble beginnings” back in her village. Life became a little easier for the family.

She eventually graduated from high school, and with the financial help from a college scholarship and her family, graduated in the top 10 of her class from a college in Manila. “That’s what we do,” Jones says. “We all help each other.” She got a job and settled down with her husband. They had two sons. However, after her husband left them, Jones decided it was time to venture outside of her home country. This meant breaking the rules of Philippine culture. She was supposed to live with her parents until she remarried.

She left her sons — one of whom was still breastfeeding — behind with her family and moved to Los Angeles, where she had been offered a job with the Hyatt Corp. “It was quite eye opening,” Jones says about her arrival in in that city. However, after three years of saving enough money she was able to obtain visas for her children and fly them to the U.S.

After marrying her second husband, they moved with him to Salt Lake City where she still worked in the hotel business. Finally, Jones decided she was ready for another challenge and earned her realtor’s license. During her first year as a realtor Jones was chosen as Rookie of the Year by Better Homes and Gardens magazine for her outstanding sales skills. She admits she owes it to selling snacks as a little girl in the summer. “I was in sales since I was a little girl,” she says.

In 2005, Jones, along with former Third District Judge Ray Uno, decided to establish the Utah Asian Chamber of Commerce. That same year, they also founded the Chamber’s scholarship program with the help of founding sponsor Zion’s Bank. Three scholarships were awarded at $1,000 each. Currently, the Chamber’s charitable foundation offers partial scholarships to an average of 15 students a year. Jones would like to see the scholarship program grow with more sponsors helping to offer full scholarships to high school seniors.

U student Amy Tran received a UACC scholarship in 2010.

One of last year’s recipients, Amy Tran, says the UACC Scholarship Program has helped her in more ways than one. A sophomore in business at the University of Utah, Tran says not only does the program give financial help, it also offers the students chances to receive training in leadership skills from local UACC members.

“The UACC is really supportive and motivating,” she says.

An awards gala and fundraiser for the scholarship program is held every spring. All of the students are invited to attend. They meet each other and are introduced to members of the UACC. The members then teach the students how to network and make connections. Tran says, “They all really try to get to know you.”

Another student at the U has been awarded the UACC’s scholarship for three years in a row. The last time she was awarded the scholarship she received the highest score of all the applicants. Michelle “Mika” Lee is currently earning her master’s degree in occupational therapy. She is also a part-time intern for the UACC. Lee works as the event coordinator.

“Education is placed high in my family — my father got a Ph.D. and my mother got her B.S. early,” Lee wrote in an e-mail interview.

UACC President Lavanya Mahate congratulates Mika Lee at the 2010 Scholarship Gala.

Both students agree that more publicity is needed in order for the scholarship program to grow. Tran heard about the scholarship through her uncle, who is a member of the UACC. She never heard anything about it at her high school. Scholarship co-founder, ZeMin Xiao, says their program is still small compared to other minority programs in the area. The main reason for this, she believes, is due to a stereotype that Asian-Americans do not need scholarships. People view Asian-Americans as the “Model Minorities,” she says. Tran agrees; when she told her friends she was going after different scholarships they told her she didn’t need them.

“You’re Asian, you’re smart, you’ll be fine,”  her friends said.

Xiao would like the Salt Lake community to know there is a scholarship specifically targeting Asian-Americans.  She says the program is constantly trying to find more sponsors. Some of the supporting companies include Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Crocker Ventures Ltd. and vSpring Capital.

Now divorced, Eunice Jones dedicates more time with members of the UACC to help mentor Asian-American students and to try to get the Salt Lake community to realize that by helping to fund their scholarship program, it is investing in the future of all Utahns. After all, her family invested in her.

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Nepalis work hard to keep their culture alive in Utah

Posted on November 2, 2010 by comm5775

Story and photo by KENDRA WILMARTH

Imagine you are in a store. Casually running your hands along various items, looking for something that grabs your attention. Wishing you could find apparent character in a product, something different from the same old mass-produced item you saw at your neighbor’s house on Tuesday. For Salt Lake County residents, stores are starting to fill their shelves with something a little more unique.

Artisans from all over the world are working hard right here in Salt Lake City to provide the local consumer with products such as gloves, necklaces, scarves, blankets and handbags.

Many of these artists are refugees who have come from countries around the globe, such as Somalia, Burma and Nepal. They left their homes due to the dangers of war and moved to refugee camps. Now they have found refuge here in Utah.

The Global Artisans program was created by Salt Lake County to assist these refugees in countless ways and to also help ease their transition to a new way of life. The program was founded in 2008 and is a division of the Pathways to Self Sufficiency project. Ze Min Xiao, refugee services liaison for Salt Lake County, said it was set up as a way to address the gap in the refugee community.

“There is a large population of refugees who are not being engaged,” Xiao said. “This program provides them with the opportunity to get together in a safe place, keep their traditions alive and earn supplemental income for their family and also at the same time gives them the opportunity to be encouraged and empowered to achieve more.”

One of the largest groups seeking refuge here in Utah are the Bhutanese from Nepal. After 18 years of being in camps these refugees have found freedom in Salt Lake City. Now, these individuals are provided the opportunity to capitalize on their own skills by taking part in the Global Artisans program.

Xiao said around 80 participants are enrolled in this program and more than half of them are Nepali refugees. They meet a couple times (sometimes more) per week to knit and sew.

When crafts are complete, artisans have the opportunity to sell their products to the Global Artisans program for an estimated $32,000 a year. However, program participants can also independently sell their own products if they wish to do so.

“It’s teaching them that they can take their culture and make some good of it,” said Linda Oda, director of Asian Affairs.

Oda calls Utah the “welcoming state” because of the state’s willingness to allow refugees to settle within its borders. According to the State of Utah Refugee Services Office an estimated 1,000 refugees have resettled in Utah just in 2010 alone.

Several stores around Salt Lake County sell Global Artisan products, including Little America Boutique, Dancing Queen and Jolley’s Pharmacy. Soon BYU and the University of Utah’s bookstores will  carry their goods. Many of the artisans are also selling their products on Overstock.com. Xiao says the program is in the process of finding new businesses to carry their handcrafted items. They hope to add another 10 stores to the list by the end of 2010.

Refugees meet in the Pioneer Craft House in South Salt Lake, where they are given the proper instruments to fashion various crafts. This equipment is financed through a grant given to the program from American Express.

“This generous grant allows us to purchase supplies, equipment, hire a part-time coordinator and also for marketing purposes,” Xiao said.

Heidi Ferguson is the project coordinator of Global Artisans. Ferguson meets regularly with the program participants. She said most of the individuals in the program already possess the talent and ability to knit and sew and that her job is to help train refugees in the basics of business and teach them new ways to improve their craft.

“All of these refugees are very talented and willing to work hard,” Ferguson said. “They feel comfortable here in Utah, and are glad they can add a little more to the community that has given them a safe place to live.”

Filed under: Arts, Entertainment, Culture, Asian American, Immigrants & Refugees, Organizations | Tagged: | Leave a comment »

The bridge between authority and leadership

Posted on October 28, 2010 by comm5775

by SHAANTAI LEARY

Linda Oda, director of  Asian Affairs, is a petite Japanese-American woman who feels strongly about authority. As a sign of respect she has a sense to bow every time she meets someone older than she. (Oda did not want to disclose her age, but said she is “29 and holding.”) Bowing has been instilled within her as part of her culture. Custom also dictates that one’s elders should be respected; the phrase “children should be seen and not heard,” is a sign of this.

In addition to her role in the Utah State Office of Ethnic Affairs, she served as a moderator for the “Day of Remembrance,” which was held on Ogden’s 25th Street, also known as Japantown, Feb. 16-18, 2007.

She was raised on Ogden’s 25th Street. Oda’s first job was at the age of 3. Her family lived above the grocery store they owned and operated; her job in the store was to watch for “dorobo,” or shoplifters. She recalled a man asking her if she thought he was going to steal. As she described this confrontation, she put her hands on her hips just as she did when she was a child, and looked up. In a very stern voice she said, “yes.”

When Oda was about 10, her job in the small store was to trim the lettuce and pull off outer leaves so the greens displayed well. One day, a man walked into the store, pressed a knife to her stomach and said, “I could kill you.” Oda did not flinch. She took the knife she had been using on the heads of lettuce, placed it against the man’s stomach, and said, “I could kill you, too.”

She was raised to fight for her life; every day was a battle for her and her family. In fact, her father was murdered on 25th Street for less than $100.

Despite her difficult childhood, Oda went on to become a principal at Taylor Elementary School in Ogden. There, she worked to break the cycle of bullying by attempting to instill respect within her students.

Chase Dunn, 21, is majoring in Middle Eastern studies at the University of Utah. He is well-versed in his studies of culture and religions ranging from Islam to Catholicism. “Bowing is a sign of cultural respect,” he said in a text message. “Bow back. When it comes to authority I tend to think everyone should be met with skepticism. Sure they are older, but they are humans and humans make mistakes and have their own interests [in mind].”

Dunn, who is white, is currently working in Washington, D.C., as an intern for Frances D. Cook, the former ambassador to the Sultanate of Oman. Dunn also has completed study-abroad classes in Cairo and Beirut over the past few years.

”Power and authority should be challenged and unless they can justify themselves, then they should be dismantled,” Dunn wrote. “Remember authority figures and institutions are humans and human built and therefore can be changed.”

For Oda, authority is a compicated issue. She said that one’s “authority, stature and expertise can be diminished” simply because one is “an ethnic minority.” So, people feel as if they have to prove themselves. Oda said she is assertive, not aggressive. “I win and you win, both of us win. To me, that’s an Asian way.”

Filed under: Asian American, Education, Politics, Religion | Tagged: , | Leave a comment »

Bullying, stereotyping must give way to acceptance, say Asian-American women of Utah

Posted on October 26, 2010 by comm5775

Story and photos by KAREN HOLT BENNION

No one realized that when she entered the room, this petite 5-foot-2-inch tall frame would pack such a powerful punch.

Linda Oda grew up in Ogden’s “Red Light District.” It was known for being the toughest and most violent section of town. At an early age, she learned how to protect herself from bullies and thieves. When she was 12 years old, she stood up to a potential thief (called a “dorobo” in the Japanese culture). He pressed a knife against her stomach and told her he could kill her. She then flashed a knife she had been using to trim heads of lettuce and said, ” I could kill you too.” She was unhurt. Even more tragic was the death of her father. One day, he came upon a “dorobo” robbing the store. The thief took $100.

Then he bludgeoned her father to death.

These experiences were some of the many that toughened Oda on a daily basis and drove her into survival mode. In elementary school, Oda soon found out that fighting back was the only way she could endure. “A lot of times I had to fight for my life,” Oda said. Name calling and being driven apart from the “white kids” was her way of life. It was yet another element that motivated her to eventually stand up and walk away from being labeled as an “other” by students with racist attitudes.

Oda said that during the 1940s and 1950s, Japanese-Americans who were not sent to internment camps were relegated to the lower-income neighborhoods. They were ignored and made to feel invisible. For her, it was all a matter of having to prove herself and to break out of the tightly-woven stereotypical mold of being a soft-spoken, passive Asian-American woman.

She admits that her hard childhood was the key motivator for her to succeed as an adult. Right after high school she headed to college and eventually earned her doctorate at Weber State University. She has been an elementary school  teacher, a middle school principal and a dominant figure in helping new refugees adjust to life in Utah and find well paying jobs.

She is now the director of Asian Affairs for the Governor’s Office of Ethnic Affairs. Although she has made a name for herself, she admits that even today she still feels that she must constantly prove herself in the “white man’s world,” as she calls it. Her optimism overflows as she speaks of communities in Utah helping the growing number of minorities and immigrants feel included, especially women. She is driven to bring positive changes to her community. For example, Oda is currently working on bringing young Asian men and women together for an Asian Youth Leadership Summit. The conference will teach teens to overcome feelings of doubt and offer them tools to be successful in education and in leadership roles after high school graduation.

Today, the number of Asian-Americans in Utah is steadily increasing. According to both the U.S. Census Bureau and The Utah Minority Bar Association, the Asian-American population is second only to the Hispanic population. Asian-Americans make up 4.1 percent of the state’s citizens.

Another advocate for the Asian-American community works at the University of Utah. Tricia Sugiyma works at the Student Center for Ethnic Affairs and is the adviser for the school’s Asian-American Student Association. At the AASA’s first meeting of the fall semester, Sugiyama’s face lit up as more and more curious students entered the room. Soon, more than 40 students filled the room. Their families had come from places such as Southern China, Japan, the Philippines, Vietnam and Korea.

Chaw Wguyen, left, and Ming Lam attend AASA's first meeting of fall term.

After hearing the story about Oda, a small group of freshman women said they hadn’t experienced the same type of bullying that she did. They said their families and friends are supportive of them and have encouraged them to get a good education. Chaw Wguyen and Ming Lam, both 18, said the U is already pretty diverse and so far they haven’t noticed any kind of outward bullying. However, others in the group said they have noticed a more subtle type of disdain arising from various comments they hear. One student said because she is Asian, people automatically expect her to be extremely smart. “I’m really not; I have to study hard like everybody else.”

“I know,” said another student. “I get so sick of complete strangers coming up to me and telling me how silky and smooth my skin looks, like I’m some sort of a doll or something.”

Sugiyama said the definition of bullying has changed since the days of WWII. “Taunting of Asian-Americans still exists,” she said, “just in different ways.” “Cyber bullying” is a real danger, especially among young girls. Other methods of intimidation aren’t as extreme; however, the impact can be felt just the same.

“Asians-Americans are viewed by many, especially in the media as perpetual foreigners,” Sugiyama said. She believes that many movies and televisions programs portray Asian women as exotic looking seductresses, or passive subservient women who make good wives. Men don’t fare much better. They are depicted as warriors and Kung-Fu fighters.

Talking with peers is a good way to feel secure about oneself, say Linda Oda and Tricia Sugiyama.

Sugiyama’s parents were born in Japan, but she grew up in Sandy. She was raised and assimilated into the prevailing culture of that area. It was when she was in college that she realized much of her family’s culture had been forgotten. She now maintains a balance of being “Americanized” as she puts it, and still celebrates her family’s heritage while helping other young women find their own place in today’s society.

Both Oda and Sugiyama feel all young women need a support system. Becoming involved with clubs and organizations is a good way to secure and build confidence. Sharing feelings of being left out with a trusted peer or mentor can also help students realize they aren’t alone, they aren’t invisible, they don’t have to be an  “other.”

Filed under: Asian American, Immigrants & Refugees, Organizations, Profiles | Tagged: , , | Leave a comment »

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