people / aapi heritage month
Honoring AAPI Heritage
Inspiring Stories We celebrate and honor the culture of our Asian American and Pacific Islander associates during AAPI Heritage Month by offering up our platforms for them to share their unique stories.
Chin Hong Chua RESIDENT DISTRICT MANAGER, TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY
“While growing up as third-generation Chinese Malaysian in Southeast Asia, my family instilled in me the importance of education. I had to learn Chinese, English and Malay. A disadvantage back then was the lack of tertiary education opportunities. The country had less than nine universities, making it hard to be accepted to study one’s area of interest. Thus, studying abroad was almost a certainty for those that qualified and could afford it. “While I pursued my bachelor’s in International Business and Economics at the University of Arkansas, I worked as a dishwasher. The income supplemented the allowance provided by my parents and the free meal helped a lot. What started as a job to get a free meal has now become a lifelong career. I have been blessed to have worked in this organization in multiple capacities and continue to grow my career. I am honored to have worked with the best in the industry and have earned multiple recognitions, including National Account of the Year, Inclusion Excellence Award and Center for Excellence.
“In my free time I play badminton and enjoy stamp collecting. Since I live in Texas, experimenting smoking a mean Texas BBQ Brisket is almost a constant. Now during the pandemic, I have been learning the art of bonsai to keep my mind at peace. “One of my favorite foods is Chinese Sticky Rice Dumpling (Zongzi). It’s marinated pork belly, chestnuts, shitake mushroom, sticky rice and more wrapped in bamboo leaves and boiled. It’s usually prepared during the Dragon Boat Festival. The tradition started when the Chinese people memorialized a famous poet who drowned more than 2,300 years ago. The villagers dreamt that the food they threw into the river to commemorate his sacrifice was eaten by the fish, and as a result the ingredients were then wrapped in bamboo leaves and delivered by boats to be dropped in the center of the river.”
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CHARTWELLSMONTHLY.COM | MAY 2021
Chua Chin Hong
“In my free time I play badmint
on and enjoy stamp colle cting. Since I live in Texas, experimen ting smoking a mean Texas BBQ Briske t is almost a constant. Now during the pandemic, I have been learning the art of bonsai to keep my mind at peace”
