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.” Chin Hong Chua

“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”

Ginny Spataro

MARKETING MANAGER, TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY AT GALVESTON “I grew up in Long Beach Island, New Jersey. It’s considered a coastal vacation town, but I was lucky enough to live there as a local and enjoy the beach or delicious seafood all year long. “Overall, I definitely didn’t have a traditional upbringing as an only child being raised by an Italian/Slovak American father and Filipino mother. Some days we had Filipino food, other days we had Italian. Growing up in a household with two unique cultures, I felt that I needed to identify who I was in order to understand where I fit in best. Now that I’m older, I’ve learned to embrace that my cultures make me unique, and positively influences who I am. “My mom, Dahlia, managed two businesses before the age of 22 in the Philippines and left all of that behind to start over in the United States as an hourly retail worker. She worked her way back up again to give me the opportunities I have now, which is not uncommon for many Filipinos moving to the states. Her story has inspired me to persevere through all of life’s challenges. “Most of my jobs as a teen involved working in restaurants. Once I started working with Chartwells as an intern about seven years ago, I had the food knowledge and educational degree to transition to full-time marketing manager. So far, I’ve worked at three campuses as a Unit marketing manager with Chartwells: Stockton University, King’s College and Texas A&M University at Galveston! I love to cook, travel, watch movies or spend time outdoors. I tend to draw inspiration from my surroundings and base my interests on that. “I want people to know that Filipinos are some of the most hardworking, kind and welcoming people. I’d like to challenge others to think of what elements of our upbringing make us similar, and how diversity makes us a better community.”

“I’d like to challenge others to think of what elements of our upbringing makes us similar, and how diversity makes us a better community.”

Di vers i ty makes us a better communit y

Ginny Spataro Read more stories on our website at chartwellshighered.com