SUCCESS STORY
Education unlocks American dream for Vietnamese refugee, now a Rio Rancho dentist
AVietnamese child goes through the grueling process of immigration with her four siblings and mother in order to uphold the wish of her deceased father, for her to get a higher education.
Trang T Le, owner of Wisteria Dental in Rio Rancho, said before her father died in Vietnam he always stressed to his children the importance of a good education.
“We went to school, but in a Communist country without proper funding you cannot move up,” Le said.
Le and her family lived in Saigon close to the famous Ho Chi Minh Trail, she said, where the politics of money played a crucial role in attaining a higher education.
“My story is an immigrant story — the American dream that came true in a way,” Le said.
She was 9 when her father passed away after cataract surgery, leaving her mother to raise Le and her four siblings, she said.
During the Vietnam conflict, Le’s mother had fallen in love with an American soldier and, as a result, her older half-sister had American ties.
“She had dual citizenships and because of her, we were allowed to come here to the U.S.,” Le said.
In the early 1990s, Le’s mom signed the paperwork for her and her five children to enter the U.S., she said.
“They brought us to the Philippines first, to a refugee camp where we were supposed to be stationed for six months,” Le said. “We learned basic communication skills before we arrived in the U.S., but we ended up staying there for like a year.”
Le said she ended up with severe malaria and almost died while living in the camp. Soon after her illness, a Catholic charity sponsored Le’s family to live in Maine.
“I remember I had no idea what Maine looked like,” Le said. “But when we came to Maine, we just started our whole lives over again on welfare and food stamps.”
Le and her older sister did well in high school, both graduating as valedictorians of their senior classes.
“We came from nothing with raggedy clothes and barely any food to eat, and now we were making it, getting scholarships for college and moving forward,” she said.
Le went to college and was accepted into dental school with a full scholarship because of her interest in health care and work ethic, she said.
“I always thought I would be a cardiovascular surgeon,” Le said. “I always liked to dissect and do surgery, but I looked at the hours these students were doing — there was no time for anything else.”
Being constantly on call, doing hours of research and in-field work made Le rethink pursuing this type of career, she said.
“Becoming a dentist allowed me to have a more balanced life, plus I still get to do what I am passionate about,” Le said. “I love the artistry of dentistry: You restore something that is lost and bring it back to its original state.”
After Le finished dental school, she had to adhere to the guidelines of her scholarship with the National Health Service Corps, which placed her in an underserved area, she said.
“Hatch, T or C, Deming — those places have a large need for dental care still now,” Le said. “I was placed in these areas to work for four years.”
After her nonprofit contract was up, Le and her husband moved to Albuquerque because of their love for New Mexico’s climate, she said.
“Coming to Rio Rancho happened by accident,” Le said. “I was looking into several options and there is so much growth out here, I decided to put my business here.”
Le accomplished the lifelong dream of opening her own dental office eight months ago, she said.
“I want to get to know my patients and slow their care down,” Le said.
She said she wanted to create a dentist’s office that treated patients more like family, by getting to know more about their interests and lives, not just the issues with their teeth.
As of now, Wisteria consists of two dental assistants, with Le doing all of the dentistry herself.
“My future plan is to grow adding another dentist and hygienist to the office as we grow,” Le said. “So far the people in the community have been very friendly and very supportive of my business and I am grateful to them for that.”
James Meyers, client of Wisteria Dental, said he drives out of his way to see Le because of her unique service.
“We live over on the east side of Albuquerque,” Meyers said. “But we know a good dentist when we find one, so distance is no worry when it comes to Dr. Le.”
Meyers said after his old dentist retired, he and his wife tried the new dentist who replaced him, but were dissatisfied. After hearing a referral for Le from a trusted friend, Meyers and his wife went to Le for initial cleanings.
“Dr. Le found one of my old crowns needed work, so she performed a root canal and replaced the old crown with a new one perfectly,” Meyers said. “She is always very kind and has a great bedside manner.”
According to Le, corporate dentistry is taking over the market for healthcare, with smaller practices disappearing.
“For me the most important thing is to be a dental educator to my clients,” Le said. “It’s not about the money; I want to treat a client as a person, not a dollar sign.”
As for Le’s past, she has made peace with it, visiting Vietnam several times since she has become an American citizen, she said.
“It’s become more westernized and that is a double-edged sword,” Le said. “Westernization has created more jobs in Vietnam, but it’s still a Communist country without many freedoms, like freedom of the press, and if you have money, you get served first.”
Le said she sends money to her aunts and uncles still in Vietnam to help them out and share a part of the American dream she has been so fortunate to live.