Salute Asian American Heroes
Houston’s Asian American community has many outstanding individuals with an exceptional work ethic, a willingness to quickly adapt in an unprecedented situation and a compassion for the people they serve. With May as Asian American Heritage Month, Houston
The following seven individuals are a sample of the 1000’s of Asian Americans whose tireless efforts during the crisis saved lives and kept Houston strong.
Y. Ping Sun J.D., Rice University Representative, Of Counsel at Yetter Coleman
Affectionately known as the First Lady of Rice University, Y. Ping Sun J.D., wife of Rice University President, David W Leebron and of counsel at Yetter Coleman was recruited to bring her leadership roles in philanthropy and her expertise as a lawyer to serve on The Greater Houston COVID-19 Recovery Fund set up by United Way Greater Houston and Greater Houston Community Foundation. Through her input on the recovery fund many people in Houston were provided needed help in a timely manner. “I was very honored to be part of the team. We worked together for the best solutions as to where the funds should go,” commented Y. Ping Sun.
Ping is also active through her board work with Texas Children’s Hospital and Teach For America, helping children and students deal with Covid-19 related issues. Ping has personally donated N-95 masks to the hospitals in Texas Medical Center and connected them to suppliers of PPE.
“But I have done only a little,” Ping shares. I am very proud to be part of the Asian American community saluting unsung heroes. The frontline heroes are really taking care of all of us to make our community safe, the doctors and nurses and the first responders and many others.”
Due to the pandemic, her own personal life was brimming with extra work providing meals for a family of six, caring for her mother who lives with her, providing love and support to two college age children and a friend who were on lockdown, and her husband’s intense schedule with a shuttered University to run from home. If she felt she couldn’t go on, she didn’t let it stop her,
“When I feel overwhelmed,
I try not to show it. I exercise every day even if it’s at different times and I take time to breath,” Ping shared.
Ping loves the spirit of giving and generosity in Houston and felt very welcomed when she first arrived in Houston 16 years ago. She came to the United States from China as a college student. A smile as huge as Texas lit up on her face when she was asked, what she loves most about Texas. Her response, “The people of course and everything is huge in Texas.” She loves America for the freedom and the help Americans give to those who are in need.
Henry Gaw, Assistant Chief of Police, Houston Police Department
“The officers of the Houston Police Department and the citizens of the community are the true heroes,” said Henry Gaw, assistant chief of police with the Houston Police Department. Gaw oversees a department which includes police officers and administrative staff. He has been with HPD for 26 years.
Implementing social distancing practices with a profession that requires close proximity to the people they serve was a challenge. In his position, he helped facilitate the use of PPE items such as, facial masks, goggles and gloves to protect the public and the police officers.
The crisis brought over 600 reports of officers who had possible contact with the virus. “I usually heard about it within an hour and the leadership cadre made quick decisions on how to proceed. As of right now, only 41 officers have tested positive for COVID-19. We are really blessed, we have not lost a single officer to the virus,” shared Gaw.
Throughout the evolving crisis with heavier demands on his time, Gaw found his encouragement, strength, and hope from his family, the citizens of the community and particularly from his officers. “My family encouraged me to keep going and just being with my officers gave me courage and strength,” said Gaw.
Henry Gaw born in Houston, is proud to be part of a community that offers generous support to everyone. Henry loves the caring hearts of the people in Texas and he values the American spirit of being and doing whatever it is you dream.
Dr. Lin Ding, Emergency Room Physician, Signature Care ER
Working in ER medicine for 11 years Dr. Lin Ding was on the frontlines on day one of the COVID-19 crisis. She recalls panic throughout the emergency room in Mid-March. “Our ER numbers surged. We had many patients coming in with respiratory problems. We were scared, it was a new virus and not much was known about it. We were afraid for our patients and ourselves in the beginning. But it is our duty to care for our patients so we just kept treating them even though we were afraid,” Dr. Ding shared.
Initially there were no standard protocol for dealing with suspected COVID-19 patients. So, hospital administrators called daily meetings with the medical teams to develop and implement procedures for treatment of suspected COVID-19 patients. “Our own fears as healthcare workers started to diminish once we knew more about the virus and were following PPE procedures,” said Dr. Ding.
There were not enough N95 masks, this added to the fear and confusion. The community heard the pleas from medical workers and stepped in with masks. “It made me very proud and courageous when the community started donating masks,” said Dr. Ding
Dr. Ding loves the spacious feeling of living in Houston. She feels free to express herself and be heard as a Texan. She counts herself lucky to be part of the American tradition of setting individual goals and working hard to make them happen.
She came to the US from China as a college student.
Donna Chang, CEO of Hope Biosciences
Hope Biosciences, CEO, Donna Chang gained
FDA approval for stem cell clinical trials as treatment and prevention options for COVID-19. Putting through the request required a relentless spirit of hope and determination, “It’s a new disease and there is no previous evidence to indicate stem cells would help,” said Donna. As a bio-scientist in stem cell research she could have closed the office and worked remotely without taking on COVID-19. But she felt if there was a possibility of helping people with stem cells and regenerative medicine, she had to try.
After the approval, there were other hurdles to manage. For instance, PPE was not available and her team could not go forward with clinical trials without PPE, she found the
PPE. Next Donna and her team reached out to their ongoing clients who were willing to come in and be part of the research. Because what she was doing had not been done before, she questioned herself daily, “Was it safe to have my team come to work during the crisis, was it safe to have clients come in, was it safe for my family?” Donna explained, “It was an emotional roller coaster. It felt a lot like right after I gave birth to my twin boys.” It was her faith and her team’s faith that kept the research on target.
Born in Korea, Donna came to the United States as a child with her family. She loves the people of Houston and the “Can Do” attitude of Texas. She is thankful to be a part of our national spirit of freedom and living the “American dream”.
Chung Ying, School Principal, Madarin Immersion Magnet School, HISD
When COVID-19 arrived in Houston and schools were shuttered, principal of HISD’s Mandarin Immersion Magnet School, Chung Ying, had to quickly transform his school from in person learning to on-line learning platforms. “My job was to insure we to deliver instruction for our students,” said Mr. Ying. The transformation required 12-13 hour work days for him and his staff.
Mr. Ying’s greatest challenge was managing the difficult emotions of the crisis. “Many e-mails came in with families in distress, economically, emotionally, and parents not understanding the remote learning process. “We read countless e-mails and listened to their hardships,” said Mr. Ying. He remained steadfast and focused. The emotional needs of families were routed to the school social worker who directed families to resources in the community for unemployment support and counseling services.
His joy during this crisis has been checking in on his students in their classrooms. “I have two computers and while I am attending a meeting on one, I monitor my students and staff on the other. I am able to mute my meeting and then pop in and see their smiling faces. It helps keep my spirits up and it helps them to see me working as their principal,” said Chung.
Chung has been a Houston resident since 1995. He loves the cultural richness of Houston. He compares his home town of Taipei, Taiwan to the friendly, welcoming people of Texas. His most treasured part of being in the USA is being able to work hard and achieve. “I had never thought I could become a school principal, yet here I am!” he exclaimed.
Dr Leann Liu, Deputy Manager, Harris County Public Health
Dr Leann Liu, Deputy Manager of Surveillance and Epidemiology with the Harris County Public health department led her team of frontline, contact tracers for COVID-19 from it’s onset in Harris county. Her office received the first reported cases of individuals who tested positive for COVID-19. Under her direction, they went to work validating the cases, tracing who they were, how they contracted the virus, who had they been in contact with, and informing them of isolation procedures.
From that first case with 10 members on her team, she had very little time to think about herself. “We have been growing and developing and now there are about 50 people on the team. I don’t stop to worry about me, I just keep going,” said Dr Liu.
The staff report daily at 8:00 am and some nights did not leave till after midnight. One such night, Leann found herself lost in Houston due to a road closure. Her GPS had directed her through unfamiliar territory. She remembers thinking, “I’ll just find a hotel and sleep.” With the help of her husband via text messages, she found her way home by 3:00 am. When she feels discouraged, she reminds herself she is doing what needs to be done for others. She also finds strength through prayer and knowing she was fully prepared, trained, and ready to fill the responsibilities of her job during this crisis.
Leann loves being able to find almost any kind of food in Houston. She loves Texas; a giggle erupts her didactic speech as she reminisces about watching Western movies as a child in China. The countless opportunities for Americans are what makes her proud to be an American.
Charles Chang, MSN,RN, AGACNP-BC St Baylor Luke’s Medical Hospital
Turning adult bodies from resting on their back to a facedown position doesn’t seem like a big deal, till you talk with Charles Chang, a critical care nurse working in the ICU at Baylor St Luke’s Medical Center during the crisis. Most patients with pneumonia can lie on their backs even if they are intubated. COVID-19 patients need to be face down to provide higher oxygenation levels. Once the ventilator is installed it could take 30-60 minutes to turn a patient.
“Sometimes it would take five staff members to turn a patient,” said Chang. The patient is connected to many medical items including IV’s, the ventilator, and other monitoring devices which means a carefully calculated team effort is needed to keep the patient and staff safe.
Chang worked in a COVID-19 ICU for one solid month during the peak of the crisis. After work, he went straight home and decontaminated.
“It was hard to go home by myself, we were all scared. My coworkers and I gave each other support and my friends called me after work. Their friendship helped during the hardest days,” shared Charles. Some days the hospital Chaplain would come to the floor and offer prayer for each nurse which was another source of strength for Charles during his intense month-long service as a COVID-19 ICU nurse.
When learns one of his patients has recovered from COVID-19, he was left speechless. “It’s a feeling that words just can’t describe. I’m happy and glad to learn when one of my patients recovers,” said Charles.
Charles loves the diversity of people found in Houston. He loves the carefree lifestyle of Texans. He is from Taiwan and what he loves about the USA is the feeling of pride in being an American with so many fellow Americans who come from around the world.