John Rudoff

There is Surviving and There is Living

Saron Khut was only ten years old when he and his family fled the Khmer Rouge-led genocide in Cambodia. His mother’s strength and a key decision one scary 

Sankar Raman

That Little Girl Got a Shock

Originally from Taiwan, Janet Liu’s family spent years trying to build a home together in the United States despite restrictive immigration policies at that time. 

Sankar Raman

I was a child of revolution

Sara Houranpay describes herself as a child of the revolution. She grew up during the Iranian Revolution. Her family fled to the United States,  

Sankar Raman

Opera Was Never on the Radar

Growing up in the bohemian beach town of Encinitas, near San Diego, California, Priti Gandhi showed early interest in music and performance.  

A Resilient Daughter of the Arab Spring

Rama Youssef was 12 years old when she left Syria, escaping violence caused by the beginning of the Syrian Civil War. But life didn’t get easier for Rama when 

Sankar Raman

Jewish Children Please Stand Up

Leslie and Eva Aigner’s childhood were marked by horror. Born in different parts of Czechoslovakia as Nazi soldiers took hold, the two took very different paths to  

Ricki Mudd

A Daughter of Two Countries

Ricki was born in 1993 in Quzhou, China, but was adopted when she was four years old by a White American family living in Seatac, Washington. 

Sankar Raman

A Modern Day Odyssey

Farzad Larki was born in Iran prior to the Revolution. He grew up in a comfortable middle class family, but when the Shah was overthrown, everything changed.  

Sankar Raman

The Hard Way is What Saves You

In middle school, Yamini Rajan dealt with bullying, isolation, and a sick parent. Her mental health suffered, and destructive habits and self-harm nearly ended her life.  

Sankar Raman

Leave Home and Don’t Come Back

Reza Uddin was born in the epicenter of the Burmese government’s ethnic cleansing campaign against Rohingya Muslims. For the first years of his life,  

Sankar Raman

Where Are You From?

It took Dr. Elizabeth Flores through high school, college, and medical school to really understand herself. Born in America, raised in Mexico,  

Sankar Raman

I Can Survive Anything

Tsering Dolma was forced to interrupt her life twice, first, when she had to flee Tibet for Nepal when the Chinese took control and then again when her 

Kim Oanh Nguyen

I Never Thought That Could Be Me

Joe Kye fell in love with music in elementary school. But becoming a career musician was never on the table. After arriving in the U.S.