Lea Tran is an ethnic Chinese, former “Boat person” refugee from Vietnam. A Villanova University graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry, a female scientist, turned successful entrepreneur and business owner in the Greater Philadelphia Region, where she called home for thirty-five years. Lea had brought her story to the TEDx stage and then revealed her harrowing boat journey in her first book, “I Did Not Miss the Boat- Memoir of a Vietnam Hoa Refugee.”
FWM: You have morphed from carrying the stigma of the “refugee” label to a chemist and successful entrepreneur. Tell us your backstory. I grew up part of a rigid family and the strict culture of eastern society.
When the communists from the north took over Saigon, the ethnic Chinese minority in Vietnam endured extreme oppression from the government. Everyone was looking for a way out of that miserable situation. People would flee to the open sea without any solid plan. Just like jumping off a cliff and hoping you would land somewhere soft. Hence, a massive wave of “Boat People” refugees was created. My family was among that population. After surviving the deep sea, four pirate raids in the Gulf of Thailand and eight months of the worst human possible living conditions in Indonesia, we were blessed to have a chance to resettle
in the United States. With one crisis over, many new ones popped up as we found our way into the unknown, foreign land without any tools or ability to communicate. As the oldest, I was my parents’ asset in translating and document fillings even with my limited understanding of English. There was a lot of internal shame attached to my survival situation. I felt a huge stigma attached when using food stamps at supermarkets. My college aids came from state grants, federal grants, minority grants, work-study, and extra jobs outside of the classroom. I resented poverty and determined that one day, what I went through would be a great lesson I appreciate from a successful position. I have to say the first ten years were the toughest
morphing period of my life. It took tenacity and perseverance to graduate from college and
landed a medicinal chemist position in corporate America. A dream job that I thought I would
hang on to until my retirement day. As much as I loved the research life, I knew I wanted to explore life outside of the laboratory. So, after seventeen years as a chemist, I took a leap of faith and traded in my lab coat for a volunteer layoff. I ventured out to establish a successful business of making luxury custom window treatments for homeowners in the Greater Philadelphia Area. I rarely told my clients the horrible escaped journey of my story. I kept the “refugee” label tucked inside my shirt but not a moment I have forgotten where I came from. It propelled me to where I am in life today.
FWM: Tell us about your book, I Did Not Miss the Boat- Memoir of a Vietnam Hoa Refugee.
I am aware that there are a slew of Vietnamese Boat people memoirs out there. However, there
are not too many “Hoa” (ethnic Chinese from Vietnam) voiced representations. There is a deeper layer that needs to be addressed.
There was a research paper from Assoc. Prof. Ramses Amer in 2009
( https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263737587_The_Boatpeople_Crisis_of_1978-
1979_Examined_Through_the_Ethnic_Chinese_Dimension ) indicated that about 60-70% of boat
people who arrived in neighboring countries in 1978-1979 were ethnic Chinese from Vietnam.
We (as Chinese immigrants) had our own culture and community in Vietnam that was not always aligned with the Vietnamese. It was extremely difficult to be lumped into one category and for many of us to have a cultural connection to either Chinese or Vietnamese. We had to face an extra identity crisis of shallow roots on many fronts. We were the invisible voice that inherited many generational traumas passing from our grandparents to our parents, from China to Vietnam that migrated with us across the ocean to all continents. And yet, many of
us still live in silence. We are the underrepresented. The intent of the book is not only to recount a perilous yet amazing adventure, but to inspire people to look deeper into their roots, understand their early influences, and discover connections between past adversity and profound opportunity.
History, as it is taught through the American education system, is often one-dimensional. I can
say that my family lived through history to tell the tale of triumph over tragedy is possible.
FWM: Who is this book for?
The book is intended for the young girl who wanted so much in life but had to fight every step of the way to get it. Her internal conflicts are prescribed even before she is born. From the rigid family upbringing, oppressive eastern tradition to a quick turn of newfound personal freedom in western teaching, she lost her identity in the shuffles of these two opposite worlds.
Through tenacity and determination, she put all the broken pieces of her family history together to see a beautiful mosaic. And now she is taking that message of hope to help others to heal their generational traumas. Reconnecting with their roots by figuring out what their ancestors had sacrificed in order to give their children a future they could not have. As she uncover her trauma, she realizes this is also a representation of million refugee parents who demonstrated the unsurmountable resilience overcoming adversity to create opportunities for their next generations. And she wants to preserve that piece of history to honor all the refugees/immigrants’ parents.
As for the general readers, this book is for people who are curious about “Boat People” who
flooded the sea in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s to escape out of Vietnam Communists. How they
overcame unimaginable obstacles to rebuild a life from scratch in a foreign country without
anything but only hope and determination. This book is for people who want to learn about diversity and inclusion. It will educate, entertain and empower the readers to see thriving beyond surviving in every situation.
To answer this question objectively, I would like to include some review excerpts from my
readers on Amazon:
“This should be a mandatory read in school so students can see what people have gone through just for the chance for a better life. After reading this book, I feel like I have only scratched the surface of life and there is nothing I couldn’t do.”
“I highly recommend the book for anyone who wants to get an insight into the challenges of
uprooting your life and having to flee for your life from a war-torn country.”
FWM: You are a transformation coach. How are you helping clients today?
My mission is to help women and men who desire to live a joyful life of freedom with no regrets. I work as a thought partner to guide them through a process of self-discovery to find their own brilliance. When they are able to recognize their strength, their life skill assets, they can easily take calculated risks to get out of their comfort zone to achieve greater things. Acknowledging self- worth is only the first step to build a path of living a free life.
When they have the courage to reclaim and explore their potentials, they are ultimately creating, attracting opportunities to further fulfill their career, personally and professionally.
FWM: What do you bring to clients that no one person can?
I offer a different perspective based on my multicultural background and from a lens of gratitude through my personal life experience. I have been through and overcome many unpredictable, challenging life circumstances in Vietnam, in the refugee camps, and in America. I’ve learned to look for the positive side of the tragedy and turned it into the magic that can help propel my clients forward. I believe it’s never too late or too difficult for anyone to develop a growth mindset and move forward. They have the power to make the change, even in the most uncertain times.
My artistic background helps them think outside the box. To evaluate their best assets and not be afraid to use them to create something new and different. To be innovative, so they can stand out in everything they do. My scientific background guides them to thoroughly research their subject matter, to observe the situation with facts and data, so they can draw intelligent conclusions on the decision of the choices they want to make. Last but not least, my business background helps cultivate a profitable mindset. How they can build a powerful network and communicate effectively with their community. They will be aware of the importance of investing, (not spending) their precious time, energy, relationship, and finance to benefit their life in the long run. Understanding their “life purpose” will help to create a meaningful legacy that they can pass on to their children. I bring a complete, holistic approach to inspire and help transform my clients to live the best version of their life. A life of physical, psychological, and spiritual freedom that they deserve.
FWM: How have you evolved as an entrepreneur? Who inspires you?
I believe that my grandma and my mom were inspirational sources for me. I watched them
conduct business ever since I was a little girl in Vietnam. For almost two decades, I tried to conform myself in a corporate setting. It was fine for the first decade while I was busy raising a family. But then I noticed I was having an unsettled feeling of wanting to break loose, to venture out to an exciting world that I could create for myself. I wish I had the courage to step out of that comfort zone earlier. It took many years to gather the strength to materialize the dream of having my own business. I am glad I did it. In 2005, I volunteered to be laid off and to start a business that I had no experience nor background on how to do it. A shaky journey of a solo entrepreneurship had begun. But it was there, the first time in my life, I thrived in the newfound freedom. I stopped settling and started practicing to take control of my own destiny. Slowly, I got out of the safety and comfort zone, one by one, I learned to speak, to ask, and to make the decision to choose what actually aligns with my core principle, desire, and purpose. Life is a learning process. It is cyclical, and through its motions, an incredible journey of discovery is made. The sky opened up and I know there are limitless possibilities in life. No one should settle unless you are absolutely happy with your choice. This determination got me through the tough time when the housing market crashed in 2008. I did not go bankrupt but came back even stronger because of the opportunity I created for myself. I asked for business, I collaborated and partnered up in networking to up-level the business in Pennsylvania for ten years, then had the guts to walk away after ten successful years of business. My husband and I had a new revelation about life when our son left for college. Life is too precious to just waste in busy making money when we can slow down to take stock of what purpose we bring to our lives.
In 2015, my husband and I uprooted a thirty-five-year residency in Pennsylvania and move to
Florida to pause, to reflect, and to find our life purpose. We knew we were walking away from a
high-paying job and a prosperous business, but we were unwilling to settle when that life no
longer served our purpose. Now, I am taking my voice and my coaching skill to help transform lives. I am proud to say my book has reached many people across the globe to inspire them to break the silence, to speak their truth, and to enjoy their guilt-free living. So, yes. I have evolved my entrepreneur from a finance-driven based to a heart-centered based. I am passionate about bringing my message of hope, courage, and resilience to empower my
readers, and my audience to live their authentic free life of purpose.
