The very first time I met Sue, I was so amazed at her humbleness and I felt so attracted to her honest laugh. Very rarely do I find someone who has an honest laugh so I was immediately drawn to her and our conversation just picked up. Once you get to sit down and talk to Sue, you will fall in love with her ability to shine. She has this beautiful energy that reminds you how simplicity is key and that love is the root of everything.
“My platform was bullying, but I decided to do something more. I am making depression and mental awareness my main platform now. I’ve gone through so much depression and I’ve survived. I want to show the world the other side of depression,” Sue said.
Her bubbling laughter makes me forget about everything going on around me. I asked her to describe the moment crowning came for her and she does so without a moment’s pause. “It was so shocking to me. I won the I Am the Impact award, so I was already really happy. We were sitting in the back waiting and I remember saying to the person sitting next to me, ‘This is it. This is really happening.’ Then I heard my name and went into shock” It was a mind blowing experience for Sue as she did not expect this.
“My parents told me that if I wanted to try pageantry, then I should do it once and satisfy my curiosity for it. Then let it be. But after the first and the second, I decided, I was more than this. I wanted more.”
Sue, who was born with Turner’s Syndrome, is among the females born who is missing the X chromosome. But it has not stopped her from leading the path to becoming something more and someone to look up to. It has allowed her to help change the world one person at a time by looking at how disability does not prevent you from achieving your all. We live in such a fast paced world, where we try so hard to get ahead and win at everything we do. Sue’s honesty and story reminds us to take a breath and to simply live. Her parents were nervous when she set out to do this but they have let that nervousness go after seeing how much impact she’s had on the community and have given her full support.
“Having this disability is not easy. Our community looks down upon a lot of disability, but being on this path has changed my life so much. I’ve opened my eyes and I’ve opened other people’s eyes. I used to be passionate about bullying and that had been my platform. But today, I am seeking something more and that’s depression and mental awareness because I’ve lived through it. I’ve faced it and I’ve survived.”
Our Hmong community is slowly awakening when it comes to accepting disability, gay, lesbian and mental awareness. It’s beginning to understand the differences and beginning to slowly peel away each layer to discover what is beneath it. We are all still a bit hesitant to what we do not know but the more we share, the more we acknowledge and the more we embrace, learning what we do not know is what will help close the distance that keeps us apart.
“I want everyone to know that they are loved. Life is tough but when you are given an opportunity, take it and walk the path. Everyone is destined on their own path but if we learn and we teach, we can all be as one.”
You can support her by following her on Facebook at Jaay SuNkaujhmoob and witness her journey to her crowning moments when competition takes place in Ohio in July.
Houa Lor
715-338-8286
Huab@hmongwomentoday.com