[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 75 (Wednesday, June 8, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1176]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     CONGRATULATIONS TO MAY YING LY

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                          HON. DORIS O. MATSUI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 8, 2005

  Ms. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate May Ying Ly, 
Executive Director of the Hmong Women's Heritage Association in 
Sacramento, California. Ms. Ly was recently selected from a field 
nearly 700 nominees to receive one of just 10 Robert Wood Johnson 
Community Health Leadership Program awards. As part of the award, she 
will receive funding to continue her work helping Hmong refugees from 
Laos access health care and adapt to life in this country.
  Ms. Ly's story is one of courage and dedication to her community. 
After she and her family escaped the communist regime in Laos, they 
first lived in poverty in a Thai refugee camp, and later worked to 
bridge the vast cultural divide that confronts Hmong refugees as they 
attempt to adjust to life in the United States.
  Breaking with the traditional, domestic role assigned to Hmong women, 
Ms. Ly attended college and then worked as a Human Services Specialist 
for Sacramento County. Seeking a broader platform to help her 
community, she founded the Hmong Women's Heritage Association; 
providing Hmong families with culturally appropriate health and social 
services--including health plan enrollment assistance. Further through 
collaboration with several media organizations, Ms. Ly drew attention 
to the physical and mental health problems affecting traumatized Hmong 
newcomers.
  Given the patriarchal structure of Hmong society, she has often faced 
stiff resistance to her activities from within her own community. The 
Hmong traditionally believe that all family problems should be handled 
within the family and clan; however, most family and clan members lack 
the appropriate prevention and intervention skills necessary to 
intervene in some chronic and critical cases.
  In order to reach Hmong refugees while still respecting traditional 
values, Ms. Ly established a ``clan advisory council,'' training its 
members to understand the mediation principles of this country and 
merging those with traditional advice and interventions of Hmong elders 
to assist families with crises.
  With the funds from this award, Ms. Ly will continue to provide 
mental health services, send her staff to college and graduate school, 
and to expand the activities of her advisory council of Hmong clan 
leaders.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to recognize May Ying for this award, and 
commend her for her courage and ingenuity as she helps Hmong refugees 
and immigrants access the health care they desperately need.

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