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AAPI History Campaign

Grand Rapids Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month

In 2021, while working as Communications Manager at Downtown Grand Rapids Inc. (DGRI), I launched a digital storytelling campaign to honor Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM).

At the time, hate crimes against Asian communities in the U.S. were surging due to racism and xenophobia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Given DGRI’s commitment to celebrating diverse voices in West Michigan, I saw an opportunity to educate our community on local Asian-American history through a compelling and visually engaging campaign.

My Contributions

Campaign Development & Research

I conceptualized, planned, and executed the campaign from start to finish. This included:

  1. Archival Research: Collaborated with the Grand Rapids Public Library and the Grand Rapids Public Museum to access historical archives. From there, I unearthed old newspaper articles to reference for quotes and visuals.
  2. Community Engagement: Partnered with organizations like the West Michigan Asian-American Association to connect with and interview local AAPI leaders and descendants of notable Asian historical figures in the region.
  3. Storytelling: Synthesized research and interviews into a cohesive, educational narrative highlighting AAPI individuals' contributions to Grand Rapids' history.

Social Media Campaign

To ensure a consistent and compelling visual identity, I collaborated with DGRI’s graphic designer to create a brand guide for the campaign. From there, I:

  • Adapted historical research into bite-sized, engaging social media posts optimized for different platforms.
  • Posted daily throughout APAHM on DGRI’s social media channels, transforming historical facts into accessible, shareable content.

To view the complete collection of posts, visit DGRI's Facebook album.

Wong Chin Foo, "The First Chinese American"

Wong Chin Foo was among the first Chinese Americans to become a US citizen. While he did not reside in Michigan, he received his naturalization papers in Grand Rapids in April 1874.

Wong was a journalist, lecturer, and activist. He's best known for coining the term "Chinese American," and was outspoken in his criticism of anti-Chinese sentiment and stereotypes.

While the history is a little unclear, Wong was likely the first Chinese person ever to testify before Congress. He advocated against the Chinese Exclusion Act, arguing that it violated his rights as an American citizen.

In an 1877 lecture at Steinway Hall in New York, Wong quipped, “I never knew rats and dogs were good to eat until I learned it from Americans.”

Bach Thi Duong, Vietnamese Refugee & Survivor of the Fall of Saigon

Bach Thi Duong survived many tribulations before settling in Grand Rapids.

In 1969, she married an American military advisor who was working in Vietnam. They had a daughter named Dung. When her husband’s tour of duty ended, he left the country, leaving Duong and the child to struggle on their own through the fall of Saigon.

She moved to the village of Ba The, where the chief of the village secret police attempted to force her to marry him. She avoided the unwelcome advance but moved to a neighboring city to protect herself from the secret agent's revenge.

There, her daughter Dung was not allowed to attend public school because of her biracial heritage. As her misfortunes multiplied, they moved once again.

By 1981, she made her way to Chau Doc, close to the Cambodian border. From there, she set out for Thailand, resorting to rides from motorbikers, cyclists, and truck drivers and walking in the jungle while navigating through snakes, rain, and nighttime chills.

Duong was arrested several times by the Khmer Rouge near the Thai border. After two months of walking, she reached a Red Cross camp.

Fortunately, she met Michigan Congressman Harold Sawyer, who was touring Southeast Asian refugee camps. The Congressman brought Duong’s case to the attention of the Freedom Flight Refugee Center, the State Dept., and other agencies, ultimately enabling Duong to enter the U.S. in 1983.

Duong searched for her American husband without success but was able to build a life for herself and her family in West Michigan.

Chan Hoy, the "King of Chinatown" in Grand Rapids

Chan Hoy was one of the wealthiest Chinese men in Grand Rapids during the 1900s.

In 1902, he opened Hong Far Lo, an elaborate Chinese restaurant, at 28 Pearl St. NW — where he brought a cook from San Francisco and an assistant cook from New York. He also imported all the furnishings from China.

Later, Chan would open many other restaurants and businesses in the region. His success earned him the nickname of the "King of Chinatown" in Grand Rapids.

Despite his success, he and his family were not immune to discrimination. His son was arrested upon trying to enter the US, and Chan himself was the victim of multiple assaults.

One 1902 Grand Rapids Herald article states that Chan was "attacked by a gang of toughs and thrown down and tossed about very roughly for a few minutes."

A 1906 story about a different assault made against him reported that Chan "told the story in broken English of the alleged attack," placing the focus on his accent more than the act of violence.

Chan Hoy was also referred to as a "ch*nk" on multiple occasions in the press.

After several years of attempts, his son, Chan Sing, was allowed to enter the U.S. in 1910.

Virgil Westdale of the 44nd Regimental Combat Team (the most decorated unit in U.S. Army history)

West Michigan's Virgil Westdale — born Virgil Nishimura — was a World War II combat veteran who served in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team. This all-Japanese regiment fought across Italy, France, and Germany to become the most decorated unit in the history of the U.S. Army.

The unit's soldiers helped rescue the "Lost Battalion" in France and liberate the Dachau concentration camp in Germany. He earned the Congressional Gold Medal and the French Legion of Honor Medal.

Westdale initially enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corps and trained to become a pilot. However, government policy during World War 2 forbade Americans of Japanese descent to receive their pilot's license. He was then transferred to the 442nd Regiment. Over half a century later, in 2006, Westdale finally received his commercial pilot's license.

Before he passed away in 2022, Westdale was the oldest living combat veteran in the country.

Sgt. Mitsusuke Fujimoto, Silver Star & Purple Heart Recipient

Sgt. Mitsusuke Fujimoto was born in California in 1917 and moved to Grand Rapids in 1944 after World War II.

Fujimoto joined the army, serving as a medical technician for the 442nd Regimental Combat Team (one of the most decorated units in US military history).

A 1945 Grand Rapids Press article referred to him as a hero for single-handedly rescuing a wounded soldier in France "in the midst of murderous German fire."

The full citation reads: "When a rifleman of Company 1 was severely wounded by enemy small arms fire, Mitsuske and his squad instantly proceeded to aid, and when 20 yards away from the wounded man they were pinned down by continued fire, Mitsuske continued to crawl and creep to the wounded comrade and carried him back, administered first aid and took him to a jeep 300 yards away."

Fujimoto received the coveted Silver Star for this courageous act. He also wore the Purple Heart, the combat medical corpsman's badge, and other combat ribbons.

Despite his exceptional US military service, Fujimoto’s parents, who were born in Japan, were forced into internment camps for several months during WWII.

Filipino Nurses Make Up the Largest Immigrant Nursing Group in the U.S.

The call to care is strong for Filipino nurses like Grand Rapids’ Jackie Marasigan, who emigrated to Detroit from the Philippines in 2001. Five years later, she moved to Grand Rapids.

Marasigan is among over 150,000 Filipino nurses who have migrated to the United States since the 1960s, making them the country's largest group of immigrant nurses. An estimated 500,000 U.S. healthcare workers are of Filipino descent.

The coronavirus pandemic hit Filipino nurses particularly hard. One-third of nurses who died of coronavirus in the U.S. are Filipino, according to a report from National Nurses United. However, Filipino nurses make up just 4% of the nursing population nationwide.

The roots of Filipino nursing began after the U.S. Army started training Filipinos to provide care to American soldiers. Offering English lessons and a full American nursing curriculum, the Army built a robust educational framework that allowed the country to become the world’s leading exporter of professionally trained nurses.

The white nursing cap symbolizes a path to a better life for many Filipinos. The first significant wave of Filipino immigrants began after World War 2 when the U.S. created the Exchange Visitor Program and facilitated the entry of foreigners to help ease labor shortages.

Today, many Filipino nurses in the U.S. work extra shifts to support their families and send money back to relatives in the Philippines.

“When I received an opportunity to work in the U.S., I was ecstatic to earn more, as that means I can help my family in the Philippines," said Marasigan, who continues to send financial help home to her aging parents, siblings, and extended family.

Maya Lin, World-Renowned Architect

Maya Lin, a world-renowned American architect and artist, designed Grand Rapids' Ecliptic at Rosa Parks Circle.

Commissioned in 2000 to mark the millennium, "Ecliptic" was named for the path of the Sun as it appears to cross the sky. The park’s elements were inspired by water as vapor, liquid, and solid embodied in a mist fountain, a tablet of flowering water, and an ice rink.

Lin has designed numerous memorials, public and private buildings, landscapes, and sculptures. The Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial in Washington, D.C., is perhaps Lin’s best-known work. She won the commission in 1981 after entering a national design competition as an undergraduate at Yale.

Lin also designed the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama.

Born in Ohio, Lin currently lives and works in NYC.

Jim Paek, the first Korean-born hockey player to play in the NHL

Jim Paek was the longest-tenured coach ever for the Grand Rapids Griffins team. A native of Seoul, South Korea, Paek was raised in Toronto and earned his U.S. citizenship in 2011.

Paek was formerly a professional ice hockey player and is currently the director of hockey for the Korea Ice Hockey Association and head coach of the South Korean national team.

From 1990-91 to 1994-95, Paek played in the National Hockey League and won the Stanley Cup twice (in 1991 and 1992 with the Pittsburgh Penguins).

He is the first Korean-born hockey player to:
1) Play in the NHL
2) Have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup.

On 11 August 2005, Paek was named the assistant head coach for the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League (AHL). Paek helped guide the Griffins to their first Calder Cup in 2013, the American Hockey League's regular-season championship in 2005-06.

During his tenure as assistant head coach, he played an essential role in the development of many players with the Detroit Red Wings — including Jakub Kindl, Jonathan Ericsson, Justin Abdelkader, Jimmy Howard, Tomas Tatar, Darren Helm, Gustav Nyquist and Brendan Smith, to name a few.

On July 23, 2014, Paek accepted a position as director of hockey for the Korea Ice Hockey Association (KIHA) and head coach of the South Korean national team.

Under Paek's leadership, South Korea earned its first-ever Olympic hockey qualification for the 2018 Winter Olympics, held on home soil in Pyeongchang.

Bing Goei, Founder of the "Goei Center" in Grand Rapids

Bing Goei was born in 1948, fled Jakarta, Indonesia, with his family, and emigrated to the US in 1960. He would grow up in Grand Rapids and become a prominent community-minded Asian American entrepreneur.

He has served as the CEO of Eastern Floral, one of the largest floral companies in the state, for more than 20 years. His business has had multiple locations and continues to provide job opportunities for residents in West Michigan.

He founded the Goei Center and established the space as a location for wedding receptions, business seminars, and nonprofit fundraising events.

In 2024, Goei was selected to fill the Grand Rapids City Commission vacancy as Third Ward commissioner. He is an active West Michigan Asian-American Association board member and chairperson for the Asian-Pacific-American Chamber of Commerce.

In 2014, he was appointed the first director of the Michigan Office for New Americans by former Gov. Rick Snyder to attract international talent to grow Michigan’s economy.

Goei lives in Grand Rapids with Jean, his wife of over 50 years. They have 5 children and 17 grandchildren.

Beth Nguyen, Award-Winning Author (Featured on The New York Times)

Bich Minh "Beth" Nguyen is an American novelist and nonfiction writer who grew up in Grand Rapids.

Born in 1974 in Saigon, Nguyen and her family fled Vietnam by ship the following year. After staying in refugee camps in Guam and at Fort Chaffee in Arkansas, the family settled in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Nguyen graduated from the University of Michigan with a Master of Fine Arts. Her written works also have appeared in The New Yorker, The Paris Review, and The New York Times.

Her novel "Short Girls," about two sisters, won the 2010 American Book Award. She also authored the novel "Pioneer Girl" and an award-winning memoir, "Stealing Buddha's Dinner."

Kim Jong-il, the first Korean long jump athlete to reach the final round at the Olympics

Kim Jong-il is an Associate Professor and Assistant Women's Soccer Coach at Calvin University. He is also a South Korean retired long jumper, best known for winning two gold medals at the Asian Games.

Born in 1962, Kim became a member of South Korea's national track and field team in 1979 and first made his mark internationally by winning the gold medal in the long jump at the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi.

Kim competed in the Olympics twice and was the first Korean athlete to reach the final round. His best jump was 8.00 meters, achieved in August 1988 in Seoul. After retiring as an active athlete, he turned to a career in coaching and academics.

Kim took an undergraduate degree in physical education at Dong-A University in 1986. Later, he relocated to the United States and earned a master's degree at Washington State University in 1993.

In the 1997-98 academic year, Kim was employed at Calvin College, where he doubled as professor in the Health, Physical Education, Recreation, Dance and Sports department and head coach of the men's track and field team. In 2002, he took over the post of head coach for the women's team. Kim stepped away from coaching track and field after the 2010 season.

His honors as a coach include the NCAA Division III National Women's Coach of the Year selection in 2002 and 2003. In 2003, he was also named Men's Coach of the Year, the first coach to win both awards in the same year.

Media Coverage & Public Engagement

The campaign’s impact extended beyond digital platforms and gained regional media attention. From there, I:

  • Represented DGRI in both live and pre-taped interviews on local news stations, discussing the campaign’s significance.
  • Positioned the campaign as a tool for community education and dialogue, reinforcing the importance of accurate historical representation and cultural awareness.


This campaign was a powerful example of how strategic storytelling, historical research, and digital engagement can be used to educate communities and elevate underrepresented voices.