Fox 9 Featuring Tory Envy

A year ago I wouldn't have ever thought I'd be featured on Fox 9 News in the Twin Cities area. In fact, I couldn't image writing a bilingual Hmong and English children's book. 

After the pandemic hit, I worked from home and spent a lot of time with my little ones. We read through all of our books. Being Hmong, we practice speaking Hmong at home. I looked for Hmong children's books and found only a few. It was disappointing so I was inspired to write my own. I wrote about my two little girls. When I first showed them the book, my eldest's eyes lit up! She screamed, "that's me!". It was then I realized how important representation is at a young age. I always knew it was important, but didn't realize just how much.

I'm grateful that Bisi Onile-Ere from Fox 9 News invited me to share my story with a larger audiences. The story was filmed at Cross River Charter School in Saint Paul Park, Minnesota. They provided a space for me to share my book with their students. I even got the opportunity to read to them. Though some of the students were not Hmong, they spoke Hmong to me. What was an experience!

Watch the full story here: