'We really feel that God is moving.' Peace Walk spotlights OKC's Asian community
Carla HintonAn Oklahoma City businessman remembered being 4 years old when he fled Vietnam with his mother.
Thuan Nguyen, past president of the Asian District Cultural Association, said he and his mom were among the "boat people" who escaped from their native country, eventually resettling in Oklahoma, which he is proud to call home.
"She was a young 30-something-year-old lady that left her country on blind faith, not knowing whether we were going to live tomorrow or not, whether we're going to make it across the ocean," Nguyen said Sunday during the third Stronger Together Peace Walk of the summer.
"My dad paid the three gold bars for us to have a seat on this boat with, like, hundreds of people, many that were starving, crying, a lot of kids, a lot of women, children, men — if you read stories about the boat people, some of us died in the ocean and didn't make it."
Nguyen was among several people who spoke during the Sunday walk focusing on the diversity and resilience of Oklahoma City's Asian community.
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Walkers prayed and sang songs of faith as they made the trek from Catholic Charities of Oklahoma City, 1232 N Classen, to Our Lady's Cathedral, 3214 N Lake. Catholic Charities helped many Vietnamese refugees resettle in the Oklahoma City area in the 1970s and 1980s. Patrick Raglow, executive director of Catholic Charities of Oklahoma City, spoke to the crowd about his agency's efforts on behalf of Vietnamese refugees and other refugees looking to make their home in Oklahoma.
Walkers stopped once for more prayer and singing at Military Park, near N Classen Boulevard, at Military Avenue and NW 24 in the Asian District.
The visionaries of the series of Peace Walks, the Rev. Clarence Hill — Stronger Together founder — and the Rev. John-Mark Hart, said Sunday's walk was designed to give people like Nguyen an opportunity to share their personal stories with different parts of the local community. The preachers said the walk was also a way to celebrate the creativity, strength, beauty and diversity of the Asian community. The Peace Walks began in May with a walk in south Oklahoma City. Another walk was conducted in June in northeast Oklahoma City.
"The heart of this is that we just want to celebrate unity," Hart said. "We want to amplify the stories of people who are an important part of our community. It's easier to love your neighbor if you know your neighbor, so the Peace Walks are trying to bring people together to celebrate peace and celebrate love out in the community."
Faith diversity shown
Mike Hoang, current president of the Asian District Cultural Association, said it was fitting that many of the people who spoke on Sunday made it clear that Oklahoma faith communities had a hand in helping Vietnamese refugees and other Asian individuals who sought to resettle in the state.
"A lot of people don't realize that Oklahoma City has one of the highest per capita Vietnamese populations in the entire United States," Hoang said. "The reason is because of beautiful Oklahomans who opened up their doors for us, and they did that through the Catholic Charities and the Catholic Church and through the local churches here."
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Hoang said he and others in the Asian community owe thanks to faith groups who have helped so many in their community.
"So, here you have the opportunity to see from the '70s and '80s seeds that Oklahomans planted," he said. "The fruit of that seed you can witness and so today was a lot of thanksgiving, a lot of singing and praise and thanks for the church and God's provision for getting us to where we're at."
The Rev. Christendoza Le, with Vietnamese First Baptist Church, shared her story of leaving Vietnam with her father, who was determined to get his family out of the country. She said her family's journey was interrupted in Malaysia by pirates who robbed them and kidnapped her 13-year-old sister. Le said her father refused to carry hate in his heart for anyone, even the people who took his daughter, whom the family never saw again. She said her family came to the United States in the mid-1980s, and First Baptist Church of Ardmore sponsored them, allowing them to resettle in Oklahoma.
"Through the Lord Jesus Christ is where I truly think my father found peace ... so I wanted to share my story and the peace of God," Le said.
Meanwhile, Andy Nguyen, a Buddhist monk from Vietnam, participated in the walk alongside several other Buddhist monks from the Thien Vien Chon Tam Zen Center in Oklahoma City.
"When I see the work of peace, I said 'oh yes, we are Buddhist monks and of course we want peace, happiness,'" he said. "We want to show peace, love to our neighbor."
The walk culminated with a free meal as guests enjoyed egg rolls, sandwiches and Vietnamese buns called banh bao from Asian restaurants and establishments, including Lee's Sandwiches, ML3 Specialty Foods and Super Cao Nguyen.
Hill told walkers that he was grateful for their participation and he encouraged them to invite others to the next walk, set for Sept. 11, beginning at the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum.
"I don't know how you define beautiful, but this is beautiful," Hill said as he looked out into the crowd.
"This is not just an event — we really feel that God is moving."
Community events coming up
- Asian Night Market Festival, 5 p.m. to midnight Aug. 20, Military Park. Information: https://www.asiandistrictok.com/.
- OKC Justice Circle's free Breaking Bread luncheon with Asian community, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Aug. 25, Conner Center at Our Lady's Cathedral, 3214 N Lake Ave. Information: https://www.facebook.com/events/746166249964007.
- Peace Walk, Sept. 11 from the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum to Scissortail Park. Focus will be on prayer for first responders. More details will be shared on the Stronger Together website in the coming days. Information: https://www.strongertogether.global/peace-walk-ok.