Pizza with A Purpose: Featuring Xong Sony

ALIVE Reflection by: Graham Hunt

At 5pm on Sunday, November 12th, Xong Sony Yang, a daughter of refugees, first-gen college student, a “rebellious daughter”, and Hmong-English Interpreter — not to mention, Song Sony is the Director of Augustana College’s Office of International Student and Scholar Services (OISSS) she sat down in the Erickson lounge to discuss her life — from her Hmong ancestors, an indigenous group of East and South East Asia, and her experience growing up as the only girl and middle child of 4 brothers, to her traditional and nontraditional education tracks and finding her love for supporting and advocating for minority access to educational opportunities.

This event was hosted by ALIVE (Augustana Leaders in Vocational Exploration), a group of sophomores dedicated to learning about vocation through discussion, reflection, and collaboration. The goal of Pizza with a Purpose is to highlight the stories of institutional and community leaders so that we can learn from their paths and reflect on our own goals and decisions in light of their advice.

And Xong Sony did not disappoint! As someone who personally has struggled with finding my “purpose” and has experienced uncertainty regarding the value of an education, I found Sony’s message to constantly ask “Why?” to be an affirmation that it is perfectly normal, healthy, and often necessary to question the institutions and advisors that impact our lives — whether that be our parents, siblings, counselors, schools or jobs. Maintaining a certain level of curiosity and rebelliousness — a desire to challenge the status quo — is a crucial element of making progress in one’s vocation; finding the problems that most speak to you and tackling them with confidence.

Sony’s story also demonstrates that a large part of vocation is simply overcoming the barriers that life unexpectedly throws at you. In her case, that was growing up as the child of non-English speaking immigrants, being expected to conform to the male-dominated constructs within her family, navigating college as a first-generation student, taking 8 years to complete her bachelor’s due to unforeseen family needs, and grappling between her parent’s hopes for her medical career and her true passions in global studies and intercultural communications. Sony’s story exemplifies the truth that one pursues their hopes and changes their paths not despite the cards stacked against them, but because of them.