Mimi’s Story

Inspiring Confidence to Build a Lasting Legacy

“Visit the land of 10,000 lakes,” the inviting voice from the television encouraged over two decades ago. One tourism commercial convinced Mimi that Minnesota was where she belonged, so at age 20 with an infant less than one-year-old, she packed her things to head north.

Born in Laos and raised in Thailand, Mimi first arrived to Fresno, California, when she was nine. After marrying at age 16, she moved to Massachusetts, but after a couple of years realized she had to leave that relationship. Luckily, after seeing the Minnesota tourism commercial, she phoned her mom and found out she had an aunt that lived in the Twin Cities. In yet another stroke of luck, Mimi, a Hmong woman, was unaware that she was moving to the largest concentration of Hmong residents by metropolitan area in the country.

After arriving in Minnesota in 2003, Mimi wanted to pursue a career in the medical field. First, she looked into nursing assistant programs at local community colleges, but they all had years-long waiting lists. She also remembers conversations with college admissions making her feel like, “just a number.”

A new beginning

Friends in the Hmong community informed Mimi about the International Institute of Minnesota’s Certified Nursing Assistant Training program. She recalls walking into the Institute and taking an English assessment to determine which level of course she would take.

This is a new beginning for me. This is where life is going to happen.

“When I first walked into the room, it looked so huge. It was like me against the world. This is a new beginning for me. This is where life is going to happen,” she recalled thinking before the assessment.

She was enrolled in the 11-week training course, but just a couple of weeks in, a roadblock appeared: Mimi went into labor with her second child. Giving birth would understandably setback anyone, but Mimi only took one week off before resuming class. During lunch breaks, she would rush home to feed her daughter and then return to class.

“[Giving birth] didn’t stop me from completing my classes and doing my skills. That goes to show how desperate I was to get into the Institute,” she said.

Even though her training was over 20 years ago, Mimi showers her Institute instructors with praise, crediting their patience and ability to uplift and empower.

“[Instructors at the Institute] give you so much time and effort to build up your self-esteem that you walk out to the real world with confidence because they teach you that,” she shared. “To someone else, it’s just a CNA, but to me, that’s my master’s degree. That’s how the Institute makes you feel. They build you up to that momentum, to that level, emotionally.”

[Instructors at the Institute] give you so much time and effort to build up your self-esteem that you walk out to the real world with confidence because they teach you that

Mimi used this confidence and empowerment after she graduated from the nursing assistant program. In her first interview, the interviewer asked her where she wanted to be in five years. Mimi’s response: “I’d like to have your job.”

In just five years, Mimi did in fact have the role of her interviewer and went from a certified nursing assistant (CNA) to a department coordinator and supervisor, attaining several promotions in the process.

Setbacks

However, there were hurdles along the way. Shortly after being hired as a CNA, her employer was notified she failed a criminal background check. Mimi, who had never committed a crime in her life, was devastated and pled her innocence. She was sent home from work and immediately went to the Institute for help.

“I couldn’t sleep for days,” she said about the stressful experience.

Two of her instructors at the Institute, Michael and Naomi, worked diligently and quickly to remedy the situation.

“Michael and Naomi are godsends. Life savers,” she glowingly remembered.

The Institute has always been a safe place for me. A place that empowers me.

Since Mimi’s name is extremely common in the Hmong community, Michael had an attorney friend look into the mix-up and was able to clear Mimi’s name by proving she had a different social security number than the individual who failed the background check.

She shared how the situation changed her outlook personally and professionally.

“[This experience] taught me how to be a better leader, how to help people and how to have empathy. You never know what people are going through,”

Although she has not taken a class at the Institute since the mid-2000s, Mimi fondly remembers her time and still credits it with helping her build the life she now has.

“[The Institute] has always been a safe place for me. A place that empowers me, that allows me to be me and not be judged. If I did something wrong, someone will correct me and teach me to be better. This was my university. This was, is, home.”

To this day, she recommends the Institute to aspiring CNAs, driving those who don’t have transportation to our office to register for training.

Mimi now works as a director at an assisted living facility and has eight children, most of whom are young adults working in the healthcare field or studying to enter it soon.

“I’m building a better career and future for me and showing [my kids] they can do that for themselves.”

Mimi shared how even after all these years, “My life and career will continue to be part of the Institute. My success will be part of the Institute. I am made by the Institute. If I can do it as a single mom, a single woman, any immigrant can do it.”