From Mountain Village to Hanoi Pastry Kitchen: Hmong Baker Supports Family

One morning in August, the auditorium at KOTO’s vocational training center in Bac Ninh fell silent as May, 26, stepped onto the stage. No longer the shy teenager who arrived 7 years ago, she spoke confidently about her journey from a childhood of sparse meals in the mountains to a pastry kitchen at an upscale restaurant in the capital. May is the eldest of eight children in a family of 10 in Pu Xi Village, Muong Mun Commune, Dien Bien Province. Her childhood meals often consisted of rice mixed with grated cassava. During the lean season before the harvest, the family sometimes had only rice soaked in plain water and eaten with ginger preserved in salt. May recalled that her mother, who was often in poor health, had never been able to go to the hospital. She rose early and worked late, chopping duckweed and sweet potato leaves to feed the pigs and chickens before heading to the family’s upland fields. May said she began carrying her younger siblings on her back around the house and village when she was 3 or 4. As she grew older, she would carry a younger sibling to the district market. In blazing midday heat or steady rain, she trudged 5 to 6 kilometers along muddy mountain roads with a small child on her back, helping her mother sell goods. "I don’t remember what we sold, but I clearly remember what it felt like to carry one of my siblings on my back," May said. Ho Thi May works in her family’s upland fields in Pu Xi Village, Muong Mun Commune, Dien Bien Province. Photo courtesy of May May said watching mothers and older sisters spend their lives in the village, making sacrifices for their families, convinced her that she had to study hard and build a different future. Near the end of high school, May learned about a free two-year vocational program run by KOTO, a social enterprise that supports disadvantaged young people. Her family could not afford university tuition, so the program covered vocational training and conversational English classes leading to an internationally recognized certificate. When May was accepted, her mother, Sung Thi Sai, 46, gave her just enough money for a bus ticket. "Study hard and be a good person, so you won’t have to suffer as much as we have," her mother said. May joined KOTO’s K35 cohort in July 2019. At first, modern kitchen equipment intimidated her, and she was afraid to speak up or communicate in English. She said the welcoming environment, where trainees were not treated differently because of where they came from, gradually helped her gain confidence. Although the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted her studies, May received an Outstanding Trainee certificate and placed third in a baking competition organized by the center. She also completed an internship at a five-star hotel in Hanoi and joined a field trip to central Vietnam. "I realized how vast the world beyond my hometown was—and that I could be part of it, too." Ho Thi May works as a baker specializing in pastries at a restaurant in Hanoi’s West Lake area in August 2026. Photo by Ngoc Anh After graduating, May began making pastries at a restaurant in Hanoi’s West Lake area. She started sending money home as soon as she received her first paycheck. Whenever her parents fell ill or her siblings needed tuition money, May contributed as much as two-thirds of her income. She said her support meant her mother no longer had to gather wild vegetables to sell. May said her example had encouraged her younger siblings. Those still living in their hometown have set their sights on becoming an auto mechanic, a teacher and a filmmaker. May hopes to open her own bakery. For now, however, helping support her family remains her highest priority, even if it means postponing that goal. "Living 500 kilometers from home can be lonely, but I always remind myself that I have to keep moving forward," she said. Subsidiary of VnExpress License number: 71/GP-CBC, Ministry of Information andCommunications, September 22, 2021 Editor-in-Chief: Pham Van Hieu Email: [email protected]: 028 7300 9999 - Ext 8556 10th floor, Block A FPT Tower, 10 Pham Van Bach, Cau Giay Ward, Hanoi