While numerous people are capable of giving during unique times in life such as the events of September 11th, there are very few people who give day in and day out to their communities. People who give during significant events are wonderful but it is the person who gives on an on-going basis which makes a long lasting impact. Tran Bui is one of those people. It is because of her on-going leadership, dedication, and desire to help others that I would like to nominate her for her contributions to the community.

One does not simply wake up one day and decide to do good. I believe it is an intrinsic value which is both learned and innate. Tran has a double dose of both. Memphis is not the beginning of her contribution to society. While in Tallahassee, Florida, she was on the board of  a group similar to MPACT called the Tallahassee 25. While working in the media in Tallahassee , she found the time to initiate book drives for schools and to consistently spend time with children in daycares in impoverished neighborhoods. 

Unfortunately for Tallahassee, but fortunate for Memphis , Tran took a job with ABC24 / UPN 30. While the setting was new and the community different, Tran set out to make her mark in Memphis . Early on, she wanted to take the successes she had in Tallahassee and see if she could do the same here. She was able to convince her station’s news director to make her the only “official” education reporter. Her reports which she created addressed issues around such topics as literacy and speech impediments. Not only did her stories increase awareness of specific problems in the community, but more importantly she researched outlets for those who suffered from such problems. It was from this that she was given an award from a national foundation for her education reports.

Tran’s job gives her the unique ability to touch individuals in the community in ways that most of us cannot. Yet, few push this opportunity in a selfless act. Most people in the media may show up to make an appearance for a function supporting a good cause but few will roll up their sleeves and take an active roll. A counterexample of this relates to her success in Tallahassee which she brought to Memphis , a book drive. It sounds simple, but it was a first for the television station. When Tran found out that there were thousands of children who did not have books in their own homes, she pushed the station to start the drive. She campaigned endlessly. She spent numerous hours sending out emails to friends, colleagues, and people she had met on news stories. She made appearances at schools, businesses, and churches to further push the cause. All of this occurring on her personal time. The drive, which was termed “Get Smart. Read.”, collected over 20,000 books of which she and other people she recruited personally sorted and counted. Tran continues to push people to support the drive. 

In her first year in Memphis , Tran was introduced to Mpact while it was a grassroots effort. Tran’s charisma and giving nature is evident to anyone who meets her and was the driver to her being named chairperson of the community involvement pillar. Her leadership of this pillar was undeniable. It’s support and attendance were second to none. Most of this was due to the relentless pursuit of Tran to get new people actively involved in the community. This spanned anything from making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for the homeless to building wheelchair ramps in low income neighborhoods to playing bingo in retirement homes.

Not forgetting her heritage, Tran has also helped the third largest minority group in Memphis, the Vietnamese. Narquenta Sims, the head of Mayor Willie Herenton’s Multicultural and Religious Affairs Office, asked her to help provide public information to the Vietnamese community. Tran took an active role in putting together a kiosk at a local grocery store which would help the community answer pertinent questions. Where do I pay basic bills? How can I get money to open a small business? How do I get healthcare? The information was gathered and printed and the kiosk is up and running filling a need we all just assume is there. 

The most amazing part surrounding Tran and her consistent giving to the community is how she does it. She has a very demanding job which is extremely unpredictable. A job which is somewhat like a doctor’s, she is always on call and emergencies always happen. Yet, she always finds ways to give to the community. I cannot think of anyone more appropriate to be recognized for such an award.

MPACT Memphis
1st MPACT Maker Newcomer Award 2003