Shannon McRae

Lumpuk, Surin, Thailand... Khmer Refugee Camp...October 1976

Thousands of Cambodian refugees were placed in this Camp awaiting resettlement in a third country...
















Hi Mr. Chhim,

My name is Shannon McRae. I just read a story about you in The Epoch Times, and wanted to contact you to see if you'd
be interested in helping me with a small project.
My sister-in-law, Sophorn Kuoy McRae, lives in Memphis and just turned 30 years old last week. In celebration of her 30th birthday and in recognition of the 30th year anniversary of the end of the reign of Pol Pot, Sophorn is revisiting her Cambodian heritage and has launched a "30 days of hope" celebration. Every day during the month of April, she's posting an entry on her blog http://norococo.blogspot.com/ about Cambodian culture and/or life written by herself or a guest blogger.

She's asked me (her sister-in-law) to write about Cambodian small business owners, since I'm a journalist who covers US businesses.
This is a very long explanation leading up to my question for you! I wanted to see if you would mind answering a few questions from me for my blog entry on Cambodians who've started businesses in the United States. Your story in the Epoch Times was very impressive and moving. To me, you're living the ultimate American dream by owning your own business. I'd really like to profile an actual Cambodian American business owner.
The only thing I'm asking you to do is answer a few questions and perhaps send a few pictures for us to post if you have them. Sophorn's extended family is really enjoying her project as it's teaching all of us (blessed to be born and raised in the United States) a lot about what her parents went through in Cambodia before they were able to come to the US (to Alabama, actually) with their three young children in the early 80s.
1. Once you escaped Cambodia to Thailand, how long was it before you arrived in the United States?
2. When did you start your own insurance business?
3. Did you have any family members who owned business in Cambodia? Were you raised among entrepreneurial people?
4. What experiences in your youth prepared you for life as a small business owner?
5. When you were 19-year-old, what would you have said if someone told you that you'd one day own your own business in America?
I hope my request isn't too strange for you. When I was looking around for Cambodian small business owners, I was struck by your story and decided to contact you.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks for your time!
Shannon McRae