My Immigration Story

Leeying Wu 

05/10/2024

I have been living in the United States for 33 years, which means I have spent more than half of my life here. I have also resided in Lexington for 22 years, as my children attended school and graduated here, establishing various relationships and leaving many impressions. Without realizing it, I have come to regard this place as my hometown. As the saying goes, “China is like our parent’s home, while America is like our in-laws’ home.” I truly feel that way.

My ancestral hometown is Taishan, Guangdong, which is also a very famous place of overseas Chinese in China. The earliest laborers who came to San Francisco to build railroads were mostly from my hometown. As early as a kid, we were influenced by the notion that “Only the mediocre stay in Taishan, while the capable ones find ways to go abroad.”

In 1980s,  with the start of reforming and opening up policy, China opened its doors wide. Many families had relatives abroad, and many people rushed to apply for family immigration to the United States. Those without relatives in the US also tried to create opportunities to go abroad. When my Taishan classmates graduated from high school or university back then, many went abroad through matchmaker-arranged marriages, or stayed single until they could come to the US through the adult children category and then went back to marry their desired partner, or through labor immigration, etc. Of course, for other places unlike Taishan, the paths abroad were studying abroad or pursuing further education.

Since I was admitted to South China Normal University in Guangzhou after graduating from high school, and later pursued a graduate degree and worked at Jinan University, like students from other universities, I took the path of studying abroad, which was an exception amidst the trend of arranged marriages or family immigration that was prevalent in Taishan at that time.

I came to New York in 1991 to pursue a master’s degree. Due to my relatively poor English, I put in a lot of hard work to overcome the language barrier. The most difficult part back then was actually the cultural differences, integration, and financial constraints. Fortunately, I met a group of like-minded fellow students, and we encouraged each other and found joy amidst the hardship. Two years later, I obtained a master’s degree in biology and found a job at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, an affiliated hospital of Harvard Medical School. After about three and a half years, I changed jobs to the Genetics Institute in Cambridge, which was subsequently acquired and merged by Wyeth and then Pfizer, where I worked until leaving in 2011.  

In 2002, in order for my son, who was only 5 years old at the time, to attend a good school, I bought a house in Lexington since it was very close to where I worked, and I have lived here for 22 years now. Because one of my son’s classmates was the son of the then-president of the Chinese American Association of Lexington, I naturally learned about this Chinese organization in Lexington quite early on. Since the two children were very friendly, we started participating in some of the events organized by the CAAL, the most famous being the biennial Spring Banquet, summer picnics, candidate forums, and the annual gathering in November. Gradually, I made friends with the core group of CAAL at that time, and was deeply moved by their selflessness and dedication. I also gradually participated in some preparatory work and on-site volunteering.

Many Chinese mainland students like me, after obtaining master’s or doctoral degrees and finding well-paying jobs, moved to Lexington for their children to attend good schools, and gradually became involved with CAAL  and concerned about Lexington affairs.I have been with the CAAL for nearly 20 years and witnessed its growth and development. I first joined the community service group, and in the first few years of its establishment, this small group organized almost all the events. Later, several committees were formed, and I have always been a core member of the Community Service Committee, which is specifically responsible for recruiting and managing volunteers for various events. 

To continue reading the entire story, please visit the website: https://caal-ma.org/immigrationstories

I have participated in the preparatory work and volunteer recruitment and management for many major events. I have also served as a member of the Town Tourism Committee, as well as held positions at other non-profit organizations such as the Dunhuang Cultural Service Center, the Newton Chinese School Parent Association, the Angel Dance Troupe, and the New England Chinese American Alliance.

One of the most memorable experiences was participating in the first transformed Spring Festival Gala, which changed from a biennial Spring Banquet to an annual event focused on showcasing Chinese culture and performances. I was involved in a lot of the preparatory work at that time, and little did I expect that 10 years later, I would become one of the chief planners for the CAAL Spring Festival Gala. There were also volunteer activities for the Town of Lexington’s 300th anniversary celebration, fundraising for the Lexington Public Library, and mask donations for homeland defense, among others.

Another important role I have played in CAAL is working with several other Community Service Committee chairs to supervise and guide various youth programs. From the establishment of the first youth group in 2012 – teaching English to Chinese elderlies – to the formation of various youth groups during the pandemic period, there are now 17 groups. I have been busily but happily engaged in this work, perhaps due to occupational habits, as in 2011 I left my original career path in biological research at a biopharmaceutical company and established my own educational services company, providing academic tutoring and college admissions counseling for students.

I believe students should not solely focus on academics but should also participate in various community activities to develop a sense of social responsibility and the skills needed for the workplace. Over the years of volunteering, it has become a habit and part of my life. Of course, Lexington has also become our beautiful home, and for its continued betterment, we will continue our efforts.

Looking back at history, from the labor immigrants of a century ago, to the opening up of 40-50 years ago with family immigration and studying abroad, to the recent peak of investment immigration in the past decade, the story of Chinese immigration over the past century is a tale of joy and sorrow. Being from Taishan myself, as well as being a part of the study abroad immigrant cohort, and due to my profession, I have encountered the bittersweet experiences of many investment immigrants. I have always wanted to record the experiences of this era.   

I have participated in the library’s oral history project and also joined the New England Immigrant Association’s large-scale oral immigration story project (where I actually volunteered as a translator, as I can speak Taishan dialect, Cantonese, Mandarin, and English, and incidentally did some oral recounting myself). This time, I would like to thank the organizers of the Immigration Story project for giving me this opportunity to record this chapter of my own immigration story in writing.

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我的移民故事
-伍丽英
05/10/2024

我已经在美国生活了33年，可以说我的人生超过一半的时间在美国， 而且在莱镇居
住也已经22年，因为孩子从小就在莱镇读书至毕业，建立各种关系与留下很多印记
， 不知不觉当中已经把这里当成自己的家乡。有人说， “中国是我们移民的娘家
， 而美国是我们的婆家”， 我觉得还真是这种感觉。
我的家乡是广东台山， 也是中国非常著名的华侨之乡，因为最早来美国旧金山修铁路
的劳工大部分就来自我们的家乡，所以我们从小在台山耳熏目染，“孬种才蹲在台
山，好种想方设法出国“。 1980年开始改革开放，中国大开门户， 很多家里都有
亲属在外国， 不少人纷纷办理亲属移民来美国。没有条件的也在创造条件出国，
我们台山同学当年高中或者大学毕业，不少同学通过媒人介绍结婚出国，或者不结
婚等着超龄子女排期过来美国再回去与心仪的对象结婚，劳工移民等等。当然在其
他地方与台山不一样的出国路径就是留学或者进修过来。由于我高中毕业就考上在
广州的华南师范大学，后来又在暨南大学攻读研究生并留校工作， 所以与其他大
学院校的同学一样走的是留学之路。在当时台山纷纷结婚或者亲属移民大行其道之
中属于异类。
我于1991年来到纽约攻读硕士学位，由于英文比较弱， 下了不少苦功来克服语言关，
当年最困难的其实是文化的差异与融入，经济拮据等。所幸遇到一班志同道合的留
学生互相打气，苦中作乐。两年后拿到生物硕士并在哈佛医学院的附属医院-布里
罕妇女医院（Brigham and Women’s Hospital）找到工作。大概3年半后又换了工
作到位于在剑桥的遗传研究所（Genetics Institute），它相继被惠氏（Wyeth）
与辉瑞制药厂（Pfizer）收购与合并，一直工作到我于2011年离职。
在2002年为了当年才5岁的儿子在好学区读书，因为莱镇离我所工作的单位很近，所以
就在莱镇买了房一直至今22年。因为儿子的一位同学就是当年莱镇华协主席的儿子
， 自然就很早知道莱镇有一个华人团体， 因为两个孩子非常友好， 所以我们跟
着也参加一些莱镇华协举办的活动，最有名的是两年一度的春宴，暑期的野餐聚会
，候选人论坛，11月份的年度聚餐等。逐渐就与莱镇华协当时一班骨干认识， 而
且深深被他们的无私奉献所感动，逐渐也参与一些筹备与现场义工工作.很多与我
一样的中国大陆来的留学生也因为攻读硕士博士毕业找到一份不错的高薪工作，为
了子女在好学区读书， 纷纷搬进莱镇，同时也逐渐参与莱镇华协，与关心莱镇的
事务。
我在华协快20年， 见证了莱镇华协的发展壮大。我自己先参加社区工作组，刚成立的
几年几乎所有活动都由这个小组组织进行。后来分开发展了几个委员会，我一直是
华协社区委员会的骨干， 华协社区委员会专门负责各种活动的义工招募管理工作
，很多大型活动我都参与筹备工作与义工招聘管理工作。我也曾经是镇旅游委员会
的委员， 还有在别的非盈利机构任职，敦煌文化服务中心，牛顿中文学校的家长
会，天使舞蹈团， 新英格兰华人联盟等。最值得回忆的是参加第一次转型的春晚
，就是两年一次的春宴改为一年一次的着重中国文化的展现以及中国特色的演出，

当时参与很多筹备工作， 没有想到在10年后的华协春晚担当总策划之一。还有镇
庆300周年的义工活动，为莱镇图书馆募捐，保卫家园的口罩捐赠等等。我在华协
另一个重要的工作， 是与其他几位社区服务委员会的主任一起监管与指导各个青
少年项目，从2012年成立第一个青少年小组-教华人老年人英文， 到疫情期间纷纷
成立各个青少年小组，目前已经发展为17个小组。我忙的不亦乐乎，也可能职业病
作祟，因为我在2011年脱离原来在生物制药公司的生物研究跑道， 自己成立了一
家教育服务公司， 帮助学生学术辅导与升学， 感觉学生们不能单纯只顾学习，
也应该参与各种社区活动，培养社会责任心与职场上应有的各种能力。 我在多年
参加义工活动中，已经变成一种习惯，也变成我生活的一部分。当然莱镇也成为我
们美好的家园， 为了莱镇的更美好，继续我们的努力。
回顾历史， 我们华人在百年前的劳工移民，到40-50年前的开放，亲属移民与留学，
近段十年是投资移民的高峰， 华人百年移民史是一部可歌可泣的故事。由于自己
是台山人，也由于自己也是其中的留学移民的一份子，又因为自己的职业， 接触
很多投资移民的甜酸苦辣。我总想把这段年代的经历记录下来。我曾经参加图书馆
的口述历史，也参加过新英格兰移民协会组办的大型口述移民故事（其实是去当翻
译义工， 因为我可以讲台山话，广东话，国语与英文， 顺便做了口述）。这次多
谢移民故事的主办方，让我有这个机会用文字记录了这段自己移民的故事。