Through fellowship, food and fostered relationships, the Wisconsin Chinese Chamber of Commerce allows vendors and members of various cultures and walks of life to build meaningful connections with each other through the spirit of the holidays.
The chamber, which was established in 2017, held its celebration of Unity and Traditions at Office Furniture Warehouse in Waukesha, Wisconsin, on Nov. 13.
It all started through a chance encounter, when Toan “Tone” Ly, secretary of the WCCC and 1997 Marquette alumnus, was searching for furniture. He got in touch with Casey Cousin, one of the account managers at Office Furniture Warehouse.
Cousin went out to Ly’s office for routine measurements, which sparked the start of the relationship between the organizations, and the utilization of the warehouse to host chamber events.
“Tone brought it right to our doorstep. He reached out to us in pursuit of some office furniture,” Cousin said. “I went out to his site to go visit it, measure space, do what we typically do for customers. We got to talking, he thought it was a good idea for me to join the chamber, and I agreed.”
Ly emphasized that cultivating meaningful bonds with individuals from various backgrounds will provide a sense of cohesion, and that providing interaction opportunities will benefit all involved.
“For many years, there’s a huge separation between all the various ethnicities like the Hmong, the Chinese, the Burmese people,” Ly said. “Having events like this help all of us together realize that we’re not alone, we’re all a minority group, which has been standing alone in an island, that we don’t have to be an island; We can be together and celebrate that we’re different but still the same.”
The chamber has forged bonds with businesses and community, with Milwaukee-based eatery Fusion Poke providing food, and in the spirit of Thanksgiving, some eventgoers each brought a dish as well, from main courses to sweets.
Further networking with others to help in home search processes is something that Lor Vang, the president of the Asian Real Estate Association of America-Greater Milwaukee, sees as an essential part of empowering Asian Americans and greater society.
“We’re built with real estate professionals, agents, loan officers, insurance people, title people, lawyers; we are professionals that have the knowledge to help people get into homes,” Vang said. “Coming to networking events like this, we meet other real estate professionals, and we get to engage with people that have the same passion to help other people in the community.”
President of Ying’s Kitchen and WCCC member Ying Stoller provided a demonstration of cooking with her signature sauces at the event. She said she enjoyed connecting with fellow entrepreneurs while cherishing the community that it provides.
“It’s nice to have business owners network, enjoy each other’s company and celebrate,” Stoller said.
The WCCC hasn’t announced any future event dates, but the organization is working on planning them for 2025 and beyond.
Rosie Arabiyat, senior business analyst for the city of Milwaukee’s Office of Equity and Inclusion, said the event was a great way for people to express their culture, while also emphasizing the principle of uniting with each other in society today.
“It contributes to a more diverse and receptive climate. Everyone is bringing their own culture, everyone is positive, happy, willing to engage,” Arabiyat said. “It’s something that’s needed in these times.”
This article was written by Mikey Severson. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter/X @MikeySeversonMU.
