Bridging The Gaps
Voluntary Agency Liaison Profile: Loan "Kim" Bui & Marisol Lacayo
Release Date: April 18, 2007
Release Number: 1604-537
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BILOXI, Miss. -- According to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2005 American Community Survey, nearly 4,800 of the 2.8 million people living in Mississippi are also members of the Vietnamese community. More than 43,000 Mississippians are part of the Hispanic/Latino community. For Loan "Kim" Bui and Marisol Lacayo, these figures are more than demographics; the figures represent people whose recovery may hinge on a little help from these ladies.
As Voluntary Agency Liaisons (VAL) for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Bui and Lacayo specialize in outreach to the Vietnamese and Hispanic/Latino populations. They don't want anyone to miss an opportunity for FEMA assistance due to language barriers.
"I want to make sure that what we learned from Katrina helps the organizations here on the ground have the information they need for the people that seek their help," said Lacayo. "Things such as ensuring products on the ground are translated to reach all audiences. And translated properly. Sometimes you lose what you're trying to say, you lose the context."
Bui believes Katrina altered her life and her family's lives for the better. Bui owned a nail salon before Katrina destroyed the family home and her business. She helped her parents' friends by accompanying them to the Disaster Recovery Centers. If they couldn't speak English, Bui translated information and helped them apply for FEMA assistance. About a month later, she became a FEMA Community Relations Specialist. It didn't take her long to realize that she wanted to become a VAL.
Lacayo arrived at FEMA via a completely different path. She fled El Salvador with her parents and two siblings to come to the United States. They settled in California where she met her future husband. He joined the U.S. Air Force and they, with their two children, were on their second four-year assignment to Keesler Air Force Base when Katrina destroyed the Gulf Coast. Lacayo evacuated her son and daughter from their Ocean Springs home and temporarily moved to Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. Her husband remained in Biloxi. When she returned to Ocean Springs, her home was spared severe damage but Lacayo lost her job with Keesler Federal Credit Union. Undaunted, Lacayo decided to volunteer with Boat People S.O.S., a non-profit organization dedicated to assisting the Vietnamese-American community. "I walked in looking to volunteer and walked out with an actual job," said Lacayo. With the help of translators, she worked as a case manager.
Later, Lacayo worked with the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency's (MEMA) Individual Assistance department until she was hired as a FEMA VAL in Nov. 2006. "If anything happens in the Hispanic population, I'm it," said Lacayo with a smile. "I'm the VAL people come to; whether it's my fellow VALs or all of the other departments in Individual Assistance."
As a VAL, Lacayo works within the Hispanic/Latino community to help organizations and long term recovery committees provide better assistance. She has organized the Hispanic Coalition, which currently consists of 20 partners, and oversees the Hispanic Ministries which includes all of the Catholic churches under the Diocese of Biloxi. Lacayo also assists Rebuild, Recover, Restore Southeast Mississippi (R3SM), a partnership of 25 agencies dedicated to helping people in Forrest, Lamar and Perry counties.
"Marisol has worked very diligently to help make FEMA accessible to the Latino community in our area. She is always ready and willing to help with any long-term recovery case in a manner that is friendly, efficient and very competent," said Mary Townsend, assistant coordinator for Hispanic and Latino Ministries of United Methodist Church, Seashore District. "Along with the American Red Cross, she was instrumental in organizing the Hispanic Outreach Coalition, a group which meets monthly to share information and collaborate on projects that serve the needs of the Hispanic/Latino community. Marisol is a real asset to FEMA and to our community."
In addition to her daily activities with the long term recovery committees, Lacayo dedicates herself to helping organizations prepare for the future. She has collaborated with FEMA's Geographic Information Systems department to map areas densely populated by Hispanic/Latinos "to zoom in where bilingual staff or interpreters need to be to help the most." She also brings translated materials to the organizations and educational tools, such as the 'Faces of FEMA' DVD, to help explain FEMA's assistance programs.
"I had organizations telling me, their clients didn't know they had to do this or that to get
benefits," said Lacayo. "These organizations need to have the education and the tools in place to help in future disasters."
Bui serves as the primary FEMA contact for Boat People S.O.S. and also works with the Rebuilding Pearl River County Together long term recovery committee. She also assists FEMA Housing Advisors in the Picayune area. Even though her family lost everything, Bui remains grateful for the opportunities Katrina brought her.
"If it weren't for Katrina, my dad wouldn't be able to spend more time at home with us," said Bui. "Before, he was gone for so many months out of the year; he was always out on his shrimp boat. I wouldn't have a better job; I wouldn't have the finances to help out my family. If FEMA weren't here, I would have never been able to make my dad's dreams come true. He always wanted to take the family to Vietnam. I was able to make that happen."
Bui sacrifices a lot professionally and personally; she and her brother are the breadwinners for their family of six. She hopes her parents' new home will be completed this summer. As the only Vietnamese-speaking VAL, she receives many phone calls and requests for help from the community, even on her personal cell phone during her days off from work. One Sunday morning she received a call from a FEMA site inspection team who needed help communicating with an applicant. Of course, she takes it all in stride. "It was okay," Bui said with a laugh. "I just got up and drove over there and helped out. I always wanted to be a nurse; I guess I was born with it. That's why I love this job, I get to help people."
"[The] Boat People S.O.S. Biloxi office does case management under the Katrina Aid Today program," said lead case manager Thao Vu. "As a FEMA VAL, Kim is helpful in assisting our clients who have FEMA-related housing issues. She's been most helpful with obtaining FEMA documentation, clarifying to us FEMA processes, and doing research on what our clients are eligible for in terms of housing needs."
"I really love this job. I've worked in different departments with FEMA but as a VAL, when I have questions, I can go directly to a department supervisor and get an answer for an applicant," said Bui. "If someone needs assistance, I can go straight to someone to find out how to make it happen. Even if they're not eligible, at least I can find out why."
True to the nature of their fellow VALs, Lacayo and Bui do not think much of the extraordinary work they do. For them, it's similar to the multiple languages they speak; merely second nature.
FEMA coordinates the federal government's role in preparing for, preventing, mitigating the effects of, responding to, and recovering from all domestic disasters, whether natural or man-made, including acts of terror.
Last Modified: Wednesday, 18-Apr-2007 15:18:03