About the Founder
A Personal Journey
My destiny is to sow seeds of love. My own life’s journey has been harder than many, but now I see each hardship through positive eyes. Each of my obstacles is a seed that has blossomed and gives me strength.
As a child of the Vietnam War, my family lost everything, including each other. When the war ended, my father was sent to North Vietnam; while my pregnant mom, my siblings, and I were sent to re-education camps. While this was a great hardship, I see that time of captivity set my spirit free. Throughout my life, I have not let any bonds or bars stop me from acting and behaving true to myself. Feeling restless in my suburban life, I ventured out into the world to reconnect with my true nature.
After our release from the camp, our mother left us with our grandparents. Our life as we knew it was over. I felt lost and abandoned. It was difficult adjusting to the remote village life. We went from our comfortable life, to one of poverty, and hard labor. I learnt early in life that education was a luxury, and I feel passionately that all children should have a chance to get one.
In my early teen years, my Grandfather was eventually able to arrange for us to immigrate to France, unfortunately not all children can expect this. My father’s work and education made my escape a possibility and my mind opened to the vast possibilities of this world. I left France for California, to immerse myself in the melting pot that is America. I was not afraid of hard work, or poverty, and I knew that education was my prize and I achieved a BS in Computer Science. My education and experiences have given me wings, and so I traveled and backpacked throughout Europe. At 30, my life took on the path of a typical suburban mother and I lost myself in caring for my young family and husband. But the restlessness returned and I knew that I still had not found my life’s purpose.
Passion for Charity
Traveling has always helped me find peace, it helps me to unravel my thoughts, and find my true personality. It was while I was in Cambodia that my path was laid out before me. Missing the warmth and love of my three beautiful children, I discovered an orphanage called Smiling Heart. My small contributions to the children; a donation of three sets of uniforms, teaching a classroom of kids who might not have the luxury of substitute teachers, and seeing the gratitude and joy in their faces – made me realize that I had found my calling, my home.
Additional resources:
https://www.splunk.com/blog/2014/12/05/splunk4good-profile-dana-le.html
https://www.splunk.com/blog/2016/12/08/a-commitment-to-change.html
