I look forward to writing these\ncolumns because I enjoy sharing stories about the innovative, caring, and\npersistent nature of the people who make Tiger Nation special. Today, I would\nlike to focus on one alumnus who came close to throwing his life away before he\nturned 18. He spent more than a decade in prison but found redemption with the\nhelp of the caring people of Hays, America. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tuan Huyn was 3 years old when he\nand his family fled their native Vietnam and settled in a public housing\ncomplex in Wichita. Tuan and many members of his small Vietnamese immigrant\ncommunity immediately found themselves as outsiders in a new home. Life in\nAmerica for Tuan almost immediately became a struggle to survive. He got into\nhis first fight in kindergarten, and as he entered his teen years, he found\ngang life as a way to fit in, command respect, and survive on the streets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just shy of his 18th birthday, Tuan committed a crime that sent him to prison. While incarcerated, Tuan made a commitment to turn his life around. Until that point in his life, he\u2019d always been a brawler. But from that point forward, Tuan decided to let his intellect and natural leadership abilities guide his direction in life. He began reading, taking college courses and painting. His work caught the eye and respect of his fellow inmates. He went on to create an art education program that eventually attracted more than 40 inmate artists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As he began his transition to life after prison, Tuan met several people who would become instrumental in his redemption story. Leslie (Chris) Hauck was the Sunflower Electric Power Corp. CEO in Hays and met Tuan through his involvement in his church\u2019s prison and jail ministry. The two forged an incredible bond, one so strong that Chris would later refer to Tuan as \u201cmy son.\u201d He also met Anna Shelter, whose mother ran seminars on leadership and fellowship that Tuan attended. She would later become his wife and the mother of their two daughters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Chris took Tuan to Fort Hays State to meet some contacts on campus and explore his degree options. Tuan intended to enroll in a business program, but as they walked through Rarick Hall, Chris introduced him to Chaiwat Thumsujarit, a graphic design professor. Chaiwat noticed Tuan was holding two original paintings he planned to take to a local framing store and was impressed with the artwork. The professor suggested that Tuan consider graphic design as a degree option. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
A gifted artist with no\nbackground in the principles and practices of graphic design, Tuan struggled to\nkeep up. While other students were already adept at using computer design\nsoftware on projects, Tuan only knew how to paint. He had never used a\ncomputer. While reflective of his natural creative genius and artistry, much of\nhis early work fell below his professor\u2019s expectations. He contemplated\nquitting school about a year into his studies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then it all started to click for\nTuan. The persistence, creativity, and a newfound commitment to servant\nleadership that helped him turn his life around began to inspire his work. He\nbegan to seek and accept help from peers and his professors. And he began to\nfind other ways to give back to the local community, including cutting hair for\nstudents and residents in a local retirement community. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The immense creativity of Tuan\u2019s\nwork, his leadership, and his ability to accept and incorporate feedback caught\nthe eye of Kerry Soukup, an FHSU alum and an executive with Leo Burnett\nWorldwide, a prestigious advertising agency in Chicago. In 2014, Kerry offered\nthe recently graduated an internship. Tuan suggested that he probably would not\npass a background check and initially declined the offer. But Kerry saw\nsomething special in Tuan. She and her Leo Burnett colleagues asked for a\ncouple of days to consider options. When she called back a few days later,\nKerry didn\u2019t offer Tuan the internship but a full-time job as an art director\ninstead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tuan enjoyed a remarkable career\nwith Leo Burnett, but in January of 2021, Tuan, the servant leader, decided it\nwas time to venture out on his own. More than a year later, he now leads or is\ninvolved in several non-profit organizations in Chicago, including an\norganization he created called Chicago Peace (https:\/\/www.chicagopeace.org\/<\/a>). This\ngroup works to revitalize neighborhoods by building bridges between\nstakeholders through partnerships, education, the arts, compassion, and\nentrepreneurship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n