Dr. HoChie Tsai of TaiwaneseAmerican.org spoke at a leadership workshop with the Formosa Association of Student Cultural Ambassadors (FASCA) in the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter. The workshop took place on Nov. 7, from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Culture Center of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Offices in San Francisco (Milpitas).

The Culture Center of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Offices in San Francisco (Milpitas) Director Wei-Zen Wang shared that he has known of HoChie Tsai’s decades-long influence on the Taiwanese American community. He was excited to have HoChie Tsai speak to FASCA SFBA, imparting his experiences and helping members dissect their visions and goals. HoChie Tsai’s workshop included a look at his personal history and experiences with the Taiwanese American community, showing the audience pictures from throughout his lifetime, and an identity-building activity. 

Reflecting on the event, HoChie Tsai explained that the "potential of our young Taiwanese American community is limitless. Oftentimes, our culture & family expectations forget to consider these students’ ability to dream. Through the workshop and exercises, I hope our attendees were able to envision their own value and skills in pursuit of their passions—whether to benefit a better understanding of themselves, their future career paths, the communities they are a part of, or in service to FASCA."

FASCA SFBA member Aydan Tsai was the first to interact with HoChie Tsai. In his words, "HoChie Tsai started from point A and got to point B. He showed us that we are not starting from scratch, as previous generations had already established some framework for Taiwanese American organizations. Instead of starting at point A, we can start at point B and go to points D, E, and beyond".

Parent Lily Miu sat in on the workshop, and said that she had actually met HoChie Tsai 30 years ago, at a Taiwanese-American conference, where she was recruited to join the Taiwanese American Foundation (TAF) camp staff as a counselor. She was inspired to work within the Taiwanese American community and help pass on Taiwanese American identity and culture to the next generation. "HoChie Tsai helped the students to learn more about themselves, diving into their passions and helping them come up with their own mission".

With over 30 attendees, this was a wonderful workshop to help FASCA SFBA members work on their sense of identity and leadership. After the conclusion of the official event, the Q&A line was long; some members even requested that HoChie Tsai return for another session.