Extra! Extra! Read all about...Chinh.
Viễn Đông Daily News, May 2012: 18 Years Later, Daughter Reunites With Mother
The Oklahoman, May 11, 2012: Vietnamese-American Chinh Doan realizes her American dream
Chinh Doan and her mother, Tu Tran, were reunited in May in Oklahoma City after 18 years living half a world apart.
Watch video and photo gallery: http://newsok.com/article/3674800
When Chinh Doan and her mother, Tu Tran, stepped off an airplane arm-in-arm on May 7th, 2012, in Oklahoma City, a joyful group of friends and family was there to greet the pair.
They were celebrating the conclusion of a heart-wrenching journey of thousands of miles, countless tears and almost 18 years.
Doan, 22, and her mother will spend this Mother's Day together, finally, after having lived half a world apart for nearly two decades. Doan moved to the United States with her father 18 years ago; after spending so many years trying to reunite his family, he, too, was waiting at the airport in Oklahoma City to greet his wife and daughter.
“You know when you dream something for so long, when your dream is so big that when it finally gets realized, you actually can't believe that it's realized,” Doan said. “It's been unreal. It's indescribable, really.”
Doan is used to telling other people's stories. This weekend, the Vietnamese-American woman will celebrate graduation from the University of Oklahoma's Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in broadcast journalism.
Doan hopes her own story will inspire others who have a dream that seems bigger than their ability to see it to fruition.
Journey begins
The saga began in Vietnam in 1994, when Doan was 4 and her father, Hoan Doan, was granted permission to move to America through the Humanitarian Operation program.
Hoan Doan had served in the South Vietnamese military for 15 years and helped the United States' military efforts during the Vietnam War. After the fall of Saigon, he was forced into a prison camp. Because he was a prisoner of war and he helped the United States, he was granted asylum to America.
Hoan Doan was allowed to bring only his daughter with him to America. Because of the family's complicated history, he had to leave behind his wife and his six children from a previous marriage.
Tran also previously had been married and had three children from that marriage (only one survives today). She was widowed when her first husband died at sea while fleeing the war. His death couldn't be proven, and this made the U.S. government question the validity of Tran's subsequent marriage to Hoan Doan.
With heavy hearts, father and daughter said goodbye to their family in Vietnam and came to Oklahoma City, where Catholic Charities found them a sponsor.
Trying to bring Tran to America to join her daughter and husband soon became a paperwork nightmare that seemed never-ending.
“We didn't expect for it to take so long,” Chinh Doan said during a recent interview with her mother and father at her side.
At first, it seemed as simple as renewing the couple's marriage certificate to satisfy government red tape. Then they were told Hoan Doan would have to attain U.S. citizenship and have financial assets in order to sponsor Tran in America.
So Hoan Doan went to work, diligently trying to save money and gain citizenship, which would take at least five years, he thought.
One of his first jobs in America was as a janitor at The Oklahoman. Neither he nor his daughter spoke English, but Chinh Doan was immensely proud of her father, who she thought was a journalist for the newspaper.
“I told all my friends in the neighborhood that my father worked for the state's largest newspaper,” she said. “And he brings home his work every day.”
He did bring home his work — in the form of scraps of the newspaper that he couldn't bear to throw away.
It was from these scraps of the newspaper that Chinh Doan learned to read English, she said.
Her father's attempts to save money were thwarted when he had an accident, rendering him disabled. He could no longer work. He never became a citizen and couldn't afford to take care of himself and Chinh Doan, much less to qualify to sponsor his wife.
“It's been very hard being without my wife because I longed for a companion and someone to take care of my daughter,” he said in Vietnamese, translated by his daughter. “It was hard to live as if I were single for 18 years.”
As a result of her father's disability, at the age of 10, Chinh Doan moved in with a school friend's family. When that family moved out of state, Chinh Doan lived with her Sunday school teacher, Donna Wyskup, who accepted her as a daughter.
Wyskup would become Chinh Doan's “American mommy” and see her through high school, winning scholarships and grants that paid for her college education, and encouraging her to follow her dreams, no matter how difficult they seemed.
Wyskup, who had no children of her own, told Chinh Doan, “Jesus had saved room in my heart because He knew you were going to come along,” according to story written by Chinh Doan about her journey and distributed by friends.
Hard work pays off
When Chinh Doan turned 18, she became a naturalized citizen but would have to wait until age 21 to qualify to sponsor her mother. Unfortunately, at 21, her status as a student prevented her sponsorship eligibility.
Finally, in April, after 18 years of unsuccessful efforts to bring her mother to America, Chinh Doan's hard work paid off.
She was approved to sponsor her mother, just in time for her graduation and Mother's Day.
The week before graduation and final examinations, Chinh Doan flew to Vietnam to help her mother say goodbye to her family there.
Mother and daughter boarded a plane leaving Tan Son Nhat International Airport that would deliver them to their new life together in Oklahoma City.
“Her dreams and aspirations are for me to graduate and find a good job that makes me happy,” Chinh Doan said, translating the sentiments of her mother.
“And she really wants me to live nearby. That's her dream, for me to live nearby, so that way, after work every day, I can come home or at least visit them. She wants to make me dinner and take care of me and nurture me and make up for 18 years.”
Chinh Doan said she realizes her dream of reuniting her family didn't come without the help of many caring people, much determination and many, many prayers.
“I don't like to take the credit for it because no one person could do this by themselves,” she said.
Chinh Doan said she is sharing her family's story in hopes that it will inspire others who may be working toward a similarly lofty dream.
“Maybe it's OK that I step back from my usual role (as a journalist) and share a little bit of me if I think it's going to help someone,” she said. “I have proven that some dreams are really big, it's true, but that doesn't mean that the dream is impossible.
“With patience and determination and a lot of encouragement and help from family and friends and lots of prayers, anything is possible.”
Watch video and photo gallery: http://newsok.com/article/3674800
When Chinh Doan and her mother, Tu Tran, stepped off an airplane arm-in-arm on May 7th, 2012, in Oklahoma City, a joyful group of friends and family was there to greet the pair.
They were celebrating the conclusion of a heart-wrenching journey of thousands of miles, countless tears and almost 18 years.
Doan, 22, and her mother will spend this Mother's Day together, finally, after having lived half a world apart for nearly two decades. Doan moved to the United States with her father 18 years ago; after spending so many years trying to reunite his family, he, too, was waiting at the airport in Oklahoma City to greet his wife and daughter.
“You know when you dream something for so long, when your dream is so big that when it finally gets realized, you actually can't believe that it's realized,” Doan said. “It's been unreal. It's indescribable, really.”
Doan is used to telling other people's stories. This weekend, the Vietnamese-American woman will celebrate graduation from the University of Oklahoma's Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication with a degree in broadcast journalism.
Doan hopes her own story will inspire others who have a dream that seems bigger than their ability to see it to fruition.
Journey begins
The saga began in Vietnam in 1994, when Doan was 4 and her father, Hoan Doan, was granted permission to move to America through the Humanitarian Operation program.
Hoan Doan had served in the South Vietnamese military for 15 years and helped the United States' military efforts during the Vietnam War. After the fall of Saigon, he was forced into a prison camp. Because he was a prisoner of war and he helped the United States, he was granted asylum to America.
Hoan Doan was allowed to bring only his daughter with him to America. Because of the family's complicated history, he had to leave behind his wife and his six children from a previous marriage.
Tran also previously had been married and had three children from that marriage (only one survives today). She was widowed when her first husband died at sea while fleeing the war. His death couldn't be proven, and this made the U.S. government question the validity of Tran's subsequent marriage to Hoan Doan.
With heavy hearts, father and daughter said goodbye to their family in Vietnam and came to Oklahoma City, where Catholic Charities found them a sponsor.
Trying to bring Tran to America to join her daughter and husband soon became a paperwork nightmare that seemed never-ending.
“We didn't expect for it to take so long,” Chinh Doan said during a recent interview with her mother and father at her side.
At first, it seemed as simple as renewing the couple's marriage certificate to satisfy government red tape. Then they were told Hoan Doan would have to attain U.S. citizenship and have financial assets in order to sponsor Tran in America.
So Hoan Doan went to work, diligently trying to save money and gain citizenship, which would take at least five years, he thought.
One of his first jobs in America was as a janitor at The Oklahoman. Neither he nor his daughter spoke English, but Chinh Doan was immensely proud of her father, who she thought was a journalist for the newspaper.
“I told all my friends in the neighborhood that my father worked for the state's largest newspaper,” she said. “And he brings home his work every day.”
He did bring home his work — in the form of scraps of the newspaper that he couldn't bear to throw away.
It was from these scraps of the newspaper that Chinh Doan learned to read English, she said.
Her father's attempts to save money were thwarted when he had an accident, rendering him disabled. He could no longer work. He never became a citizen and couldn't afford to take care of himself and Chinh Doan, much less to qualify to sponsor his wife.
“It's been very hard being without my wife because I longed for a companion and someone to take care of my daughter,” he said in Vietnamese, translated by his daughter. “It was hard to live as if I were single for 18 years.”
As a result of her father's disability, at the age of 10, Chinh Doan moved in with a school friend's family. When that family moved out of state, Chinh Doan lived with her Sunday school teacher, Donna Wyskup, who accepted her as a daughter.
Wyskup would become Chinh Doan's “American mommy” and see her through high school, winning scholarships and grants that paid for her college education, and encouraging her to follow her dreams, no matter how difficult they seemed.
Wyskup, who had no children of her own, told Chinh Doan, “Jesus had saved room in my heart because He knew you were going to come along,” according to story written by Chinh Doan about her journey and distributed by friends.
Hard work pays off
When Chinh Doan turned 18, she became a naturalized citizen but would have to wait until age 21 to qualify to sponsor her mother. Unfortunately, at 21, her status as a student prevented her sponsorship eligibility.
Finally, in April, after 18 years of unsuccessful efforts to bring her mother to America, Chinh Doan's hard work paid off.
She was approved to sponsor her mother, just in time for her graduation and Mother's Day.
The week before graduation and final examinations, Chinh Doan flew to Vietnam to help her mother say goodbye to her family there.
Mother and daughter boarded a plane leaving Tan Son Nhat International Airport that would deliver them to their new life together in Oklahoma City.
“Her dreams and aspirations are for me to graduate and find a good job that makes me happy,” Chinh Doan said, translating the sentiments of her mother.
“And she really wants me to live nearby. That's her dream, for me to live nearby, so that way, after work every day, I can come home or at least visit them. She wants to make me dinner and take care of me and nurture me and make up for 18 years.”
Chinh Doan said she realizes her dream of reuniting her family didn't come without the help of many caring people, much determination and many, many prayers.
“I don't like to take the credit for it because no one person could do this by themselves,” she said.
Chinh Doan said she is sharing her family's story in hopes that it will inspire others who may be working toward a similarly lofty dream.
“Maybe it's OK that I step back from my usual role (as a journalist) and share a little bit of me if I think it's going to help someone,” she said. “I have proven that some dreams are really big, it's true, but that doesn't mean that the dream is impossible.
“With patience and determination and a lot of encouragement and help from family and friends and lots of prayers, anything is possible.”
Red Dirt Journal, June 10, 2012: The Journey of Chinh Doan, The triumph of a not-so-average college student
While most women were looking for the perfect outfit or planning their post-graduation receptions, Chinh Doan was busy trying to get her mother to America.
Chinh, who graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a degree in broadcast journalism in May, has spent most of her life trying to fulfill her dream to move her mother from Vietnam to America and having a happy family.
Two weeks before graduation, Chinh was told that her mother could move to the United States in time for her graduation.
Chinh said it was a dream she still can't believe came true.
“It’s kind of giving back to them (her parents) for all of the sacrifices they made for me,” she said. “I think it’s worth it.”
Chinh is spending the summer in New York City for a fellowship and will be working with CBS News. But her road to the Big Apple wasn’t a paved one.
Chinh and her father, Hoan Doan, moved to the United States from Vietnam when she was 4 years old.
In the late 1990s, her father was granted permission to move to the U.S. after Congress passed a bill allowing those who served for three or more years as a prisoner of war to move to America as refugees for their protection.
It seemed like a perfect chance to give their only child together a chance at a better life (both Hoan and Tran have children from previous marriages). But to due to an accusation of marriage fraud against her mother, only Chinh and her father were allowed to move to the U.S.
“When my family found out that we had the opportunity to move to the United States, we were ecstatic,” Doan said. “We were so poor and we knew there would be no future for me if we stayed in Vietnam.”
So Chinh and her father moved.
They came to Oklahoma City because the Catholic charities who sponsored them were here. The Doans weren’t familiar with the U.S. so it was chosen for them.
She said she had grown up in a house made out of banana leaves, so she and her father didn’t have much to bring.
Chinh had to adapt to her new community, language, culture and food.
At age 12, Chinh wanted to become a journalist. Her father’s first job was a custodian at the state's largest newspaper, The Oklahoman. Thinking that her father worked for the paper as a writer, she would read scraps of the paper that he brought home every day. This was how she learned to speak English.
When she learned that her dad wasn’t a writer, Chinh still was interested in the articles and publications that he brought home.
She grew up watching local television with father before going to bed every night.
“That’s where my love for journalism grew, from the newspaper to the TV news,” Chinh said.
In high school, she took part in her school's yearbook.
Chinh knew she had to gain her citizenship when she turned 18 to start the process of getting her mother to the United States. She took her citizenship test, which would allow her to bring her mother to the U.S., while participating in the Oklahoma Institute for Diversity in Journalism in Norman, Okla., in 2008.
But she ran into some walls that made it difficult to move her mother here.
Doan started petitioning to get her mother to the U.S. a year before her college graduation.
She was a college student working for herself, her father and her mother.
But somehow, she managed to squeeze in opportunities to advance her career as a journalist.
While at OU, Doan gained experience at The Today Show, the Oklahoma City Thunder, KFOR News Channel 4, Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum, Greater Grads, OU Nightly News, The Oklahoma Daily and Routes TV.
Bob Dickey, OU Nightly News director and instructor, worked with Chinh while she was a journalism student at the university.
“Chinh is a delightful person with a lot of energy. She’s a well-rounded journalist,” he said.
Few knew the responsibilities she took on for her family. She paid her bills as a college student and for her father’s, sent $100 to her mother every month, and saved money to bring her mother to America.
She didn’t have a salary to sponsor her mother’s move so she started making and selling hair accessories in boutiques and philanthropy events.
After hearing about the financial demands it took to bring her mother over, members of her Tri Delta sorority, university officials and various organizations pitched in.
The entire process took about six months. Two months before graduation, all the documents were gathered, but the process wasn’t moving fast enough.
Chinh wrote to OU President David Boren, who then contacted his son, U.S. Congressman Dan Boren, who eventually moved the process along.
Doan flew to Washington, D.C., to petition officials to speed the process. After letters from her and Boren, officials agreed to move up the date of the required interview of her mother.
Chinh said many obstacles came up but she never stopped pushing to bring her mother to America.
Chinh said her attitude was: “We've got to keep pushing. We [have] to find ways.”
Chinh’s mother arrived just a few days before graduation. Tran was terrified. She had never been out of the country. She didn’t know English.
So Chinh flew to Vietnam to bring her back. Chinh had visited Vietnam five times but hadn’t lived with both parents since she was just a child.
Chinh was excited to see what it would be like to finally be a family.
“I still can’t believe that my [dream came true],” Chinh said.
The first night in the new apartment that Chinh got for her parents, she saw something that she had waited so long to see — her family.
“This is the moment that I have been dreaming of all my life. I wanted to share it with everyone that had been so supportive,” Chinh said. “My story is something that everyone can relate to. It’s about not giving up on your biggest dream.”
Chinh, who graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a degree in broadcast journalism in May, has spent most of her life trying to fulfill her dream to move her mother from Vietnam to America and having a happy family.
Two weeks before graduation, Chinh was told that her mother could move to the United States in time for her graduation.
Chinh said it was a dream she still can't believe came true.
“It’s kind of giving back to them (her parents) for all of the sacrifices they made for me,” she said. “I think it’s worth it.”
Chinh is spending the summer in New York City for a fellowship and will be working with CBS News. But her road to the Big Apple wasn’t a paved one.
Chinh and her father, Hoan Doan, moved to the United States from Vietnam when she was 4 years old.
In the late 1990s, her father was granted permission to move to the U.S. after Congress passed a bill allowing those who served for three or more years as a prisoner of war to move to America as refugees for their protection.
It seemed like a perfect chance to give their only child together a chance at a better life (both Hoan and Tran have children from previous marriages). But to due to an accusation of marriage fraud against her mother, only Chinh and her father were allowed to move to the U.S.
“When my family found out that we had the opportunity to move to the United States, we were ecstatic,” Doan said. “We were so poor and we knew there would be no future for me if we stayed in Vietnam.”
So Chinh and her father moved.
They came to Oklahoma City because the Catholic charities who sponsored them were here. The Doans weren’t familiar with the U.S. so it was chosen for them.
She said she had grown up in a house made out of banana leaves, so she and her father didn’t have much to bring.
Chinh had to adapt to her new community, language, culture and food.
At age 12, Chinh wanted to become a journalist. Her father’s first job was a custodian at the state's largest newspaper, The Oklahoman. Thinking that her father worked for the paper as a writer, she would read scraps of the paper that he brought home every day. This was how she learned to speak English.
When she learned that her dad wasn’t a writer, Chinh still was interested in the articles and publications that he brought home.
She grew up watching local television with father before going to bed every night.
“That’s where my love for journalism grew, from the newspaper to the TV news,” Chinh said.
In high school, she took part in her school's yearbook.
Chinh knew she had to gain her citizenship when she turned 18 to start the process of getting her mother to the United States. She took her citizenship test, which would allow her to bring her mother to the U.S., while participating in the Oklahoma Institute for Diversity in Journalism in Norman, Okla., in 2008.
But she ran into some walls that made it difficult to move her mother here.
Doan started petitioning to get her mother to the U.S. a year before her college graduation.
She was a college student working for herself, her father and her mother.
But somehow, she managed to squeeze in opportunities to advance her career as a journalist.
While at OU, Doan gained experience at The Today Show, the Oklahoma City Thunder, KFOR News Channel 4, Oklahoma City National Memorial and Museum, Greater Grads, OU Nightly News, The Oklahoma Daily and Routes TV.
Bob Dickey, OU Nightly News director and instructor, worked with Chinh while she was a journalism student at the university.
“Chinh is a delightful person with a lot of energy. She’s a well-rounded journalist,” he said.
Few knew the responsibilities she took on for her family. She paid her bills as a college student and for her father’s, sent $100 to her mother every month, and saved money to bring her mother to America.
She didn’t have a salary to sponsor her mother’s move so she started making and selling hair accessories in boutiques and philanthropy events.
After hearing about the financial demands it took to bring her mother over, members of her Tri Delta sorority, university officials and various organizations pitched in.
The entire process took about six months. Two months before graduation, all the documents were gathered, but the process wasn’t moving fast enough.
Chinh wrote to OU President David Boren, who then contacted his son, U.S. Congressman Dan Boren, who eventually moved the process along.
Doan flew to Washington, D.C., to petition officials to speed the process. After letters from her and Boren, officials agreed to move up the date of the required interview of her mother.
Chinh said many obstacles came up but she never stopped pushing to bring her mother to America.
Chinh said her attitude was: “We've got to keep pushing. We [have] to find ways.”
Chinh’s mother arrived just a few days before graduation. Tran was terrified. She had never been out of the country. She didn’t know English.
So Chinh flew to Vietnam to bring her back. Chinh had visited Vietnam five times but hadn’t lived with both parents since she was just a child.
Chinh was excited to see what it would be like to finally be a family.
“I still can’t believe that my [dream came true],” Chinh said.
The first night in the new apartment that Chinh got for her parents, she saw something that she had waited so long to see — her family.
“This is the moment that I have been dreaming of all my life. I wanted to share it with everyone that had been so supportive,” Chinh said. “My story is something that everyone can relate to. It’s about not giving up on your biggest dream.”
ABC News, November 17, 2010: Unfriend Day? Not for Girl With 5,000 Facebook Friends
By KI MAE HEUSSNER NOV. 17, 2010 "All for un and un for all." So said comedian Jimmy Kimmel, promoting today's "National Unfriend Day."
Arguing (with a smile) that bloated Facebook friend lists are undermining true friendship, the late-night host launched a national "campaign" to shed fake friends on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" two weeks ago.
But as Facebook users around the country start trimming their "friend fat," an Oklahoma student, who has reached the social networking site's limit of 5,000 friends, insists that she really doesn't have much to cut.
Chinh Doan, a 20-year-old journalism major at the University of Oklahoma, says she has been on Facebook for five years. Although she knows that her friend count is unusually high (Facebook says the average user has 130 friends), Doan said she is cautious about whom she accepts as a friend and has no intention of whittling things down.
"I don't see anything wrong with having that many Facebook friends. I know Jimmy Kimmel likes to say that it's impossible to get to know that many people and there's not a point in it," she said. "I can't say I know all of my 5,000 friends well. But what better, easier way to get to know people on your own time? And they can get to know you on your own time. I just keeps staying in contact a lot easier."
Can You Really Know Thousands of Facebook Friends? Technically, Doan has 4,847 friends and 123 "likes" on Facebook. But since the site counts both numbers against a user's friend count, she's had to think more carefully about the friends and fan pages she adds.
To keep adding friends, she's had to "unlike" content on Facebook. But will she take advantage of Kimmel's made-up holiday to get rid of a few friends?
"Probably not," she said.
Kimmel might insist that no one – not even Oprah Winfrey – can have 800 friends, but Doan said, "to each his own."
"Some people want to share with just their closest friends and that's great," she said. "There are others, like me, who really want to enjoy networking and getting to know people."
Even though she might post her typical three to four daily status updates, she said she doesn't want to focus on Facebook over school today.
"It might sound silly to some people, but days like today should serve as a reminder to people about the role of social media now in today's world, and the importance of being cautious when using social media," she said.
But other Facebook users said they are grateful for the excuse to clean the cobwebs out of their friend lists.
Facebook Users Appreciate Excuse to Ditch Virtual Friends "I've always wanted to delete some of these people," said Amber Kay Dejarlo, a 22-year-old from Fayetteville, Ark. "I'm tired of reading their status updates."
She said she's wanted to delete a few of her so-called "friends" for a while, but felt too guilty about cutting ties with people who were still friends of friends. Thanks to Kimmel, she said she had an excuse and has already axed about 30 friends online.
Merry Causey, 28, of Madisonville, Tex., said she plans to delete about 100 Facebook friends today.
"If it's been years since I've even talked to these people then, more than likely, they're going to be cut," she said.
But before she sets them free, she posted a warning on her Facebook page: "Ok guys. I am serious about cleaning my list up today. If you are wanting to stay let me know."
Others on Facebook are filling newsfeeds across the site with congratulations to those who made the cut -- and apologies to their virtual victims who didn't.
"Friendship is a sacred thing and I believe Facebook is cheapening it," he said. "I go on this Facebook, I see people with thousands of what they call friends. This is impossible, you can't have a thousand friends. Here's how you can tell who on Facebook is really your friend: Let's say on Friday, you post a status update that says 'I'm moving this weekend and I need help.' The people that respond, those are your friends. Everyone else isn't."
Jimmy Kimmel's Tough Talk for Facebook Watch Video Lisa Kudrow Joins National Unfriend Day Watch Video National Unfriend Day Gets a Song Watch Video In response to Kimmel's "holiday," Facebook issued a tongue-in-cheek statement of its own: "Jimmy Kimmel's Facebook campaign is clever so we're keeping him on our friend list for now. But just remember Jimmy, it's one thing to be the "unfriender", but it's a whole different story if you're the "unfriended."
Over the past couple of weeks, Kimmel has continued his campaign, encouraging viewers to drop their fake Facebook friends on "National Unfriend Day." "It's a special day on which Facebook users, which most of you probably are, without guilt or fear of retribution, can unfriend those people who are not really your friends," he said. "And don't we all have at least one person in our virtual lives we'd like to get rid of? Of course we do, we probably have 100 of them."
Actress Lisa Kudrow, Band WAR Show Support for Unfriend Day He convinced the band WAR to rerecord the lyrics to their hit "Why can't we be friends?" with the refrain "What can't we unfriend?"
And he even asked one of television's most famous "friends," actress Lisa Kudrow, to record a mock PSA for his national holiday.
"Your friends on Facebook are not your real friends. Real friends are people you meet at Central Park. People who watch you play guitar and sing and pretend to like your cat no matter how bad it smells. Real friends have hair styles named after them," she said. "On November 17, dump your fake friends before they ruin your day, your week, your month or even your year. I know friends. I used to be one."
Arguing (with a smile) that bloated Facebook friend lists are undermining true friendship, the late-night host launched a national "campaign" to shed fake friends on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" two weeks ago.
But as Facebook users around the country start trimming their "friend fat," an Oklahoma student, who has reached the social networking site's limit of 5,000 friends, insists that she really doesn't have much to cut.
Chinh Doan, a 20-year-old journalism major at the University of Oklahoma, says she has been on Facebook for five years. Although she knows that her friend count is unusually high (Facebook says the average user has 130 friends), Doan said she is cautious about whom she accepts as a friend and has no intention of whittling things down.
"I don't see anything wrong with having that many Facebook friends. I know Jimmy Kimmel likes to say that it's impossible to get to know that many people and there's not a point in it," she said. "I can't say I know all of my 5,000 friends well. But what better, easier way to get to know people on your own time? And they can get to know you on your own time. I just keeps staying in contact a lot easier."
Can You Really Know Thousands of Facebook Friends? Technically, Doan has 4,847 friends and 123 "likes" on Facebook. But since the site counts both numbers against a user's friend count, she's had to think more carefully about the friends and fan pages she adds.
To keep adding friends, she's had to "unlike" content on Facebook. But will she take advantage of Kimmel's made-up holiday to get rid of a few friends?
"Probably not," she said.
Kimmel might insist that no one – not even Oprah Winfrey – can have 800 friends, but Doan said, "to each his own."
"Some people want to share with just their closest friends and that's great," she said. "There are others, like me, who really want to enjoy networking and getting to know people."
Even though she might post her typical three to four daily status updates, she said she doesn't want to focus on Facebook over school today.
"It might sound silly to some people, but days like today should serve as a reminder to people about the role of social media now in today's world, and the importance of being cautious when using social media," she said.
But other Facebook users said they are grateful for the excuse to clean the cobwebs out of their friend lists.
Facebook Users Appreciate Excuse to Ditch Virtual Friends "I've always wanted to delete some of these people," said Amber Kay Dejarlo, a 22-year-old from Fayetteville, Ark. "I'm tired of reading their status updates."
She said she's wanted to delete a few of her so-called "friends" for a while, but felt too guilty about cutting ties with people who were still friends of friends. Thanks to Kimmel, she said she had an excuse and has already axed about 30 friends online.
Merry Causey, 28, of Madisonville, Tex., said she plans to delete about 100 Facebook friends today.
"If it's been years since I've even talked to these people then, more than likely, they're going to be cut," she said.
But before she sets them free, she posted a warning on her Facebook page: "Ok guys. I am serious about cleaning my list up today. If you are wanting to stay let me know."
Others on Facebook are filling newsfeeds across the site with congratulations to those who made the cut -- and apologies to their virtual victims who didn't.
"Friendship is a sacred thing and I believe Facebook is cheapening it," he said. "I go on this Facebook, I see people with thousands of what they call friends. This is impossible, you can't have a thousand friends. Here's how you can tell who on Facebook is really your friend: Let's say on Friday, you post a status update that says 'I'm moving this weekend and I need help.' The people that respond, those are your friends. Everyone else isn't."
Jimmy Kimmel's Tough Talk for Facebook Watch Video Lisa Kudrow Joins National Unfriend Day Watch Video National Unfriend Day Gets a Song Watch Video In response to Kimmel's "holiday," Facebook issued a tongue-in-cheek statement of its own: "Jimmy Kimmel's Facebook campaign is clever so we're keeping him on our friend list for now. But just remember Jimmy, it's one thing to be the "unfriender", but it's a whole different story if you're the "unfriended."
Over the past couple of weeks, Kimmel has continued his campaign, encouraging viewers to drop their fake Facebook friends on "National Unfriend Day." "It's a special day on which Facebook users, which most of you probably are, without guilt or fear of retribution, can unfriend those people who are not really your friends," he said. "And don't we all have at least one person in our virtual lives we'd like to get rid of? Of course we do, we probably have 100 of them."
Actress Lisa Kudrow, Band WAR Show Support for Unfriend Day He convinced the band WAR to rerecord the lyrics to their hit "Why can't we be friends?" with the refrain "What can't we unfriend?"
And he even asked one of television's most famous "friends," actress Lisa Kudrow, to record a mock PSA for his national holiday.
"Your friends on Facebook are not your real friends. Real friends are people you meet at Central Park. People who watch you play guitar and sing and pretend to like your cat no matter how bad it smells. Real friends have hair styles named after them," she said. "On November 17, dump your fake friends before they ruin your day, your week, your month or even your year. I know friends. I used to be one."
The Oklahoman, November 17, 2010: OU student reaches Facebook limit
Chinh Doan, of Oklahoma City, cannot accept new Facebook friends until she "unfriends" some of her contacts, a task she may undertake today, which is National UnFriend Day.
Watch video and photo gallery: http://newsok.com/article/3515223
Doan, an OU junior from Oklahoma City, said since reaching 5,000 Facebook friends, she has been unable to accept new friend requests until she deletes, or "unfriends", some of her contacts.
Facebook's fact page says the average user has 130 friends and is connected to 80 groups, events or community pages.
"How can you put a limit on friendships?" Doan asked. "But it's not just friends; that includes likes and groups, too."
Doan and many others are being encouraged today to trim their number of Facebook friends by late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, who declared this "National UnFriend Day."
The satirical observance is a day dedicated to clearing out Facebook friends who barely are acquaintances to "protect the sacred nature of friendship."
Doan thinks Kimmel might be on to something, even if she wasn't at her Facebook limit.
"I guess it's like going through your closet and asking, 'Hey, when was the last time you wore this shirt, like five years ago?'" she said. "There are some people, I suppose, that I haven't seen or talked to in a long time."
Doan said she likes Facebook for its social networking ease.
She has no idea how she amassed so many contacts since joining Facebook five years ago, but deleting hundreds, if not thousands, of them won't be easy.
She has gotten rid of some 'likes' and group pages from when she attended Putnam City High School but has yet to unfriend anyone. She still doesn't want to.
Doan said going through her friend list also will provide an opportunity to review her profile and site content for what to keep public and what items to mark specifically for friends. But that review won't make unfriending anyone any easier.
"I love staying connected to people, and I have a hard time letting go of things," Doan said.
"So maybe even if there are some friends who I don't talk to that much anymore, maybe I do want to talk to them now that I've noticed we don't talk much anymore."
Watch video and photo gallery: http://newsok.com/article/3515223
Doan, an OU junior from Oklahoma City, said since reaching 5,000 Facebook friends, she has been unable to accept new friend requests until she deletes, or "unfriends", some of her contacts.
Facebook's fact page says the average user has 130 friends and is connected to 80 groups, events or community pages.
"How can you put a limit on friendships?" Doan asked. "But it's not just friends; that includes likes and groups, too."
Doan and many others are being encouraged today to trim their number of Facebook friends by late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel, who declared this "National UnFriend Day."
The satirical observance is a day dedicated to clearing out Facebook friends who barely are acquaintances to "protect the sacred nature of friendship."
Doan thinks Kimmel might be on to something, even if she wasn't at her Facebook limit.
"I guess it's like going through your closet and asking, 'Hey, when was the last time you wore this shirt, like five years ago?'" she said. "There are some people, I suppose, that I haven't seen or talked to in a long time."
Doan said she likes Facebook for its social networking ease.
She has no idea how she amassed so many contacts since joining Facebook five years ago, but deleting hundreds, if not thousands, of them won't be easy.
She has gotten rid of some 'likes' and group pages from when she attended Putnam City High School but has yet to unfriend anyone. She still doesn't want to.
Doan said going through her friend list also will provide an opportunity to review her profile and site content for what to keep public and what items to mark specifically for friends. But that review won't make unfriending anyone any easier.
"I love staying connected to people, and I have a hard time letting go of things," Doan said.
"So maybe even if there are some friends who I don't talk to that much anymore, maybe I do want to talk to them now that I've noticed we don't talk much anymore."
The Oklahoman, May 6, 2010: Three win scholarships
Read more: http://newsok.com/article/3459143
The University of Oklahoma Women’s Association this week announced the winners of three $1,500 scholarships named in honor of OU first ladies. The scholars will be recognized May 7 during the association’s spring luncheon. Courtney Kimbrough, a School of Drama sophomore, will receive the Molly Shi Boren scholarship; Chinh Doan, a sophomore in the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication, will receive the Rose Sharp scholarship; and Jillian Chance, a Religious Studies Program junior, will receive the Cleo Cross scholarship.
The University of Oklahoma Women’s Association this week announced the winners of three $1,500 scholarships named in honor of OU first ladies. The scholars will be recognized May 7 during the association’s spring luncheon. Courtney Kimbrough, a School of Drama sophomore, will receive the Molly Shi Boren scholarship; Chinh Doan, a sophomore in the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication, will receive the Rose Sharp scholarship; and Jillian Chance, a Religious Studies Program junior, will receive the Cleo Cross scholarship.
The Oklahoman, May 20, 2007: Awards Dinner
Read more: http://newsok.com/article/3055331
Executive Women International held its annual Business Career/Development Program awards dinner, and Oklahoma City University executives hosted.
The group gave $20,875 in scholarship awards to high school and adult students. Winners were Devin Newsom, Mallory Caitlyn Kutch, Chinh T. Doan, Lauren Swenson, Aubrey Delafield, Tracie McCoy, Kinu Yamamoto, Ava Jean Phillips, Chantel Johnson and Carla King.
The Oklahoma City chapter of EWI has 65 member firms. Linda Walker Brown is chapter president.
Executive Women International held its annual Business Career/Development Program awards dinner, and Oklahoma City University executives hosted.
The group gave $20,875 in scholarship awards to high school and adult students. Winners were Devin Newsom, Mallory Caitlyn Kutch, Chinh T. Doan, Lauren Swenson, Aubrey Delafield, Tracie McCoy, Kinu Yamamoto, Ava Jean Phillips, Chantel Johnson and Carla King.
The Oklahoma City chapter of EWI has 65 member firms. Linda Walker Brown is chapter president.
