Journey began in 2007

Thuy began to prepare her family for immigration in 2007. She studied Human Resources practices and the global job market for HR professionals, explored the world's diversity with her children, developed their English language skills and did her homework on the countries that offered the best work-life balance.

“I searched and compared many countries before making the decision to choose Canada. Canada gives me what I want: A high quality of life, safety and peacefulness, and publicly funded health care. “

Thuy and her children, then 18 and 15, landed in Fredericton, New Brunswick from Vietnam in 2014. While her children attended school, she worked first for Yorkville University, then the Government of New Brunswick and Forest Protection Limited .

Now Thuy lives in Halifax and is enjoying a career as a Human Resources Business Partner with EHS Medical Communications Centre Inc. — a Medavie Health Services operating company in Nova Scotia. Her son and daughter are graduated from the University of New Brunswick’s Electrical Engineering program and working hard to obtain their Professional Engineer Licences, and she is actively giving back to the country that welcomed them as new immigrants.

They officially became Canadian citizens in January 2019 — a “huge milestone” for her and her children.

When asked what she likes most about living in Canada, her answer is the generosity of Canadians, the country’s history, and its scenic beauty.

“People offer to help each other. They care for their communities and their neighbours, and Canada’s history and landscape are two things I can’t find enough time to discover.”

Her plan to celebrate Canada Day this year? “I want to start my quarterly contribution to the IWK Foundation to support children and women’s health.”

“Charity has occupied a big space in my heart since I was a teenager, and I try to contribute in different ways.”

Exemplifying Medavie’s values of being caring and community-minded, Thuy is helping to establish a peer-to-peer support program at EMC’s Medical Communication Centre for her women colleagues called Cup of Positivitea. The goal is to "empower women and support them to work confidently and thrive within the division."

Serves on DEI Council

Thuy is also a member of Medavie's Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Council, which is comprised of employees dedicated to ensuring that Medavie is continuously progressing towards a more inclusive environment.

Why does she feel it’s important to serve on this council?

"First and foremost, I am grateful to be an employee of Medavie, where DEI gets strong support from top management and lives within us daily. Secondly and importantly, I came from a different country with a different background."

“I believe that by serving on Medavie’s DEI Council, I will have more opportunities to contribute my DEI experience to help make Medavie a DEI world leader and explore opportunities for EMC to participate in deploying Medavie DEI strategies. My dream is to make EMC employees proud of EMC for its DEI.”

Far from her native country

What she likes least about Canada is the distance that separates it and her native country. “It takes too long to fly to visit Vietnam.”

Known for her laughter, Thuy’s favourite activities outside of work are playing piano, gardening, and spending time with her children, who, on July 1, will no doubt be reflecting on their journey to Canada nine years ago.

However, it's not just on Canada Day that she and her family join their fellow Canadians in proudly waving the country's flag. The two outstanding characters Thuy sees in Canadians – caring and humility – and the historical charm of Halifax ― fill her with Canadian pride every day.