1

API Connection—WINTER 2013

WRITE FOR US Looking for writers with interest in and

knowledge of the Asian & Pacific Islander

communities in Las Vegas.

Photography experience a plus.

Email three writing samples to:

editor@apiconnectLV.com

3

IN THE NEWS

ANNOUNCEMENT: Name Change and New Partnership

LAS VEGAS—The Asian and Pacific Islander Chronicle has changed its name to Asian & Pa-cific Islander CONNECTION. The name change is due to a new partnership with Little Grass Shack Radio and API Me-dia Group, which will produce a related television show currently in development. The name change is also an acknowledgement of the significant strength and diversity of the Asian American and Pacific Islander population in Las Vegas and throughout Nevada, which make up over 7 percent of the state’s population. “Our partnership with the new API Connection is a forward continuation of what we’re all about here at Little Grass Shack Hawaiian Radio, and that is to connect the API communi-ties not only with each other, but with the Las Vegas community as a whole,” said Emory Nihipali, host, director and producer of Little Grass Shack Radio. “As a relatively newcomer to Las Vegas, API Connection is honored to partner with a com-munity icon like Little Grass Shack Radio, and we look forward to showcasing the im-portant stories and our unsung heroes with the ultimate multi-media program,” said Corin Ramos, publisher of API Connection. API Connection will continue to publish a weekly online newsletter of multicultural news and events in Las Vegas, and a quarterly digital magazine. The new web domain will be changed to www.apiconnectLV.com to reflect the new brand. The new API Connection logo makes it debut with the launch of the Winter 2013 issue of API Connection magazine, now available online at http://apiconnectlv.com About Asian & Pacific Islander CONNECTION Asian & Pacific Islander CONNECTION is a quarterly magazine and weekly online newslet-ter aiming to promote greater awareness and understanding of the Asian and Pacific Is-lander American communities and cultures in Nevada, especially in Las Vegas. Visit http://apiconnectlv.com About Little Grass Shack Radio Little Grass Shack, a Hawaiian and Island music radio show broadcasting from the cam-pus of UNLV in Las Vegas, Nevada since 1999, airs live every Saturday morning mid-days from 10am - 1pm PST on KUNV 91.5 FM Las Vegas. Real FM radio streams worldwide on www.littlegrassshack.net

API Connection—WINTER 2013

MISSION STATEMENT Asian & Pacific Islander CONNECTION is a quarterly maga-zine and weekly online newsletter aiming to promote greater awareness and understanding of the Asian and Pacific Islander American communities and cultures in Nevada, especially in Las Vegas. Visit http://apiconnectlv.com The publisher, editors and authors shall not be responsi-ble or liable for any errors, omissions or inaccuracies in this magazine. The views and opinions of API Connection contributing writers are not necessarily the views of API Connection. No material may be reproduced or used with-out written approval of API Connection.

Asian & Pacific Islander CONNECTION

PUBLISHER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Corin Ramos

MANAGING EDITOR Sammy Sun

ASSOCIATE EDITOR

Shay Stockdill

ART DIRECTOR Taylor Winslow

PHOTOGRAPHER

Oscar Nonis

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Kathleen Ja Sook Berquist

Peter Lung Sue Fawn Chung

Rowena Baraan-Krifaton Dr. Terry Wong

EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS Kathleen Ja Sook Bergquist

Rozita Lee Evan Louie

ADVERTISING/MARKETING Walson Communications

702-674-6148 info@walsonpr.com

API CONNECTION 7250 S. Durango Drive, Suite 130, #149

Las Vegas, NV 89178 702-674-6148

www.apiconnectLV.com

About the Cover: PHOTO & COVER DESIGN BY OSCAR NONIS Oscar Nonis is a creative professional in visual commu-nications specializing in graphic designing, website de-velopment, print design and production, social media marketing, commercial photography, advertising and marketing for more than 20 years. Oscar has a strong reputation as a technical and busi-ness visionary. He has strong customer relations skills and has a keen eye for what the customer wants and needs. Oscar is renowned for his strategic thinking and skills to drive a business line to success.

As a leader, Oscar is well-respected, able to influence others and is able to culti-vate strong cross-functional teamwork across organizations. Oscar has built successful and high performing teams in many reputed organiza-tions.

5

TABLE OF CONTENTS

6 SPECIAL: Love in LV, API Style

8 The Dark Side of Love By Kathleen Ja Sook Bergquist

12 Feeling Lucky in Year of the Water Snake By Peter Lung

14 COVER STORY Dr. Suzie Su: Making Vegas Smiles Sexy By Corin Ramos

16 Early Las Vegas’ Chinese Americans By Sue Fawn Chung

20 The Timeless Beauty of Rowena Baraan-Krifaton

22 CNY Events in LV

24 Health Update By Dr. Terry Wong

26 LAST WORD From the Publisher

Ph

oto

: O

sca

r N

on

is F

oto

gra

fix

Ph

oto

: O

sca

r N

on

is F

oto

gra

fix

Ph

oto

: O

sca

r N

on

is F

oto

gra

fix

API Connection—WINTER 2013

“We have been married for

almost 18 years. We have

been a couple for 25 years.

Our secret to success? We

don't really have any. Cry

together. Laugh together.

Work as a team. God helps us

through whatever comes our

way.”

——Sam & Jo Ann Lim and daughter, Samantha

in LV, API style “Family is our foundation of wealth. Many obstacles

in our journey together, but we take it one day at a

time to overcome the negative areas. As we contin-

ue our ways of life with ups and downs living here

in Las Vegas, we thank God for all the blessings that

He has given us and more. Amen.”

——-Emory and Alona Nihipali,

married 11 years

Love

7

What is your ethnicity: Filipino (Juan)

Taiwanese (Sheena)

How long have you been married (together): Together for 4 years, married since June 16 2012

How long have you lived in Las Vegas: Juan has been here for 10 years, Sheena for 4

How did you meet: We met at a student organization while we were in UNLV. It took Juan about 10 months before he

could get a date.

Favorite romantic place/activity in Las Vegas: We love entertaining other young couples and

friends in our home. It's more intimate and there are no tourists.

Secrets to a successful marriage? We met because of our shared passion to volun-teer and serve the community. We still make an

effort to be involved and have been very support-ive of each others' efforts. We'd recommend a

healthy amount of volunteerism to any cou-ple. Double that for AAPI's.

in LV, API style

Juan & Sheena

Serafica

“Happy wife means happy life! Keep it simple; always appreciate. Listen to what

your spouse says, not to how it makes you feel.”

API Connection—WINTER 2013

9

Flowers are used to commemorate life’s important moments, and to communicate emotions and infor-mation. We bring flowers as hostess gifts when visit-ing friends, brides carry bouquets down the aisle, flowers are given to cheer up the ailing or infirmed, mothers and grandmothers are honored every May with corsages or bouquets of spring flowers, new life is celebrated with floral arrangements of pink or blue, and final goodbyes and sorrow are expressed by flow-ers when loved ones pass on.

The language of flowers is complex and nuanced. Meanings and practices vary from culture to culture, rich with symbolism and tradition. The occasion, as well as culture, dictates what flowers are chosen; how they are presented, displayed, or worn; when and to

By Kathleen Ja Sook Bergquist

For most women, receiving

flowers is a happy occasion,

representing the sender’s

love, respect, and perhaps

commitment. But, for some

women flowers represent

empty promises and pain.

The Dark Side of

“Love”

API Connection—WINTER 2013

whom they are presented, and how they should be received. However, the giving of flowers widely symbolizes love, with roses being the most common on Valentine’s Day with the col-or and number of roses com-municating the nature and depth of the love; i.e. red sym-bolizing romantic love and yel-low commonly given in friend-ship.

For most women, receiving flowers is a happy occasion, representing the sender’s love, respect, and perhaps commit-ment. However, for some wom-en flowers represent empty promises and pain.

“I got flowers today,” a po-em by Paulette Kelly (reprinted on page 10) honors battered women. For all the beauty, love, and hope flowers can represent,

“I got flowers today” details the beginning of a honeymoon stage in a cycle of violence – a time that is preceded by vio-lence and often ends with mounting tension, leading to more violence.

A victim of domestic vio-lence wants desperately to be-lieve that the man she fell in love with “just wasn’t himself” when he kicked her, or was un-der a lot of stress when he punched her, or wouldn’t have told her she was “stupid, worth-less, and ugly” if she hadn’t burned the dinner, and is cer-tain that this time he really is sorry.

Domestic violence is not a personal problem. It is not a private family matter. It is eve-ryone’s business and a public health problem. One in four women has been, or will be, subjected to severe physical vi-olence by an intimate partner in her lifetime.

This Valentine’s Day start a new tradition by sharing this poem with the people in your life and start a conversation about domestic violence that could change hearts and save lives.

For more information about how to help someone that is a victim of domestic violence or to learn more about violence against women, please contact Bamboo Bridges at www.BambooBridges.org or (702) 527-2533.

About the author: Kathleen Ja Sook Bergquist is a founding board member of Bamboo Bridges, a non--profit organiza-

tion that seeks to address violence against women in the Asian Pacific American community. She is a com-munity activist, therapist (LCSW), and an attorney. Her "day job" is as an Associate Professor in the School of Social Work at UNLV where she researches issues that impact Asian/Asian American communities to include intercountry adoption, domestic violence, and human trafficking.

One in four women has been, or

will be, subjected to severe physical

violence by an intimate partner in

her lifetime.

11

I got flowers today! It wasn't my birthday or any other spe-cial day. We had our first argument last night; And he said a lot of cruel things that really hurt; I know that he is sorry and didn’t mean to say the things he said; Because he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today. It wasn't our anniversary or any other special day. Last night, he threw me into a wall and started to choke me. It seemed like a nightmare. I couldn't believe that it was real. I woke up this morning sore and bruised all over. I know he must be sorry. Because he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today! It wasn’t our anniversary or any other

special day; Last night he threw me into a wall and then started choking me; It seemed unreal, a nightmare, but you wake up from nightmares; And I woke up this morning sore and bruised all over—but I know he is sorry; Because he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today! And it wasn’t Valentine’s Day or any other special day; Last night he beat me and threatened to kill me; Make-up and long-sleeves didn’t hide the cuts and bruises this time; I couldn’t go to work today because I didn’t want anyone to know-but I know he’s sorry; Because he sent me flowers today. I got flowers today!

And it wasn’t Mother’s Day or any other

special day;

Last night he beat me again, and it was

worse than all of the other times;

If I leave him, what will I do? How will I

take care of the kids? What about mon-

ey?

I’m afraid of him, but I’m too scared

and dependent to leave him! But he

must be sorry;

Because he sent me flowers today.

I got flowers today….

Today was a special day—it was the

day of my funeral;

Last night he killed me;

If only I would have gathered the cour-

age and strength to leave him;

I could have received help from the

Women’s Shelter, but I didn’t ask for

their help;

So I got flowers today—for the last

time.

“I got flowoers today” - by Paulette Kelly

API Connection—WINTER 2013

S nake is the 6th Chinese zodiac

and the year of water snake will

start on February 4, 2013, which is

the first day of spring for the coming

year. The Chinese New Year will

start February 10, 2013 according to

the lunar calendar.

We should bring lots of flowers

and plants in the office or home dur-

ing Chinese New Year; it will help to

bring strong energy and happiness

to you. Wood element represents

wealth in 2013; we should display

strong plants at home to attract

wealth luck.

By Peter Lung

Peter Lung is owner of World Of Feng Shui USA Las Vegas and Honolulu franchise stores and the USA based online store, www.WOFSUSA.com. He is the official feng shui expert con-sultant and teacher for the USA franchise.

Las Vegas feels lucky in

Year of the Water Snake

13

T he luckiest sections in 2013 are North-east, South, North and Northwest. Water fountain

or fish tank should be placed at Northeast sector

of living room for money luck. Metal wind chime

should be hanged at the Northwest and North

sector for strong career, promotion and mentor

luck in 2013. Display plants at South sector for

recognition and fame luck.

Luck for the 12 Chinese zodiac in 2013: RAT (1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008) Rat person will enjoy small wealth luck and there are good stars bring good news to you. Career luck will be changed good after autumn. OX (1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009) Person born in the year of Ox will have strong money luck. Please control your temper and sin-gle person will have big chance to get marry. TIGER (1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010) Tiger person will expect fairly lucky year. There will be unexpected expenses and career luck is unstable. Strong relationship luck for single women. RABBIT (1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011) Rabbit person needs to beware of legal prob-lem. This is the year you should be laid-low. The Travelling Horse star will make you in a busy year. DRAGON (1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012) This is the year for Dragon to be working more behind the scene; Sun and Heaven stars will bring auspicious luck to you. Good year for you to in-vest. HORSE (1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002) The Horse person just recovered from last year. Lucky stars will remove all your obstacles. Male Horse person needs to pay attention to your health.

SHEEP (1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003) Health luck is very bad for you especially female, please carry or display horse at home for better luck. Strong money luck but there is unexpected expenses. MONKEY (1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004) Monkey person needs to control your temper and will face cash flow problem. This is the excellent for you to get marry in 2013. It will help to bring up good energy to you. ROOSTER (1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005) The Rooster will have wealth potential in 2013, however; in return there is a strong chance that you will suffer financial losses by unexpected ex-penses. This is not the good year for you to loan money to others. Fame luck will bring you success this year.

DOG (1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006) Dog person will have windfall this year. Relation-ship luck is very strong in 2013 and beware of legal problem. BOAR (1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007) Boar person will be clashed with the Snake per-son in 2013. This is the year to be laid-low and it will be the busiest year due to the Travelling Horse star. Be patient with you spouse and be-ware of car accident.

SNAKE (1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989,

2001, 2013)

This is your year and will come back

every 12 years. It will be a busy year

and be patient what you have done.

Beware of friends around you; they

may make you lose money.

API Connection—WINTER 2013

Long black hair cascading down the

back of her red silk Malan Breton de-

signer gown, Su’s striking figure and

click-clacking of her steel-tipped

matching stiletto heels, easily turned

heads on that chilly early morning in

downtown Fremont Street.

Su and husband, Sean, are also

familiar faces in Las Vegas’ glitzy

club scene. Photos of the couple

in chic attire, making merry with

other local socialites, often grace

their Facebook pages. For the 2nd

Annual Chinese New Year in the

Desert, Su is co-director of the

event’s Miss AAPI USA Pageant

2013.

But, despite the glamorous exte-

rior and public persona, Su says

she remains firmly grounded in

her Asian roots and focused on

the goals she made long ago—

goals that have brought her from a young child

fleeing Vietnam with her siblings and their single

mother on a boat, to owning Sexy Vegas Smiles, a

successful general and cosmetic dentistry practice.

“Growing up was hard,” recalls Su. A first gen-

eration refugee, Suzie Thu-Ha Nguyen-Su was

raised by a single mom whose first job in America

was cleaning toilets in schools before she found a

job in computer manufacturing. Growing up with

COVER STORY

“I’m really a super nerd… on the inside!”

Dr. Suzie Su laughs when she sees the look

of surprise on her interviewer’s face.

Barely a week ago, the two first met when

Su, a petite Vietnamese American mother of

two and successful Las Vegas dentist and

businesswoman posed for a photo shoot for

the cover of this magazine.

Making Vegas Smiles

By Corin Ramos

15

her two sisters and brother in Orange

County, California, Su focused on what she

already knew then was the key to success:

education.

“I was super nerdy in school and col-

lege,” Su still insists. “I studied all the time,

never went to parties, and before I met

Sean, I had never even been kissed before!

I was a real goody two-shoes!”

T he two met in 1989 when Suzie

was a senior and Sean a sophomore at the

University of California in Irvine. “We met

over the microwave!” the couple laughed,

as they remembered that fateful day when

they were both in the school’s food court

commons, heating up their home made

meals. “You know how we Asian people

are—always on a tight budget at school!”

Having her first boyfriend at that

time failed to distract Su’s focus of main-

taining her independence and im-

portance of family. “At our first dance, I

told Sean that I’m working hard so I can

make my own money and provide for my

family.”

A nd, work hard she did. Su grad-

uated Magna Cum Laude from UCI, and

in 1994 from the UCLA School of Dentis-

try. In 1997 she completed a three-year

specialty program in Advanced Educa-

tion in Periodontics and Implant Dentis-

try.

“If I’m able to say something

appropriate that makes

someone feel better, even

for just a moment, then that

makes me smile, that makes

me happy!”

Continued on page 18

Dr. Suzie Su, Owner of Sexy Vegas Smiles

API Connection—WINTER 2013

By Sue Fawn Chung

Early Las Vegas’

Chinese American Community

U ntil 1990, the Chinese were the

oldest and largest of the Asian

American groups to reside in Las

Vegas. They began settling in Las

Vegas when the town got started in 1905 as an

important provisioning, fueling, and watering

stop on the San Pedro, Los Angeles, and Salt

Lake Railroad line (later the Union Pacific).

17

Most of these early residents had lived in the United States for several decades and became laundrymen, restaurant owners or workers, and boarding house owners or employ-ees.

The 1910 Las Vegas census manu-script listed only two Chinese who worked in their laundry: Sing Chin, age 50, who immigrated in 1880, and Sing Se, age 62, who arrived in the U.S. in 1878, but ne-glected to list Wong Kee, who was well known enough in the community to make the news as the owner of the Arrow-head Restaurant and the Shady Cafe , the latter featuring “Chop Suey, Noodles, [and] China Goods.”

One of the other famous Chinese American was California-born Sam Yet (1869-1932), a miner in Search-light and Goldfield in the 1910s and 1930s who frequently visited Las Vegas and in 1912 was noted as one of the richest Chinese, owning prop-erty worth from $500,000 to $750,000. When Sam Yet died, the Las Vegas Age (September 17, 1932) noted in a laudatory tone that he was “considered a friend by many desert rats” and left his half his for-tune to Sheriff William Hammell, who had befriended him when he was in need.

The census manuscript in 1920 for Las Vegas listed four Chinese: Chan Ying, age 52, a cook who immi-

grated in 1887, Soo Ping, age 33, also a cook who immigrated in 1907, and Guy Wong, age 53, and his partner, Quong Wong, age 55, both of whom had immigrated in 1877 and worked as cooks in a boarding house catering to railroad workers. Like most Chinese, they were proba-bly brothers or relatives since the majority of Chinese migrated to

small towns with friends and rela-tives.

The pace of life remained slow until the early 1930s when the Boul-der Dam construction project began. Although the Chinese could not work on the site due to discrimina-tory legislation written in 1902, the Chinese population grew in the tra-ditional areas of service jobs, such as restaurant work, laundries, and hotels/boarding houses. They also entered the gaming and entertain-ment industries, especially with the legalization of gaming in 1931. Alt-hough Woo Sing had unsuccessfully applied for a gaming license in 1931, he was able to open the “China Town” supper club on South Main Street that featured gourmet cuisine

prepared by Chef Leong, formerly of New York City, and entertainment by performers Bo Ling and Bo Ching, who later spent the next sixty years in the Hollywood movie industry. Other Chinese owned clubs and casi-nos opened thereafter.

Despite discriminatory policies of the 1900s to 1930s, the Chinese were able to prosper in this new

frontier town and be-cause of the necessity to interact with the larger community. With the passage of the 1943 Repeal of the 1882 Chi-

nese Exclusion Act, the character of the Chi-nese American commu-nity changed with the influx of Chinese wom-en (who essentially had been prohibited from

immigration because of the 1875 Page Law) and the establishment of Chinese American families.

———————

About the Author: Sue Fawn Chung is a professor of histo-ry at UNLV, and author of “In Pursuit of Gold: Chinese American Min-ers and Mer-chants in the American West.”

The census manuscript in 1920 for Las Vegas

listed four Chinese: Chan Ying, age 52, a cook

who immigrated in 1887, Soo Ping, age 33, also

a cook who immigrated in 1907, and Guy Wong,

age 53, and his partner, Quong Wong, age 55.

Early Las Vegas’

Chinese American Community

API Connection—WINTER 2013

S oon after moving to Las Vegas 17 years ago, the couple opened their respective practices: Suzie Su established Sexy Vegas Smiles and Sean Su founded Sexy Vegas SkinTM, a medical wellness and anti-aging center providing the latest non-invasive pro-cedures and pharmaceutical grade products.

Sharing the same offices at 2451 Profes-sional Ct. #110 Las Vegas, NV 89128, the couple agrees that it’s not always easy work-ing with your spouse, but the Su’s have made their own rules.

“If you see each other 24/7, make sure you have ‘me’ time,” recommends Sean Su,

whose “me” time is spent mostly on his weekly radio show, “DrSu702: the Sex & Money Show Talk Radio.”

A challenging upbringing without a fa-ther, 17 years of marriage and two children later, Su remains fiercely outspoken. She ad-mits that it’s not a common Asian trait, espe-cially for women, but it is something she at-tributes to her professional success and more importantly, to her personal growth.

“I tell Sean when I’m upset. I don’t hold things in,” says Su. “I’m very open with eve-ryone. And, if I’m able to say something ap-propriate that makes someone feel better, even for just a moment, then that makes me smile, that makes me happy!”

“If you see each other

24/7, make sure you

have some ‘me’ time.”

Continued from page 18

Dr. Sean Su and Dr. Suzie Su

Childhood memories: Su (far left) with her mother,

Van Bui, Uncle Don and siblings, Keith and Cindy.

All photos courtesy of Dr. Suzie Su

19

API Connection—WINTER 2013

Q. Why are you part of the CNY in the dessert Miss AAPI pageant? It’s a great honor and a privilege to be a part of a huge event that pro-motes and advance the causes of the Asian Cul-ture in Las Vegas. As a former Beauty Queen, I’ve held multiple titles in state and inter-national levels. It is an honor to share my expe-riences in Pageantry to the young contestants of Miss AAPI. For me, pageant is a time for self improve-ment and discovery. Some of my best memo-ries are from my years in pageantry, traveling and meeting incredible people who have be-come lifelong friends. It’s an experience of a lifetime which led me to my career as a Personal-ity Growth and Develop-ment Coach, Modeling Instructor and an expe-rienced Pageant judge-National and Interna-tional. My goal is to share my experiences

and what I’ve learned and provide the tools they need to develop themselves and strengthen their charac-ters. Pageant is not just about winning…I am looking to help them build skills necessary to succeed but also create friendships that will last a lifetime…to be the VERY BEST they can be. Q. What is the purpose of the pageant? The purpose is to create cultural awareness. We hope to help these young women get in-volved in the community while learning the tools necessary to succeed in life. It’s also to cultivate and develop young Asian American and Pa-cific Islanders into proud citizens or lead-ers who strive for a bet-ter future. Pageantry is building relationships, having the most fun times while developing self esteem. It also provides a forum to showcase their tal-ents, culture, nurture

Timeless Beauty

Runway Beauty: Roweena at a fashion show modeling international designer, Nunu Guevarra (circa 2000 )

Q@A with ….

21

Timeless Beauty “Pageant is not just about

winning…I am looking to

help young contestants not

only build skills necessary

to succeed, but also create

friendships that will last a

lifetime…to be the VERY

BEST they can be.”

Q@A with ….

Rowena Baraan-Krifaton Pageant Coach & Co-Director, Miss AAPI USA Pageant 2013

and encourage opportunities and as an Ambassador of Goodwill, leave an indelible mark. Pageant can forever change someone’s life! Q. What is the image of the AA-PI women that you would like to share with the Las Vegas community? Asian American and Pacific Is-lander women are strong, intelli-gent and willful. Her beauty is

more than skin deep. She has a strong sense of family values and moral responsibility to maintain a respectable character. Apart from proving her intelli-gence and pleasing personality, she is an advocate for social ser-vice. She is the image of a well rounded, well-educated, success-ful woman and inspiration to oth-ers aspiring to be just like her. ———-

Rowena Baraan-Krifaton holds the title of the first Filipina to win Miss Asia World in 1995. She has modeled for internationally celebrated fashion designers like Versace, Custo of Ma-drid, Calvin Klein, Nunu Guevarra, Ito Kurata, Louie Mamengo, among many others.

The Miss AAPI USA Pageant is part of the Chinese New Year in the Desert celebration from Feb. 8—10 in down-town Las Vegas. For more infor-mation: www.cnyinthedesert.com

Photo: Oscar Nonis Fotografix

API Connection—WINTER 2013

Billie Ann Sabala and the Lohan School of Shaolin lion dance performances are a familiar staple in Las Vegas’ Chinese New Year celebrations. http://www.lvlohans.org/

Chinese/Lunar New Year in the Desert” When: Feb. 8-10, 2013 Where: Fremont Street Downtown Las Vegas

CNY in the Desert festivities include:

Miss AAPI Pageant Downtown Fun Walk/Run McDonald’s Parade Lunar Lantern Festival Fashion Show International Cultural Performances Vendor Village Viva Vision (light show) For more information about “CNY in the Desert” visit their website at: www.cnyinthedesert.com/

Ph

oto

: O

sca

r N

on

is F

oto

gra

fix

23

Penn & Teller headline Summerlin Lions Annual Chinese New Year Dinner Dance – Feb. 23 The Summerlin Lions will be hosting their annual Chinese New Year dinner dance and fundraiser on February 23, 2013 at the JW Mariott in Summerlin starting at 5PM.

Tickets are $85 per person or a table of 10 for $800.

For more information, contact Al Van Gordon at 1413ae@cox.net.

19th annual Chinese New Year Celebration – Feb. 17 Chinese American Chamber of Commerce of Nevada and Chinatown Plaza in Las Vegas are pleased to announce the 19th annual Chinese New Year Celebra-tion / Asian Festival Event. It’s the largest Chinese New Year event in Las Vegas. It’ll take place on Sunday, February 17th from 10 am to 5 pm at the Chinatown Plaza parking lot located at 4255 Spring Mountain Road.

Celebrating the Year of the Snake, over 6,000 community participants will be attending. There will be entertainment, food, and free drawing, in addition to performances like Polynesian Dance, Japanese Taiko drums, lion dance, acro-bats, as well as arts and crafts, jewelries and so on. Come and join the fun!

www.lvchinatown.com or www.lvcacc.org

API Connection—WINTER 2013

You may have wondered, “If I

get hurt in a car accident, who

should I go to for treatment of

my whiplash problem?”

This can be quite a challenge as you have many choices available in the healthcare system ranging from drug-related approaches from anti-inflammatory over-the-counter types all the way to potentially addicting narcotic medications.

On the other side of the fence, there are nutritional based products such as vitamins and herbs as well as “alternative” or “complementary” forms of treatment such as chiropractic, exercise, and meditation, with many oth-ers in between.

Trying to figure out which approach or perhaps com-bined approaches would best serve your needs is truly

challenging. To help answer this question, one study reported the superiority of chiro-practic management for patients with chron-ic whiplash, as well as which type of chronic whiplash patients responded best to the care. The research paper begins with the comment from a leading orthopedic medical journal stating, “Conventional [meaning medical] treatment of patients with whiplash symp-toms is disappointing.” In the study, 93 pa-tients were divided into three groups con-sisting of:

Group 1: Patients with a “coat-hanger” pain distribution (neck and upper shoulders) and loss of neck range of motion (ROM), but no neurological deficits;

Group 2: Patients with neurological prob-lems (arm/hand numbness and/or weak-ness) plus neck pain and ROM loss); and, Group 3: Patients who reported severe neck pain but had normal neck ROM and no neu-rological losses.

The average time from injury to first treatment was 12 months and an average of 19 treatments over a 4 month time frame was utilized. The patients were graded on a 4-point scale that described their symptoms before and after treatment. Grade A patients were pain free; Grade B pa-tients reported their pain as a “nuisance;” Grade C pa-tients had partial activity limitations due to pain; and Grade D patients were disabled.

Here are the results:

Group 1: 72% reported improvement as follows: 24% were asymptomatic, 24% improved by 2 grades, 24% by 1 grade, and 28% reported no improvement.

Group 2: 94% reported improvement as follows: 38% were asymptomatic, 43% improved by 2 grades, 13% by 1 grade, and 6% had no improvement.

Group 3: 27% reported improvement as follows: 0% were asymptomatic, 9% improved by 2 grades, 18% by 1 grade, 64% showed no improvement, and 9% got worse.

HEALTH UPDATE by Dr. Terry Wong

“The Only Proven Effective Treatment”

for Chronic Whiplash?

Dr. Terry Wong is a practicing Chiropractor in Las Vegas specializing in the treatment of automobile accident injuries and restoring structural alignment of the body through chiropractic care. Dr. Wong graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) and received his Doctor of Chiropractic degree and post graduate education in Chiro-practic Orthopedics from the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic. He has over 24 years of clinical experience in the treatment of neck and back conditions. Dr. Wong taught as a faculty member at the Los Angeles College of Chiropractic as an Associate Professor in the department of Principle and Prac-tice and is a published author. Dr. Wong is currently the president of the Las Vegas Asian Chamber of Commerce and has been an active member since 1997. www.desertbackandneckcare.com

25

This study is very important as it illustrates how effective chiropractic care is for patients who have sustained a motor ve-hicle crash with a resulting whiplash injury. It’s important to note the type

of patient presentation that re-sponded best to care had neu-rological complaints and asso-ciated abnormal neck range of motion. This differs from other non-

chiropractic studies where it is reported that patients with neurological dysfunction re-sponded poorly when com-pared to a group similar to the Group A patient here (neck/shoulder pain, reduced neck ROM, and with normal neuro-logical function).

API Connection—WINTER 2013

LAST WORD: From the Publisher

“So, why did you move

to Las Vegas?” In my al-

most two years since

moving here from Califor-

nia, I get asked this ques-

tion a lot. And, I’ve come

to realize that many locals

do, too.

It’s fair enough, I suppose. About 5,000 people move to Las Vegas each month. And each rea-son is as different as the next.

For me, I wanted a fresh start after my twin daughters left for college. After visiting some friends who recently moved here, I fell in love with the desert. I dis-covered a whole new world out-side that two-mile stretch of ho-tels and casinos. I knew then that I found the place I wanted to call home.

Best of all, I discovered a vi-brant and active Asian and Pacif-ic Islander community that had as much Aloha spirit as the one I left behind in California.

About a year ago, I met

Rozita Lee, a dynamic community leader who has lived in Las Vegas for over 30 years. She is also a commissioner of the White House Initiative on Asian Ameri-cans and Pacific Islanders. Rozita became my tipping point and en-tryway into the community. More importantly, I consider Rozita a friend.

Since our launch in June 2011, the API Connection (formerly API Chronicle) weekly electronic newsletter and accom-panying website has grown to include news and events from business and nonprofit groups, local and state government agen-cies, and other organizations seeking to reach the Asian Amer-ican and Pacific Islander commu-nities in Las Vegas and southern Nevada.

Last October, we published its first quarterly digital maga-zine. It has truly been a labor of love, but it is love that is shared by others I’ve met here and who have supported API Chronicle since the beginning.

People like UNLV Professor Kathleen Ja Sook Bergquist, who is also a board member with Bamboo Bridges which does amazing work helping survivors

of domestic violence and human trafficking in the API communi-ty.; Evan Louie of Kona Ice, Las Vegas who is tireless when it comes to supporting the efforts of nonprofits, and especially our public schools here.

A special thank you to Oscar Nonis, photographer and graphic designer who shot and designed this issue’s beautiful cover of Dr. Suzie Su.

So many more, and we can’t wait to write about all of! You inspire us to keep moving for-ward, and we owe you much ma-halo!

On behalf of all of us who come to Las Vegas to “start over,” or just for a new beginning, we wish everyone a happy and pros-perous Year of the Snake!

Starting Over in Las Vegas

Corin Ramos Publisher, Editor-in-Chief

27

API Connection—WINTER 2013