word to our mothers

Today, we would like to share a little bit about our mommas,

who we just realized were both in the service industry.

Ellan » Tina's Mom

Ellan was in the service industry for four years and started as a busser. She worked her way up to waitressing (as it was called at the time, for those of you still don't know, it's called serving now) and dabbled in some hostessing. Tina's dad, Robert, was a frequent customer of Ellan's at Pioneer North, a family-owned restaurant in Plattewoods, Missouri. Robert successfully wooed Ellan and on the day they were married, owner Rick Yameen closed the restaurant in honor of their special day. Two years later, they made Tina.

Ly » Linh's Mom

Ly was introduced into the restaurant world by Linh's father, Minh, who had worked in the kitchens of Chinese restaurants for many years. Together, they opened Hollywood Nest, their first restaurant in Portland, Oregon and later Asia Garden and Hunan Express in Kansas City. Ly spent 23 years in the service industry and was a star in the kitchen. She is an amazing cook in her own right, but as a small business owner, she also spent thousands of hours prepping and cleaning. She raised three girls, all who have worked in the service industry as well, but mainly in the front of the house. 'Cause momma's in the kitchen.

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Top Photo: Ellan in her parents' backyard when she was just learning to garden.

These days, she's a pro and knows just about everything about gardening.

Bottom Photo: This is a photo taken by immigration services upon arrival in the United States.

Ly is shown with her daughter, Trinh. Linh has a photo just like this, but she's with dad.