Keeping the Stories Alive

Pawlay Htoo ’26 is something of an icon. Her story begins in Myanmar, continues in Thailand, and eventually settles in St. Paul, Minnesota, as Htoo pursues her education at Bethel University. She’s a pre-nursing major, Act Six scholar, and first-generation college student who dreams of serving her people in the Twin Cities and in Thailand one day. In this Q&A, Htoo shares her story—describing what it was like to grow up in the United States, how she came to Bethel, and why she’s so passionate about inspiring the next generation.

Without further ado, meet Pawlay Htoo!

Can you tell us a bit about your beginnings? Like, where your family was when you were born and how you ended up here in the United States?

My family is from Myanmar or Burma, and because of the ongoing civil war, they had to flee for protection and safety for themselves and their family. I'm not sure exactly what year it was—maybe 1997—when everyone started fleeing to where I'm from. It's called Tham Hin, which is kind of away from every other refugee camp. We were given the opportunity to come to America earlier than the other camps just because we were closer to the cities. I was born in 2004 in a hospital, and I'm very blessed to have a birth certificate, because a lot of immigrants or those before 2004 don't have birth certificates and don't remember the date they were born. 

I don't really remember much over there. I just remember playing with dirt, and you're constantly outside because your home is in the jungle. I'm still very blessed for all the opportunities I've been given. When I first came, I started daycare from the beginning-beginning. My parents went to school, and I thought that was a good opportunity because elementary was probably considered their highest education level. I'm also a first-generation college student as well. I’m paving the way for the younger generation and also my younger siblings.

How did your family decide where to go in the United States?

Our grandma was already in the Twin Cities, so we just decided to come here. We already had a group of family arrive in 2006. And there was a decent amount of Karen families already here, so that made my family's moving transition a little easier. I remember my parents talking about when they first came—they were so homesick and you know, jet lag and everything. Motion sickness on the plane was bad.

What was it like to grow up in the Twin Cities?

We’ve been here for a while. My parents still don't speak English, but they understand it. Growing up was a little hard just because you go to conferences to meet with your teachers, doctors and stuff. But the good thing is that there are interpreters. And our community is very supportive, so I think that helped us settle down and made reaching out to others easier. I'm still learning about my own culture since I'm still young, and I have been more exposed to the American culture than my Knyaw culture, but my Knyaw identity makes me who I am.

We should advocate to the younger generation so we don't forget our stories or where we came from. So it must start with us. We must start advocating now, because one day our culture might disappear, and it's our duty to preserve our culture and heritage. That's where I'm at right now—to constantly learn and teach the younger generation, because if we don't practice our traditions, they will disappear one day.

What was your journey to Bethel like?

I knew I wanted to come to Bethel since sixth grade. I've always been mature for my age, and I had heard about Act Six, and it was a dream of mine to be able to receive that full ride scholarship. I looked into the colleges that Act Six offered, and Bethel seemed to be the closest to home in a way, because there were a couple Knyaw students already here. My wish was to be able to expand that community.

Being able to receive the Act Six scholarship is amazing. It's something that's very rewarding to me because I'm given the opportunity to further my education and pursue a career out of it. We value education a lot in our culture, because back over there, it’s a dream for someone to even be able to come to America and receive education. I think education is really important, in that we can do so much with it.

What do you hope to do with your degree?

I'm in school right now as a pre-nursing major, and I have a minor in psychology because I want to tie those two in. I want to study how different cultures view mental health, and I can start with my culture first. Nurses are also really needed right now, and it would be nice to have someone who looks like me working in the field. One day I hope to go back to my homeland and serve. But right now, I'm focusing on getting an education. Coming to college, I had to reach out to a lot of other people just because my parents didn't know the process of applying for college. I could be that person who can pave the way for the younger generation to pursue education. 

How did you get interested in the healthcare field?

In high school, I was an EMT student and I was given the opportunity to do ride-alongs with the fire department. I went on this one call where I actually was able to help a Knyaw family. I was scared because I can speak Karen fluently, but with the different dialects, I was nervous that they wouldn't be able to understand me. Especially our community, they're scared of first responders, and my presence meant a lot to the family just because I could build a little more trust. One of the medics was so grateful for me to be there. She said, “I don't know what we would've done if you weren't here because you saved us a lot of time. You helped the patient a lot.” I was able to connect with the family. At a young age, being able to experience that felt very rewarding. It was really nice to be able to help my people. 

How do you keep your stories alive?

I'm still able to connect, and The Urban Village is a nonprofit organization who has been reaching out to the younger generations to help our heritage and culture stay alive. They're constantly doing programs to help with substance abuse or students with afterschool stuff. Back then, we weren't given that opportunity. We were taught by someone who didn't speak our language. So for them to be able to do that, it's awesome and it's amazing. 

It's also awesome and for them to be able to do a scholarship focused on the Knyaw/Karenni community. I hope it can expand in the future. It would be nice to have a bunch of Knyaw students here at Bethel, since I already know there's a decent amount of Knyaw students here. We all learn from each other, and we all have different stories to share, and we all play such a big role in a primarily white institution. I think we make the school cultural in a way. We bring in a lot of stories and trauma to be shared with others, and they can learn our struggles so that way our stories aren't forgotten and can be shared.

How have you grown in your faith at Bethel?

I grew up in two different religions which created a lot of conflict in my family. My mom is Christian; my dad is Buddhist. It impacted my faith, and it impacted me and my siblings a lot. I grew up in the church, which helped me adapt into Christianity. And coming to Bethel, it's amazing to have Vespers, Chapel, and Bible studies to help me grow my faith. 

I feel like when I pray, it puts me in in a better mood and place than where I started. It’s really what you believe in, and not everyone believes in prayers. I feel like growing up in a two-religion household makes me who I am. I've been exposed to both, and I see, I can see the lens from my dad's view and my mom's. You can like learn so much from that, right?

College has opened my eyes, and being able to experience different things helps me. Every Wednesday night we have Shift. It's like a Bible study with my floor mates. So, there’s Shift every Wednesday, Vespers on Sunday nights, and Chapel on Wednesday and Friday. You're given so much opportunity to be able to grow your faith, and I really enjoy it. You're in a space where a lot of people come to this college because they want to grow their faith. Everyone has similar values and views on things, so we're all here for the same reason.

Make a difference in your community.

You have the passion to see your community thrive. We'll prepare you to lead the way. Act Six is a full-tuition, full-need leadership and scholarship program that prepares and empowers emerging urban leaders to make a difference on their campus and in their communities.

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