Marvelous Mumu
Are you familiar with the countries of Burma (Myanmar) and Thailand, or the military dictatorship that forced refugees of the former to flee to the latter? We had the opportunity to sit down with someone who lived that journey, and who is now a member of our community.
She is a family-focused, selfless, and resilient Lincoln mom. Come along and hear her story – from her childhood in Thailand, to her arrival in America, to starting a family in Lincoln. Meet Mumu Lee!
Mumu was born in Thailand in a refugee camp called the Mae La Camp. Mae La is one of the largest refugee camps in Thailand, created as a result of the conflict in Burma. Burma is a nation with over 100 different ethnicities, but since the late 1940s, the Burmese population has been engaged in civil war with the Karen people. A Burmese military group took power during this war and began to commit atrocities against the Karen people. Mumu’s parents, who are Karen, fled from this religious and ethnic persecution across the border to the Mae La Camp. They stayed there for eleven years after their daughter was born. In 2007, they decided to move to the United States, bringing Mumu and her grandmother with them.
Mumu’s family arrived in Austin, Texas in 2007. There, Mumu entered school for the first time in her life, at age eleven. The Mae La Camp, along with not permitting refugees to leave the area, had offered little other than food and shelter. There was no education system in the camp, so Mumu started 6th grade at Martin Middle School with some catching up to do. Mumu began to understand many of the struggles that her parents had shielded her from, but felt grateful for the opportunity she had to start anew in a safe community.
She learned English and was able to catch up with her peers in time to start her freshman year of high school at Kipp Academy. Mumu and her family were adjusting well to life in the United States, but her parents decided to move to Lincoln after Mumu’s freshman year in order to find work. Mumu continued her education in Lincoln at Lincoln High School, graduating in 2014.
In the summertime, Mumu worked hard to provide for herself and her family. She sold food as a side job, traveling throughout the Midwest. One year, Mumu traveled to Iowa for her job. While she was there, she went to a soccer tournament and a certain player caught her eye: a dashing goalie named Napoleon. Incredibly, she learned that Napoleon was also a Karen refugee, and had resettled in Minnesota around the year 2000. When they met in Iowa, Mumu and Napoleon felt an instant connection and began dating. In 2019, the two got married and decided to settle down in a safe, family-friendly city – Lincoln, Nebraska, of course!
Mumu’s background and cultural values are present in the way she cares for her family and her community. Her parents and grandmother live with her, as it is customary in her culture for elders to live in the family home alongside the next generations. While Mumu and her husband work during the day to provide for their family, her parents care for her two children. The family speaks both Karen and English at home, and they celebrate a mix of American and Karen holidays: Thanksgiving, birthdays, Karen New Year, and Karen Martyrs Day, to name a few. Mumu works at Bluestem Health as an Outreach Worker, helping non-English speakers get connected to healthcare resources. She feels most fulfilled when she uses her opportunities and privilege to assist others in need.
This humble and giving attitude is what Mumu wishes to pass on to her children. She wants them to understand where they come from and to take advantage of the security, resources, and opportunities in America to help people in their community and back home. Her children, ages 4 and 2, teach her the value of patience in return, as they begin to navigate through life. Her son just joined a soccer team (taking after his dad, no doubt) and her daughter loves going to the playground. Mumu is determined to provide them with all the support they need to grow into humble, strong, and generous adults, who have a keen awareness of their home and culture. Luckily, their mother leads fearlessly by example, paving the way for them to follow in her footsteps and make a difference in the lives of those around her.
