AUGUST 2019 MARKETPLACECONTRACOSTA.COM 19
coach Ms. Kelly helps her with study tips and how to
keep track of assignments.
Crystal lights up when she describes her passion
outside of schoolwork. “I love playing volleyball. I
started when I was about 8 at my church. I watched
the adults playing—their aim and spikes were so
amazing to me. I wanted to be able to play with the
adults because I found them so mesmerizing,” she says.
Crystal played volleyball with her friends at Making
Waves Academy and continues to play at her church.
A lifelong resident of Richmond, Crystal describes
that while her community was diverse, there was not
a large Asian population. “The only people who were
Asian were my family or cousins,” she said. “When I
think about Making Waves Academy, there were only
a handful of Asian Americans, but I felt kind of cool at
the same time because a lot of the community would
ask what my ethnicity was and about my culture.”
Crystal has learned to balance her life at home with
her life at school. “I’ve grown up with my grandma,
and she heavily influenced how I am today. There are
American ideals that may not agree with my culture,
but at the same time, I learned to balance both,” she
says “I’ve grown up without a father, so I’ve thought
of my grandma and my mom as my parental figures.
They’re both like a mom and a dad to me, and I feel
like I need both of their permission to do anything.”
Crystal stays focused on her path forward. “After my
undergraduate, hopefully, I have all my pre-requisites
and go straight to med school and continue my
education until I become a pediatrician,” she says. “If I
have the time and money, I’ve always wanted to go to
Laos or parts of Asia that don’t have good doctors and
help the kids…I feel like I would still be in Richmond
in the long run, because that’s where a lot of my
family is.”
Crystal Lee
She encourages other Wave-Makers to follow their
passion. “If you feel that you love something so much,
and you can see yourself doing it for the rest of your
life and being happy, you should do it, no matter what
anyone else says.”