梁耀華的美国梦：从香港公屋到科罗拉多州参议院
一百五十平方英尺，八口人。那是梁耀華（Kevin Leung）长大的家，香港公屋里一间小小的单位。父亲是厨师，每天靠一双手、一口锅，养活一家人。
他的父母是从中国大陆来到香港的，什么都没有带，两个人都没有进过学堂。在那样一个家里，日子是紧的，可有一样东西，父母从不肯让孩子缺：他们把勤奋、正直、坚韧和看重教育，一点点交到孩子手里。许多年以后，梁耀華回头看这段日子，说的正是这个意思：「那样卑微的起点塑造了我的价值观，也让我明白，机会永远不能被当作理所当然。」
三十八年前，他离开香港，来到美国。那时他还是个年轻人，口音很重，手头拮据，心里只有一个念头，把日子过得比父辈好一些。后来他这样回忆那次出发：「我从未想过，有一天我会有幸在科罗拉多州参议院，代表我的邻居们。」
在美国安顿下来之后，他先回到学校。父母没有读过的书，他要接着读下去。科罗拉多大学的两个硕士学位，是他在这片土地上给自己的第一份交代。此后的三十五年，他在科技行业里度过，其中有一程是在美国能源部下属的一家国家实验室；他也在科罗拉多创办小企业，雇人做事，为当地添过就业。日子一年年过下去，不喧哗，却扎实。
他和妻子在 Douglas County 住了三十五年以上，三个女儿在那里长大。这个社区给了他们一家人一个家。一个移民被一个地方接纳了三十五年，就很难只把自己当个住客。梁耀華后来说，这个家激励他以公共服务回馈它。
2017 年，他进了 Douglas County 学区董事会，一坐四年。任上，他推动选民通过了一笔 2.5 亿美元的学校债券和每年 4,000 万美元的税额追加，为当地的公立学校添砖加瓦。在公屋里长大的孩子，大概最知道一所好学校对普通人家的孩子意味着什么。后来，他又坐进 South Metro 消防救援局的董事会，操心起社区的应急与安全。
2026 年 11 月 3 日，第 30 选区的选民把他送进了州参议院。这个选区里，大约百分之八十的居民是白人，亚裔只占百分之六。竞选的那些日子里，无数义工挨家挨户敲门，替这个生在香港的候选人向邻居们介绍他。胜选之后，他先谢的是这些人，随后把话说得很清楚：他为自己的香港出身和移民经历自豪，但他当选，是为了代表选区的每一位居民，不论背景，不论党派。
他的当选，可能在科罗拉多留下了两个第一次：第一位当选州议会的华裔，和州参议院一百五十年历史上第一位在外国出生的亚裔移民参议员。他自己提这两件事时，用的是「可能」，分寸拿得很稳。
他想得更多的，是父母。他说：「许多移民家庭要花两三代人来立足，通过教育向上，最终回馈社会。我深深感激，靠着父母的牺牲、美国提供的机会，以及家人和社区的支持，我能在一生之内，走完这段历程的大部分。」父母当年离开故土，为的是自由和机会；几十年后，他们的儿子站在科罗拉多，将要参与制定这个州的法律。两三代人的路，他在一生里走完了一大半。
接下来要着手的事，他列得很具体：让生活更负担得起，给人更多经济机会，把公立学校办强，扶持小企业，让增长负责任，守住公共安全，照顾好长者。他相信，好的政府要肯倾听，要能跨越党派合作，把实事办成。他也希望，自己的故事能给其他移民和后来的人一点鼓励，去追逐梦想，也走进公共生活。
三十八年前那个口音很重、两手空空的年轻人，如今要走进州参议院了。回望这一路，他对美国梦的理解，早已不是出发时的样子：「对我来说，美国梦不只是我们能为自己取得什么，更是我们能为他人贡献什么。我的当选不是我美国梦的终点，它是服务新篇章的开始。」
关联：科罗拉多州选举结果总清单：韦泽当选州长，民主党全取全州职位
Kevin Leung's American Dream: From Hong Kong Public Housing to the Colorado State Senate
One hundred and fifty square feet, eight people. That was the home Kevin Leung grew up in, a tiny public housing unit in Hong Kong. His father was a cook, feeding the whole family with his two hands and a wok, day after day.
His parents had come to Hong Kong from mainland China with nothing, and neither had ever had a formal education. In a home like that, life was tight, but there was one thing his parents never let their children go without: they passed down, bit by bit, the values of hard work, integrity, perseverance and education. Many years later, looking back on those days, Leung put it this way: "Those humble beginnings shaped my values and taught me that opportunity should never be taken for granted."
Thirty-eight years ago, he left Hong Kong for America. He was a young adult then, with a heavy accent and limited resources, carrying a single hope, to build a better future than the one his parents had known. Recalling that departure, he once said: "I never imagined that one day I would have the honor of representing my neighbors in the Colorado State Senate."
Once he was settled in America, he went back to school first. The schooling his parents never had, he would finish for them. Two master's degrees from the University of Colorado were the first account he rendered to himself on this new land. The thirty-five years that followed were spent in technology, one stretch of them at a U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory; he also started small businesses in Colorado that put local people to work. The years went by quietly, without fanfare, but solidly.
He and his wife have lived in Douglas County for more than thirty-five years, and raised their three daughters there. The community gave his family a home. An immigrant who has been taken in by a place for thirty-five years can hardly think of himself as just a tenant. As Leung tells it, that home is what inspired him to give back through public service.
In 2017 he joined the Douglas County School Board and served four years. On his watch, voters approved a $250 million school bond and a $40 million annual mill levy override for the local public schools. A child who grew up in public housing probably knows better than most what a good school means to an ordinary family. Later he took a seat on the South Metro Fire Rescue Board, turning his attention to the community's emergency services and safety.
On November 3, 2026, the voters of Senate District 30 sent him to the Colorado State Senate. In that district, roughly eighty percent of residents are White and only six percent are Asian. Through the campaign, countless volunteers knocked on door after door, introducing this Hong Kong-born candidate to his neighbors. After the victory, he thanked those people first, and then said something plainly: he is proud of his Hong Kong heritage and his immigrant journey, but he was elected to represent every resident of the district, regardless of background or party.
His election may have set two firsts in Colorado: the first Chinese American elected to the state legislature, and the first foreign-born Asian immigrant elected to the State Senate in its 150-year history. When Leung mentions these himself, he keeps the word "may" in place. The measure is steady.
What he thinks about more is his parents. He said: "Many immigrant families spend two or three generations establishing themselves, advancing through education, and eventually giving back to society. I am deeply grateful that, through my parents' sacrifices, the opportunities America has provided, and the support of my family and community, I have been able to experience much of that journey within my own lifetime." His parents left their homeland in search of freedom and opportunity; decades later, their son stands in Colorado, about to help write the state's laws. A journey meant for two or three generations, he has walked most of in a single lifetime.
The work ahead, he lists concretely: affordability, economic opportunity, strong public schools, support for small businesses, responsible growth, public safety, and protecting seniors. Good government, he believes, requires listening, working across party lines, and finding practical solutions. He hopes, too, that his story might encourage other immigrants and the generations after them to pursue their dreams and take part in civic life.
The young man who arrived thirty-eight years ago with a heavy accent and empty pockets is about to walk into the State Senate. Looking back over the whole road, his understanding of the American Dream is no longer what it was on the day he set out: "To me, the American Dream is not simply about what we can achieve for ourselves. It is about what we can contribute to others. My election is not the end of my American Dream. It is the beginning of a new chapter of service."
Related: 240 Years, Ten Generations: How Chinese Americans Went from Landing in America to Holding Office
Related: Colorado 2026 Election Results: Weiser Elected Governor as Democrats Sweep Statewide Offices
来源：梁耀華授权特约稿
发布：GSM·美国（发布链接）
图片来源：照片：梁耀華（Kevin Leung）。照片来源：Kevin Leung 竞选官网（kevinfordougco.com）。 / Photo: Kevin Leung. Source: Kevin Leung's campaign website (kevinfordougco.com).
GSM Global · 本篇英文版 English edition of this story
