Watch CBS News

Celebrating Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month: Pembroke Pines Dr. Antonio Wong Stays True To His Roots

MIAMI (CBSMiami) - As we celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we put the spotlight on a Pembroke Pines doctor who is saving lives while staying true to his roots.

"My parents are Asian American. It means I'm very proud of my ancestors. They teach us that with discipline and to be successful you must work hard," said Dr. Antonio Wong.

From his medical practice in Pembroke Pines, Dr. Wong, a family doctor proudly talks about his Asian culture and the many sacrifices and struggles his parents went through to live the American dream.

"They came to this country and adapted to this environment. They were in the restaurant business and I grew up in that type of environment working with them seeing how hard and difficult they struggled to make advancement. I am very proud of what they did because of them, I am what I am now," said Dr. Wong.

Dr. Wong who was born in Honduras moved to the U.S. when he was 13 and says he was so impressed and thankful for the opportunity he felt he had to give back and he is doing so by caring for people.

"That's our goal. To bring hope, because when you have your health you have hope and when you have hope you have everything," added Dr. Wong.

Dr. Wong graduated from the University of Miami and went on to do his residency at Jackson Memorial Hospital. He is now the medical director of Pembroke Pines My Care, where he's been for nearly 30 fulfilling years. Decades of hard work and determination traits he inherited from his role models.

"My parents were my role models because I saw they were able to adapt to this country and I saw how hard they worked. My dad was not as educated, but he was able to bring a family of seven to where we are, so I'm very happy to have him as my role model," said Dr. Wong.

Although he has been living here for more than 30 years, he always stays true to his roots.

"I love the culture. I love the food of Asia. Everywhere I go, I look for that so I'm a food enthusiast but the other thing about Asian culture is we believe in working hard. We believe in making sure that everybody around us are in a neutral way. We are very much concerned about community and making sure we always leave our community a better place than we came into," said Dr. Wong.

Dr. Wong who is also the president-elect of the Broward County medical association, also told us he thinks these are times that we should be open to discussion so we can understand the differences of each culture and adapt and learn from each other.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.