Cal Grad Student, Victim Of Broken Home, Now Child Social Welfare Specialist

by Sherry Hu and Christina Arce

(KPIX 5) -- Wherever Sophie Lau goes in life, she takes with her hope.

Sophie is a graduate student at University of California, Berkeley studying for her Masters in Social Welfare. When she's not at school, she's at work, as a Social Work Intern for Adolescent Medicine at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospital. She collaborates with a medical team to provide mental health support and referral resources to teen and adolescent patients.

Sophie is in a unique position for the work that she does. She supports many young people who, like her, come from broken families.

LEARN MORE: Students Rising Above

Sophie says she sees her vulnerability and weaknesses as strengths. She's able to talk to teens and tell them "I'm so sorry, I understand what you're going through. It must be really, really, hard." Because of her own childhood experiences, it comes from a genuine place.

Sophie has come a long way since we first met her back in 2003 when she did her first story with Students Rising Above. She was only 17 and still in high school. She shared her past, a time when she felt unsafe and "suffocated" living with her father after her parents divorced. But it wasn't really living at all.

Sophie was raised in China by a loving adoptive family. Unfortunately, she tells us, "this serenity was very short-lived." When she turned nine years old, her happiness and sense of belonging was ripped away from her. Her biological parents who had left her as an infant ordered that Sophie be returned to them in America.

She struggled with the culture shock and not speaking any English. She also realized that her biological family did not share her same values. While she began to adjust to her new lifestyle, surrounding herself with good friends and teachers, she said her family life was falling apart. In 8th grade, her parents divorced so Sophie went to live with her father.

Her father was strict and over-protective - soon, his emotional abuse turned into physical abuse. "He went off on me, tied my hands and stuffed rags in my mouth when I couldn't cry," Sophie recalled. "He was on top of me, using his fists to strike my head … I thought I was dying because it hurt so much."

She found comfort in her church and her artwork, such as painting and playing guitar. This was until one day in high school she was able to work up the courage to tell her counselor what she was going through at home. Sophie was placed into foster care in various homes and her father was arrested.

"Having the inner strength to make that decision was really just a calling to protect myself," she said. "I want to live, I want to live so badly that I had to make that decision to tell a soul".

In high school, Sophie talked about how much her therapist helped her and how it ended up motivating her to want to work in child therapy. She spoke of wanting to do her part and help those who, like her, lacked support. Her experience as a teacher's assistant showed her how much children have to offer the world. She wanted to educate and inspire them. "There is no greater joy that I can find than to fulfill this dream," she said.

Speaking to her now in 2016, she told us about how her dream has evolved. Her time working at a high school opened her eyes to the heightened needs of teenagers as opposed to young children as their problems tend to go far beyond academic needs. She also says she felt much more in tune with how to support this age group emotionally and socially.

However, she felt limited by a school setting. She wanted to expand her role. This is why she went back to school and is now working to enhance her skills and explore other areas where mental health assistance is needed.

Next spring will be a celebratory milestone in her life. Sophie expects to graduate from UC Berkeley with her Masters in Social Welfare.

She has many people behind her supporting her, who believe in her. She has only known her current supervisor at UCSF, Molly Koren, for a month now, yet even she can see Sophie's potential.

"She's a very special person who has a very good heart and deep well of empathy," said Koren. "She'll be a wonderful social worker and a wonderful addition to the field."

13 years ago, Sophie was asked to think ahead to 10 years into the future to where she would hope to be and what she would hope to have accomplished. She said she wanted to have graduated college, be getting her masters, and help children whose lives were like hers.

Now in 2016, she was asked the same question.

"I hope in 10 years, I will still be helping people … and those who are not privileged. I hope to lead efforts to really help communities. I've always dreamt of doing something back in China where I'm from ... I've always wanted to see different parts of the world. I've been given this talent and this eye to see beyond the surface of things and I'm so grateful for the opportunity to just be alive and to see the beauty there is in this world."