EP #41 - From Refugee Roots to a Regenerative Homestead w/ Sophia Eng | Plain Values

In this episode of The Plain Values Podcast… Sophia Eng shares her family’s journey from Vietnamese refugee roots to a thriving 40-acre regenerative homestead in East Tennessee.

With a military husband and two daughters, Sophia’s parents (boat people who fled Saigon) lived with them, creating a multi-generational home rich in tradition, work ethic, and faith.

When lockdowns hit California in 2020, Sophia’s intuition (shaped by her parents’ stories of curfews and uncertainty) told her it was time to leave. They sold everything, loaded their animals (including three $300 egg-laying hens bought in a moment of urgency), and followed a leading to Tennessee, where green grass and community awaited.

Today their homestead includes dairy and beef cattle, sheep, poultry, and gardens. Sophia’s books preserve family recipes and traditional fermentation while teaching soil health, Korean natural farming, and biochar.

Sophia reflects on the pressure of Asian-American success metrics and how she and her husband chose a different path, one of soil, community, and faithfulness. Through every challenge, they return to the truth that God provides and that hard things often produce the sweetest fruit.

A beautiful reminder that legacy isn’t built in boardrooms but in backyard gardens, kitchen ferments, and multi-generational tables.

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