Julia Truong doesn’t let a good opportunity pass her by and as soon as she hit Victoria’s legal working age, she began making ‘bubble tea’ (chilled sugary drinks) at a café in Footscray.
At the same time, aged just 14, she began volunteering for the Get Connected Vietnamese Youth Forum.
Not only did the St Albans’ teenager help organise the event, she hosted it, unfazed by her youth or speaking in front of a large audience.
It was while working on the forum that Miss Truong discovered her love of organising and producing events.
She has since completed a bachelor of production at Melbourne University’s Victorian College of the Arts; she continues to volunteer in co-ordinating events for Western Chances, a not-for-profit organisation that helps disadvantaged youths in Melbourne’s western suburbs; and she’s launched two businesses, JT Events and JT Weddings.
So it’s little wonder the 23-year-old was recognised in the 2016 Victorian Young Achiever Awards, taking out the AustralianSuper Career Kick Started award at a dinner at the Docklands earlier this month.
Miss Truong said receiving the award was “very encouraging”.
“It’s hard to know whether juggling two businesses at my age is the right thing to be doing,” she said, “but this gives me the encouragement I need to keep going.”
