Jenny Suo's inspiration 'I COULDN'T HAVE MADE IT WITH OUT MY MUM'

The 1 News Tonight presenter reveals the legacy of strong women in her family and how her mother May's struggles helped build her confidence

- Florence Hartigan

As a journalist, Jenny Suo is used to finding herself out of her comfort zone. The 1 News Tonight presenter whose career highlights include reporting on dramatic international stories like the trial of terrorist Abu Hamza in New York - says she learned all the courage and confidence she needs for her demanding job from an important role model, her mum.

"When I was a teenager and in my early twenties, I was quite anxious," recalls Jenny. "I had a lot of doubt and self-esteem issues, but my mum would always say, 'Just chill out. Stop being so paranoid!' I learned some huge lessons by throwing myself into things I didn't feel entirely comfortable with because that was my experience watching her."

Some of Jenny's earliest memories are of seeing her mother, May Wang, navigate the daunting task of immigrating to Aotearoa.

"When we came to New Zealand, China was still quite closed, so when we had this opportunity to see the outside world, we took it," shares May, 58, who came to Auckland in 1994 with Jenny's dad Sam Suo when Jenny was four years old."I didn't think I would stay in New Zealand for this long. I didn't have plans."

Jenny marvels, "It was such a brave thing to do. She was 29 and had no concept of the Western world. She didn't even speak English. The idea of doing that blows my mind - I'm 33 and still think of myself as a kid!"

May, who had worked in the wool industry in Tianjin, wasn't able to apply her degree or experience to a job in New Zealand, so she went back to school, studying accountancy at AUT. For the first little while, Jenny's dad stayed working in China to support them, so May had to juggle her studies with caring for Jenny, plus a part-time job at a supermarket, while still learning English.

"Looking back on it now, it's phenomenal," says Jenny. "But when I was little, I had no concept of how difficult it must have been. She started her whole life over from scratch."