They offered a gift of time—the money followed: Mandy Tuong and Paul Johnston

Apr 29, 2026

Mandy Tuong and Paul Johnston each deejayed their own radio shows at different colleges. Paul attended “the home of MPR, St. John’s University.” Mandy went to Oberlin College and Conservatory in Ohio majoring in classical piano. “I had a classical show late night when no one was listening, but I still loved it.” They both describe their college experiences as life changing. Their roots in music and radio sustain them today.

Mandy was one of the first born in the United States among her family. She was the “10th child” raised by her grandparents in the part of St. Paul known as Frogtown. Her grandfather had worked in US intelligence in Vietnam. Here he became a cultural ambassador. A writer and arts and humanities teacher and an avid reader, he ingrained the importance of being a global citizen, civic engagement, and being informed. As a family, the Tuongs were musical and the kids were always listening to the radio for their favorite songs in hopes for the perfect recording on their cassette tapes.

“In high school I received a mentorship with the Minnesota Orchestra. On the drives to orchestra rehearsals, I listened to MPR, either classical or news. Once you leave the state of Minnesota, you realize what a rich cultural environment we have here. No matter where I lived, I would always come back to MPR.”

Paul grew up a child of two public school educators. They had lots of time in summers to be together and listen to the radio including hours of WCCO AM radio with Steve Cannon and the Good Neighbor show. On Saturday nights they listened together to A Prairie Home Companion. Paul worked as a band agent in college and loved discovering new music. When Paul moved to New York where he lived for almost 20 years, music was a core part of him thriving in a new place. He discovered a station in New Jersey, WBGO, that was all jazz. That station got him back to listening to public media.

“I remember calling in to a fund drive for WNYC because they had a cool incentive. Somehow it came up I was from Minnesota and the person from the station exclaimed, ‘MPR, they’re huge!’ It made me realize how special what we have here is.”

When he returned to Minnesota from New York, he discovered The Current during his longer commute. “It hooked me, and that got me to be a member. I feel like have an ownership stake in this.” He thought, “Something this good is important. I better contribute!”

Paul and Mandy both value the way MPR is focuses on local stories and music. While they now live in California, they each travel back to Minnesota for their jobs. Paul shared, “The Current is a constant (and my most used app). I’m training for a marathon, so I need lots of material to listen to. It is always interesting, I’m always learning about something new, and I love the local connection.”

Mandy is in her second term as a trustee of MPR. “We’ve moved away several times, but we will never step away from MPR. It makes us feel like we’re connected to the local scene and part of a community we love so much. We also value being a global citizen through MPR – we are big fans of Marketplace and the way they make economic news accessible and relevant to everyone.”

Mandy adds, “It’s so easy to take public media for granted. But we shouldn’t. It’s an essential part of democracy, this access to reliable, trustworthy and unbiased news, media and culture. This is why we’ve committed to the campaign wholeheartedly. We all have a role to play in this essential treasure.”

Paul shares, “It makes me think of the refrain in Joni Mitchell’s “Big Yellow Taxi”: You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone. We have jobs and responsibilities that are very taxing on our time, so when Mandy was considering MPR board service, it was a real dialogue— where do we want to spend our time? It didn’t take much for us to agree that MPR was so important and very much every minute of time and money we put in. It is worth so much to humanity and future generations.”

“We made our gift of $150,000 unrestricted. We trust the MPR | APMG to put the money to work where they need it most,” Mandy said. I know people feel disheartened in times when they feel they cannot control difficult things happening around them. Well, this is precisely something you CAN do. When I listen to MPR, I always learn something and get inspired. You know, I even learned how to cook a turkey for our first Thanksgiving together.”

She adds, “For me, it’s not just connection. When I listen, I realize both how vast, wonderful, and amazing the world is. MPR brings it all together, expands your mind and heart, and brings you closer to it all at once.”