“When I was 15 or 16, I was drafted into the South Vietnamese Army. I fought in the Vietnam War.

“Today, if you are a Vietnam veteran from America, I’ll give you a big hug. I finally realized that I never said thank you to the American soldiers. They fought and died for me and my family. If it wasn’t for them, I probably never would have known what a great country the U.S.A. is.

“Lately, I’ve been reading these books written by American soldiers who tell about their experiences during the war. It has opened my eyes to all the sacrifices they made for me. They were in the bush. They went hungry. They died.

“It’s taken me 40 years to appreciate what they did. But it’s not too late to say thank you. The roof over my family’s head, the food on our table, it’s because of this country. What I have here is because of Americans. I owe you something. I have to pay you back. That’s how I feel.”

— Cuong Truong

Related:

• He still carries trauma from Vietnam War

The post It’s never too late to thank Vietnam veterans appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“I was very young when I was in the Vietnam War. I didn’t think about it a lot at the time because I just did what I was told to do. But the trauma, actually, I still carry with me today.

“About five years ago when I was having dinner, suddenly I broke out in tears. My wife asked me why I did that, and I told her a story.

“I remember we had killed an enemy. When we found him, he had written half a letter to his mother. Usually when we kill an enemy, we go over to see what information our unit needs to know, what intel we can pass along. Because I have children now I suddenly said, no, this is not right. My wife said, no, that was during the war. If you don’t shoot him, he will shoot you. He was Viet Cong. I told her I wasn’t the one who shot him. I don’t know who did. But I found the letter. I remember when he died. I remember how he died. Something like that, you never forget.”

— Cuong Truong

Related:

• It’s never too late to thank Vietnam veterans

The post He still carries trauma from Vietnam War appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“What really hurt most coming back from Vietnam was being spit on, being called baby killers and that type of thing. It was terrible. People didn’t respect you, didn’t want to see you. You understood that, so you didn’t want to wear your uniform. Nobody approved of the war. They were sick of it. Too many died — 58,000 U.S deaths.”

“We’re members of the VVA (Vietnam Veterans of America). One of our things is, never again will one group of vets be forgotten. We’re trying to make sure that guys returning home today get the welcome they deserve. It’s working out real well.”

The post They’re fighting on behalf of all veterans appeared first on The Baytown Project.

“I moved here from Mississippi for work and better schools for my kids. I really like the schools here and feel they will give my kids a better foundation for college and to enjoy productive lives in the future.

“And she moved here from Vietnam in 2013. She speaks very little English. She was pretty poor. She came to America by herself to start a new, better life. She has three kids, one in California and the other two still in Vietnam with relatives. She really misses them and gets very emotional when she speaks about them. Her hope is to eventually own a home and to bring her kids over from Vietnam.”

The post Vietnamese immigrants looking for better lives appeared first on The Baytown Project.