The Vietnam Center and Archive employs five student assistants to scan the Families of Vietnamese Political Prisoners Association/Vietnamese American Heritage Foundation Collection’s Orderly Departure Program Application files. Two new students joined us in September: Corey and Emily.

Corey

A marketing major, with a Global Supply Chain Management Certificate in Energy, Corey is from Meridian, MS. He loves to travel and explore different cultures. Corey enjoys the energy, community, and traditions of Tech, and says Tech “…feels like family.”

Emily

An anthropology major from Laguna Beach, CA, where she worked with and studied Marine life, Emily enjoys video games and sci-fi films and shows, especially Star Trek. Emily came to TTU partly due to a family connection: her grandparents are Tech graduates who met here.

Frances

A history major with a women’s studies minor, Frances is from Bulverde, TX and will graduate in May 2013. She studied abroad in France and enjoys traveling. She is a talented writer and fencer, and a huge Avengers fan. Frances plans future graduate work on Khuc Minh Tho and U.S. Diplomacy.

Quynh

Quynh is from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and will graduate with an MBA in May 2013. She enjoys traveling, movies, surfing the the internet, and going out with friends. Quynh has traveled to Oregon and California, visiting friends and family and historic and beautiful parks like Yosemite.

Trang

Double majoring in finance and accounting, Trang is from Hue, Vietnam’s old imperial city. She is a fantastic cook and enjoys music, movies, and traveling. In 2005 Trang studied English in Singapore. Trang has traveled to several major cities throughout Texas and she spent Winter Break 2011 in Florida.

Children with Lanterns. Ogden Williams Collection.

Today marks the Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon or Full Moon Festival. Traditionally celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, when the moon appears larger than it does on any other night of the year, the Mid Autumn Moon Festival (Tet Trung Thu) is the second biggest holiday in Vietnam and is widely celebrated throughout Asia.

Kathryn Campbell Collection. Drawing by eight year old Thi Thi Bich Nhi, titled Chi Hang, or “The Moon Goddess.” Depicts both the Vietnamese Man in the Moon, Chu Cuoi, and the Chinese Woman in the Moon associated with the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival.

It is a time for family and to celebrate life, prosperity, and the harvest. During the Mid-Autumn festival, parents prepare their children’s favorite dishes and buy them new toys. Children hear the story of Chu Cuoi (the man in the moon) and other fairytales. Hanging and floating lanterns are set out to decorate and people dance the lion and dragon dances. Mooncakes (made from lotus seed, ground beans, and containing a bright salted egg yolk in the center) are given to family and friends. Pomelo fruit and watermelon seeds are a special treat. At night children parade through the streets to the beat of drums wearing Paper Mache masks and carrying lanterns in the shapes of stars, rabbit heads, fish (carpe), butterflies, or lanterns with a lit candle inside that makes shapes spin representing the seasonal spinning of the earth.

Photo courtesy of wikicommons. Author:Viethavvh

On February 1st, 2012, five student assistants began scanning the Families of Vietnamese Political Prisoners Association/Vietnamese American Heritage Foundation Collection’s Orderly Departure Program Application files.

Quynh

Quynh

A business (MBA) major from Ho Chi Minh City (former Saigon), Quynh enjoys surfing the internet, music, movies, news, going out with friends, and traveling. She has traveled to Oregon and will travel to California this summer. Quynh wants to go to Japan and Korea someday.

Maggie

Maggie

A Vietnamese American from Dallas majoring in nursing, Maggie enjoys working out, playing with her niece, and shopping.

Dai

Dai

A finance major from beautiful Da Lat, Vietnam’s California, Dai loves soccer, and plays intramural soccer at Tech, center and mid positions. He enjoys music, playing the guitar, and drinking coffee.

Trang

Trang

A finance major from Hue, Vietnam’s old imperial city, Trang enjoys music, movies, and traveling. She has studied in Singapore, has traveled to Florida, and hopes to go to Europe someday.

Frances

Frances

A history major, with a Women’s Studies minor, from Bulverde, Frances enjoys reading, writing, traveling, fencing, sailing, scuba diving, and water skiing. She will be studying in France this summer and looks forward to writing a Ph.D. dissertation on Khuc Minh Tho.

Douglas Pike Collection. Mid Autumn Festival Celebration "Moon Men" Enterprising Merchant in Saigon uses Display of Lunar Astronauts to call Attention to "Moon Cakes"

Monday, September 12th, 2011 marks the Mid Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon or Full Moon Festival. Traditionally celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, when the moon appears larger than it does on any other night of the year, the Mid Autumn Moon Festival (Tet Trung Thu) is the second biggest holiday in Vietnam and is widely celebrated throughout Asia.

Vietnamese Mooncakes. Photo courtesy of morning_rumtea (Lê Hoàn Nhã) (the photographer) and http://www.flickr.com/photos/vietnamfriendly/ (morning_rumtea's Flickr page)

   It is a time for family and to celebrate life, prosperity, and the harvest. During the Mid Autumn festival, parents prepare their children’s favorite dishes and buy them new toys. Children hear the story of Chu Cuoi (the man in the moon) and other fairytales. Hanging and floating lanterns are set out to decorate and people dance the lion and dragon dances. Mooncakes (made from lotus seed, ground beans, and containing a bright salted egg yolk in the center) are given to family and friends. Pomelo fruit and watermelon seeds are a special treat. At night children parade through the streets to the beat of drums wearing Paper Mache masks and carrying lanterns in the shapes of stars, rabbit heads, fish (carpe), butterflies, or lanterns with a lit candle inside that makes shapes spin representing the seasonal spinning of the earth.

 

Pomelo. Photo courtesy of wikicommons.

Photo from FVPPA Collection's ODP Application Files

May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month (APAHM), a nationally recognized time to celebrate the many achievements and contributions of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans to the United States’ history, culture, and society. According to the U.S. Census Bureau 2005-09 American Community Survey there are 13,201,056 Americans of Asian descent and 447,591 Americans of Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander descent residing in the U.S.

May was chosen as APAHM due to two important historical dates and events relating to the contributions of Asian and Pacific Americans to the U.S. taking place in May. First, May 7, 1843 is the date the first Japanese immigrants to the U.S. arrived. Second, May 10, 1869 is when the transcontinental railroad was completed; many Chinese immigrants labored laying the tracks.

To find out more view our APAHM online exhibit.

From Left to Right: Ambassador Sichan Siv, Anna Mallett, Martha Pattillo-Siv

The Vietnam Archive is pleased to announce that on September 14, 2010 Mrs. Martha Pattillo-Siv participated in its Oral History Project and was interviewed by Ann Mallett, Vietnamese American Heritage Archivist.

Martha Lee Pattillo was born and raised in Pampa, TX. Her parents, both educators, helped instill in her a lifelong love of languages, reading, education, libraries, and helping others. These lifelong loves have been a constant and binding thread throughout her life.

During her career she worked at the Atlantic Institute in Paris, France (1972-74), UNESCO in Bangkok, Thailand (1974-76), various agencies of the U.N. (1977-89), and the World Bank (1989-2006). While working for UNESCO in Bangkok she visited Thai refugee camps. Upon seeing the conditions of the camps, she helped provide the refugee women with an income by buying their handmade goods and then selling them outside the camps at no profit for herself. In 1988 she formed the South China Seas Company to help impoverished, displaced women sell their textiles. In 2000 Mrs. Pattillo-Siv became the Vice-President of Friends of Khmer Culture. In 2005 she became a member of the Board of Directors of Teachers Across Borders, Inc.

Martha Pattillo-Siv resides in San Antonio with her husband, Ambassador Sichan Siv, former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. They met when Siv was a new immigrant from Cambodia, where his entire family had been killed by the Khmer Rouge, and have been married since 1983.

Listen to the Complete interview here

Written by: Ann Mallett

The Vietnam Archive is pleased to announce that the archive’s Families of Vietnamese Political Prisoners Association (FVPPA) Collection, donated by the Vietnamese American Heritage Foundation, is spotlighted in the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) publication, The American Record. The spotlight can be found on page 44 of the Spring/Summer 2010 issue, The American Record: Success Stories from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission. The feature is titled Families of Vietnamese Political Prisoners Association, and contains the caption, “Archives provide people with the access to records that protect individual rights. The Families of Vietnamese Political Prisoners Association continues to help political dissidents find asylum in the U.S.”

This is the third article NHPRC has written on the FVPPA Collection. They previously published an article in their September 2009 Newsletter, and posted an entry on their Facebook page on February 23, 2010.

Click here to read the NHPRC’s The American Record article on the FVPPA.

Vietnamese Mooncakes. Photo courtesy of morning_rumtea (Lê Hoàn Nhã) (the photographer) and http://www.flickr.com/photos/vietnamfriendly/ (morning_rumtea's Flickr page)

 Happy Mid Autumn “Moon” Festival. Today, Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010 is the Mid Autumn “Moon” Festival.  It is a magical time for family and friends.

Pomelo. Photo Courtesy of Wikicommons.

  The Vietnamese American Heritage Archivist, Ann Mallett, has fond memories of living in Taipei, Taiwan and spending the “Moon” Festival with friends, barbecuing,  hearing stories about the beautiful woman in the moon, eating delicious fruits and mooncakes, watching children make hats out of Pomelo peelings (a large, pale green to yellow citrus fruit), and seeing the beauty of hanging and floating lanterns lighting the dark night.

l

Pomelo. Photo courtesy of wikicommons

 What are your favorite memories of the Mid Autumn “Moon” Festival? You can share your favorite memories and recipes for barbecue and mooncakes on our facebook.

Sliced Pomelo. Photo courtesy of wikicommons.

Pomelo photos courtesy of wikicommons

Charcoal Mooncake and Cantonese Mooncake. Picture courtesy of wikicommons

 Wednesday, September 22nd, 2010 marks the Mid Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon or Full Moon Festival. Traditionally celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the lunar calendar, when the moon appears larger than it does on any other night of the year, the Mid Autumn Moon Festival (Tet Trung Thu) is the second biggest holiday in Vietnam and is widely celebrated throughout Asia.

Mooncake paper box package. Photo courtesy of wikicommons.

  It is a time for family and to celebrate life, prosperity, and the harvest. During the Mid Autumn festival, parents prepare their children’s favorite dishes and buy them new toys. Children hear the story of Chu Cuoi (the man in the moon) and other fairytales. Hanging and floating lanterns are set out to decorate and people dance the lion and dragon dances. Mooncakes (made from lotus seed, ground beans, and containing a bright salted egg yolk in the center) are given to family and friends. Pomelo fruit and watermelon seeds are a special treat. At night children parade through the streets to the beat of drums wearing Paper Mache masks and carrying lanterns in the shapes of stars, rabbit heads, fish (carpe), butterflies, or lanterns with a lit candle inside that makes shapes spin representing the seasonal spinning of the earth.

Mooncake. Photo courtesy of wikicommons.

Photos courtesy of wikicommons

Tuyen Nguyen, University Students' Military Services, 1968

The ODP was a humanitarian program instituted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to assist Vietnamese refugees in emigrating from Vietnam in a safe and legal manner after the Vietnam War. The FVPPA assisted former Vietnamese Political Prisoners and their families in applying to the UNHCR’s ODP and aided them in resettling in the United States. Professor Nguyen’s hoped to find his friend by finding his friend’s older brother. Professor Nguyen knew that his friend’s older brother, Pham Van Sat, was a major in the South Vietnamese Marine Corps and had been a political prisoner sentenced to reeducation in the Vietnamese reeducation camps after the war. Professor. Nguyen had heard that Pham Van Sat had resettled in the U.S. after his release from the camps and hoped that the FVPPA had been the organization to assist him and his family in the application and resettlement process, and therefore he could find Mr. Pham’s ODP application at the Vietnam Archive.

Once Professor Nguyen found Pham Van Sat’s ODP application in the FVPPA collection it would give him a starting point to search for his friend’s brother, and once he found the brother he could find his friend. This was an insurmountable and difficult task with the odds laid heavily against him for ODP application files were filled out in the mid 1980’s through the early 1990’s while the ODP applicant still resided in Vietnam and was applying to the ODP. Submitting an ODP application did not guarantee approval for emigration nor did the application list the address of where one would resettle upon approval in the U.S. or other country of one’s choosing.

Tuyen Nguyen, Thu Duc Military Academic School, 1973

The Vietnamese American Heritage Archivist, Ann Mallett, was given Professor Nguyen’s inquiry from the Archive’s Reference Archivist, Amy Mondt. Ms. Mallett answered his inquiry and gave him information from Pham Van Sat’s ODP application in order to determine if the file did indeed belong to the correct Pham Van Sat Professor Nguyen was searching for. This was made substantially easier, as it happened to be the only application under that name in the collection. The archivist gave Professor Nguyen several suggestions on how to search for Pham Quang Minh, provided contact information for Vietnamese American organizations and publications, along with the following information on Pham Van Sat: date and place of birth; address in Vietnam; spouse’s name; distinguished record as a Major in the Vietnamese Marine Corps; wounded six times and awarded U.S. Bronze Star Medal by U.S. Dept. of Navy; was Deputy Chief, Division Office of Operation and Battalion Commander of a Vietnamese Marine Corps Division; trained in the U.S. twice after graduating from Vietnamese Military Academy in 1962, Quantico, Virginia 1964-1965, and Monterey, CA; spent five years in reeducation camps; names of his military advisors; and the names of his Sponsor and U.S. contact he listed on his application.

Professor Nguyen confirmed that he believed the file to belong to the Pham Van Sat he was looking for. Ms. Mallett then provided him with the contact information for Mr. Pham’s sponsor and US contact listed on Mr. Pham’s ODP application. Professor Nguyen began his search by contacting Mr. Pham’s sponsor and U.S. contact. Remarkably, it just so happened that Mr. Pham’s sponsor, his sister-in-law, and his U.S. contact, his brother-in-law and former classmate at the Vietnamese military academy, had not changed residence in the twenty-one years since Mr. Pham had filled out his ODP application. They were still living in New Jersey and Professor Nguyen was able to contact them, and through them Pham Van Sat, and through Pham Van Sat his friend Pham Quang Minh.

Tuyen Nguyen, Thu Duc Military Academic School, 1973

Ms. Mallett has had approximately thirty requests of a similar nature, but this is the first one with a reunion and happy ending. Ms. Mallett was excited to learn of the success of Professor Nguyen’s search, and hopes there will be many more successful searches and reunions of friends and family. Ms. Mallett would like to share two e-mails from Professor Nguyen expressing his heartfelt thanks to the Vietnam Archive for aiding him in his search and his feelings on his story being written along with his hopes that it will give hope to others.

Dear Ms. Mallett,

I would like to inform you that today, I already contacted and had a long talk with Mr Pham van Sat as well as with his young brother, Mr. Pham quang Minh, my previous friend

Thank you very much for your enthusiasm and good will in helping me to find out my above-mentioned friend whom I have lost contact with over 40 years.

I won’t never forget your help in this matter and please send my enthusiastic thank to Ms. Amy too

Finally, I believe that God will reward and bless you and Ms. Amy later on as well

Yours Thankfully and Gratefully

Tuyen Nguyen

Dear Ms. Mallett,

Please do as much as you like about this. I think it’s a great idea that this story should be written in your Archive’s News and Updates so many other people who may have the same cases as mine to know about this effective and successful way and this would encourage and help them to find their relatives, friends, acquaintances etc… whom they have long time been separated from.

It is a very good job to help other people to be united with each other again after having been separated from each other for a long time.

It is a very great idea and I’m very happy to agree with you about this so please go ahead and

do this as much as you wish

May God Bless You do this good job for many other people who are experiencing the cases as mine

Yours Thankfully and Gratefully,

 Tuyen Nguyen