Refugees' Gratitude to Rescuers
Donation protected
UNSUNG HEROES – THE STORY
I was seven years old when my family was rescued from the South China Sea in June 1980. We were part of the "Boat People" crisis. We were ten days at sea, lost and depleted of food, water and fuel. Barring a miracle, death was an imminent certainty. That miracle appeared in the form of a liquefied natural gas carrier flying the American flag, the LNG Virgo, an image that forever cemented itself in my mind as being synonymous with life and freedom.
THE QUEST AND THE HOPE
I've spent the better part of my adult life searching for the Captains and crews of the 2 US ships that rescued us: the LNG Virgo with the initial rescue and the USNS Sealift Antarctic with the transfer to Singapore. I’ve located a few officers and others from the same fleet. We met for a reunion last month in Florida. Words cannot adequately describe the emotions as my parents and I embraced our saviors.
MY GOAL AND GRATITUDE
In gratitude, I want to make a documentary that focuses on the lives and heroics of seafarers who rescue people in distress. My goal is to raise $60,000 to fund a documentary. The money will be used to hire a film crew, sound and graphic editors and to cover the costs of traveling to meet and interview the seafarers and their families.
Help me to give these men their proper place in history. Let’s preserve the heroics of the past, recognize the present benevolence and document for the future the truly historic contributions these men make to entire communities for whom existence would not have been possible. This project can demonstrate to the world how we can heal the wounds of war with the compassion of the human spirit.
I was seven years old when my family was rescued from the South China Sea in June 1980. We were part of the "Boat People" crisis. We were ten days at sea, lost and depleted of food, water and fuel. Barring a miracle, death was an imminent certainty. That miracle appeared in the form of a liquefied natural gas carrier flying the American flag, the LNG Virgo, an image that forever cemented itself in my mind as being synonymous with life and freedom.
THE QUEST AND THE HOPE
I've spent the better part of my adult life searching for the Captains and crews of the 2 US ships that rescued us: the LNG Virgo with the initial rescue and the USNS Sealift Antarctic with the transfer to Singapore. I’ve located a few officers and others from the same fleet. We met for a reunion last month in Florida. Words cannot adequately describe the emotions as my parents and I embraced our saviors.
MY GOAL AND GRATITUDE
In gratitude, I want to make a documentary that focuses on the lives and heroics of seafarers who rescue people in distress. My goal is to raise $60,000 to fund a documentary. The money will be used to hire a film crew, sound and graphic editors and to cover the costs of traveling to meet and interview the seafarers and their families.
Help me to give these men their proper place in history. Let’s preserve the heroics of the past, recognize the present benevolence and document for the future the truly historic contributions these men make to entire communities for whom existence would not have been possible. This project can demonstrate to the world how we can heal the wounds of war with the compassion of the human spirit.
Organizer
Lauren Vuong
Organizer
San Francisco, CA