From Here to Home
By Opinion
Published 4 years ago on
December 2, 2019
Share
[aggregation-styles]
The New York Times Subscription
The New York Times Subscription
In the summer of 1975, my family landed in Pennsylvania as refugees from the war in Vietnam. For a couple of months, we lived in a refugee camp at Fort Indiantown Gap. Recently I asked my father about the man who sponsored us so that we could leave the camp, and my father sent me a photocopy of the recommendation written for him by Joseph H. Windish. In Mr. Windish’s words, my father is “trustworthy and stable” and a “family man, having a wife and two children who he has obviously taken care of well.” So I appear in Mr. Windish’s letter, my first time, so far as I know, described in English.
I have no memory of Mr. Windish, an Army veteran of the Korean War who died in 2012 at 79. His obituary does not mention that he sponsored my family or helped my father find work, or that his generosity to strangers eventually led to the following additions to the United States: three generations of eight citizens, four native-born; a substantial amount of wealth (and taxes) generated by my hard-working parents, who started off as custodians in Harrisburg, Pa., and ended up as entrepreneurs in San Jose, Calif.; and undergraduate and doctoral degrees for my parents’ children and grandchildren from Stanford, Harvard and the University of California campuses at Berkeley and Los Angeles.
I have no memory of Mr. Windish, an Army veteran of the Korean War who died in 2012 at 79. His obituary does not mention that he sponsored my family or helped my father find work, or that his generosity to strangers eventually led to the following additions to the United States: three generations of eight citizens, four native-born; a substantial amount of wealth (and taxes) generated by my hard-working parents, who started off as custodians in Harrisburg, Pa., and ended up as entrepreneurs in San Jose, Calif.; and undergraduate and doctoral degrees for my parents’ children and grandchildren from Stanford, Harvard and the University of California campuses at Berkeley and Los Angeles.
By Viet Thanh Nguyen | 19 Nov 2019
RELATED TOPICS:
Legislation Pandering to Tribal Casinos Is a Bad Bet for Fresno Cardroom Employees
Opinion /
3 hours ago
About 1 in 4 US Adults Over 50 Say They Expect to Never Retire, an AARP Study Finds
Economy /
3 hours ago
Biden Signs a $95 Billion War Aid Measure With Assistance for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan
National /
3 hours ago
First-Round Picks Could Be on the Trading Block on Day 1 of the NFL Draft
Sports /
4 hours ago
Trojans Rejoice! Reggie Bush Is Reinstated as 2005 Heisman Trophy Winner
Sports /
5 hours ago
Arizona Just Revived an 1864 Law Criminalizing Abortion. Here’s What’s Happening in Other States
Politics /
5 hours ago
Fresno County Appoints New Librarian. What’s Her Favorite Book Genre?
Local /
5 hours ago
Categories
Latest
Videos
Sports /
2 hours ago
Boxing Star Ryan Garcia Wants to Meet Netanyahu, Pledges Aid for Gaza Children
Opinion /
3 hours ago
Legislation Pandering to Tribal Casinos Is a Bad Bet for Fresno Cardroom Employees
Economy /
3 hours ago
About 1 in 4 US Adults Over 50 Say They Expect to Never Retire, an AARP Study Finds
National /
3 hours ago
Biden Signs a $95 Billion War Aid Measure With Assistance for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan
Sports /
4 hours ago