I must say, I was a little bit nervous about visiting the Lavang Boarding House yesterday, inasmuch as I did not quite know what to expect--not from the place itself nor how I might react.Let me back up a bit and explain myself. My friend and classmate at Johns Hopkins, Linda Trinh, was killed our senior year. A violent homicide is difficult enough to stomach, but when it’s the second on your college campus in nine months, it cannot help but fundamentally change the way you think about the world around you. I remember our graduation ceremony as a tear-streaked, bittersweet event; The gloriously sunny day only seemed half-appropriate, considering the circumstances. Linda’s parents, showing the kind of fortitude that is unimaginable to most people, accepted her posthumous diploma. I remember my own parents later telling me that they could not fathom how they found the strength within themselves to do it.
Linda’s family left Vietnam for the U.S. shortly before she was born, and settled in Silver Spring, Maryland. At Hopkins, she was pre-med and she spent one summer in Vietnam, working at a cancer clinic in Hanoi and volunteering at an HIV/AIDS hospice for children in Saigon. It was her first and only trip to Vietnam.
The Lavang Boarding house is a project of Vietnam Dream for Success, (VDS) is a charitable organization that supports underserved young students in Vietnam and helps them to achieve their fullest potential by providing books and scholarships. In 2006, VDS built a boarding house in Saigon where specifically for female university students who may not be able to afford room and board while attending some the country's most pretigious universities in Saigon. At the boarding house, these young women can live cost-free in a brand new dormitory-style house that allows them access to the city’s many public and private universities. For many young women in Vietnam who desperately want to further their education but cannot afford to pay rent in the country’s most expensive city, the boarding house is truly a blessing.
Lien, one of the students living at Lavang, graciously came to pick us up at our hotel in downtown Saigon. She accompanied us by taxi to the boarding house, where we toured the house, met some of the students, and ate a delicious homemade lunch together--truly a treat. The women living in house range in age from 15 to 30, and are studying everything from English to environmental engineering, teaching to traditional medicine.
Although none of the girls had ever met Linda, they were clearly inspired by all that she accomplished. They were so excited to have visitors from the U.S. and were eager to talk to us about our visit to Vietnam, the U.S., our families, and our interests. We shared many laughs, a delicious meal, and thoroughly enjoyed our time together.
The Lavang Boarding house is a project of Vietnam Dream for Success, (VDS) is a charitable organization that supports underserved young students in Vietnam and helps them to achieve their fullest potential by providing books and scholarships. In 2006, VDS built a boarding house in Saigon where specifically for female university students who may not be able to afford room and board while attending some the country's most pretigious universities in Saigon. At the boarding house, these young women can live cost-free in a brand new dormitory-style house that allows them access to the city’s many public and private universities. For many young women in Vietnam who desperately want to further their education but cannot afford to pay rent in the country’s most expensive city, the boarding house is truly a blessing.
Lien, one of the students living at Lavang, graciously came to pick us up at our hotel in downtown Saigon. She accompanied us by taxi to the boarding house, where we toured the house, met some of the students, and ate a delicious homemade lunch together--truly a treat. The women living in house range in age from 15 to 30, and are studying everything from English to environmental engineering, teaching to traditional medicine.
Although none of the girls had ever met Linda, they were clearly inspired by all that she accomplished. They were so excited to have visitors from the U.S. and were eager to talk to us about our visit to Vietnam, the U.S., our families, and our interests. We shared many laughs, a delicious meal, and thoroughly enjoyed our time together.
The study room dedicated in Linda’s memory is a beautiful, peaceful space. There is a communal, conference-style table, bookshelves filled with reference volumes, and two computers. Having contributed to the fund that made the construction of the study room possible, I felt a great sense of pride in seeing such a beautiful and fitting memorial. Linda achieved so much in her too-short life, but never had the chance to truly live her life goals. Her legacy will be in helping other young women fulfill their dreams.
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