From Escape to Celebration

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In 1979, I was picked up by the U.S. Navy ship after leaving Viet Nam on a boat carrying 42 people, including my sister and two brothers. I layered on two outfits I had sewn myself since we weren’t allowed to carry bags on the boat.

After being picked up by the U.S. Navy, I was told to throw away the clothes I had been wearing due to fears of disease. I came to the U.S. with no possessions from my homeland.

The red áo dài I have submitted for this exhibit was sewn in San Jose for my wedding in Santa Rosa. It was the one thing I could afford for my special day, everything else was rented or borrowed. It symbolizes the cultural traditions that I have carried with me since leaving my country and my people’s efforts to retain our roots.

Photo caption if needed.

Thao Nguyen • 67 • Santa Rosa resident

Thao Nguyen has lived in Sonoma County since 1980, when she arrived in the United States as a Vietnamese boat refugee. The eldest daughter in her family, she met her husband in Northern California. Together, they raised six children, all of whom attended school in Santa Rosa.