About Us

Michael D. Benge, USMC Sgt. (Ret), Former Senior Civilian Advisor, CORDS/USAID, South Vietnam

After leaving school, Garry worked as a civil servant in Australia. When the Vietnam War was beginning to heat up, Garry decided to join the Royal Australian Army so he could go to Vietnam in search of a “big adventure”.

Garry volunteered for the Infantry. After his basic and corps training, he was posted to the 6^th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment in late 1967. In 1969, his unit was deployed to Vietnam and he had his war at the age of 19 as a forward scout (permanent point man) in an infantry rifle company, a job he “enjoyed” and did for the full 12 months.

During the Battalion’s 12 month tour, it fought with great success against numerous NVA and Main Force VC units and hit the 33^rd NVA Regiment (same unit that fought against the US 7^th Cavalry at LZ X Ray and LZ Albany) so hard they were driven out of Phuoc Tuy Province and were not seen in the area again for two years.

On completion of the Vietnam tour of duty, Garry went back to Australia with his unit. Subsequently, his Battalion was sent to Singapore and spent a 3 ½ wonderful years before coming home. Garry spent 20 years in the regular Army, all in infantry units and enjoyed it all but in 1987; he wanted to try something else in the civilian world.

After leaving the Army, Garry had a number of jobs until, in 1996 he returned to Vietnam on a tour to see what it was like. He went back again in 1997 and 1998 and was offered a job as a tour leader, showing people the battlefields and other places in Vietnam. And now in 2005, Garry still does it and enjoys every minute he is “In Country”.

Cell Phone: Bob: 281-543-4534 · Office: 936-856-5367 or Toll Free 877-99SPEAK

Professional Profile

Back To Basics International—A Professional Speaking and Training Organization

I am the founder of this company and function as its primary professional speaker. In this position, I speak on a variety of topics to a variety of audiences. I provide this through key note Addresses, as well as in training formats. I speak at the national and international levels, for both civilian and military audiences, with topics most often being leadership, attaining excellence, motivation, communication, team building and counterterrorism. In addition, I provide consultant and training activities in areas of safety management, human resource management, quality management, management development and training.

I hold Ph.D.s in human resource management and safety management, as well as a Masters degree in police science and a Bachelors degree in social psychology. I have over 30 years of program and project management experience as a consultant and operations manager for civilian and governmental agencies and companies. I sit on the Board of Directors for the World Safety Organization. I chair the Ethics Committee and sit on the Credentials Board. I am a member of the National Society for Safety Management and hold a total of four professional safety credentials. Additionally, I am a member of the National Speakers Association and I am listed as a professional speaker on multiple Speaker Bureaus, and as a subject matter expert on RadioGuests.com.

I have over thirty years of uniformed service to my country and I’m currently a Chief Master Sergeant serving as the Security Forces Manager for the 917th Security Forces Squadron, Barksdale AFB, LA., USAFR.

I’m a qualified rappel master, assistant SCUBA instructor and hold a 2nd degree black belt in karate. I’m an avid writer and enjoy writing in various genres including action, adventure, leadership and self-improvement. My first book Tac Leader: What Honor Requires (action/adventure novel) was published in April 2004 and Back to Basics for Finding Sanity in an Insane World (self-help/motivational) is scheduled for release in December 2004.

As a member of the Air National Guard, I was activated to full time military duty after September 11, 2001 for over a year. During the activation for Operation Iraqi Freedom, I redesigned my company changing the name from Instructional Services to Back to Basics International. In the process, I moved my activities more into the training and management development, with less emphasis on compliance processes. The focus of my activities under Instructional Services was:

· Leadership and Management Training

· Assessment and Root Cause Analysis

· Safety Management Programs and Training

· Human Resource Programs and Training

· Continued Quality Improvement Programs and Training

· Conflict resolution

· Arbitration/mediation services for OSHA, EEOC, TWC, and union collective bargaining

· ISO 9000 direction and preparations

· Drug Testing Policy/Program development, implementation, and training

· Immediate past Command Chief Master Sergeant of the 147^th Fighter Wing, Ellington Field, TX. As a traditional Guardsman I worked directly for the Wing Commander as the Senior Enlisted Advisor for the wing which consisted of over 1,000 members. Following September 11, 2001 I was activated to support of Operation Noble Eagle.

· General Manager, National Sealants & Lubricants—Directed activities resulting in winning ISO 9002 and Voluntary FAA Certification. Increased profitability 33%.

· Corporate Risk Manager, Autumn Hills Convalescent Centers—Directed safety, human resource and staff training for Texas’ largest private chain of nursing facilities. Successfully defended corporation against OSHA, EEOC and TEC hearings results: $1.5 million + savings in fines and reduction/elimination of citations.

· Chief Operating Officer, TurnKey Business Services—Directed operations for consulting firm serving multi-physician, multi-site medical corps, residential facilities and industrial clients. Activities included safety, substance abuse testing & education, conflict resolution, staff development/human resource issues. Increased profitability by 30%.

· Senior Vice President, Fairchild Consulting Group—Directed operations of multi-discipline medical and consulting agency. To include development/implementation of marketing strategies, supervision/evaluation of staff, budget/finance, development and implementation of training programs. Increased profitability by 38%.

Professional and Military Education:

· Ph. D. – LaSalle University, Mandeville, LA - Human Resource Management (sigma cum laude) 1998.

· Master of Science – Western States University, Doniphen, MO - Police Science 1996.

· USAFR Senior NCO, First Sergeant’s Academy, USAFR Social Actions Technical School, 2^nd Air Force NCO Leadership School and military specialized education for five separate career fields.

--Certified Safety Instructor – Master Level, 1997 (I also created this certification)

Born and raised in Akron, Ohio, Don joined the U.S. Army after graduating from Tallmadge High School in 1966. He was an MP for awhile, then, after Infantry Officers Candidate School and Airborne Training (Jump School) at Fort Benning, Georgia, he was commissioned a second lieutenant and trained for a year with the 7th Special Forces Group at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. This included Vietnamese Language School under the tutelage of Madame Nhu's sister.

Don Bendell served as an officer in four Special Forces Groups, including a tour on a green beret A-team (Dak Pek) in Vietnam in 1968-1969, and was in the Top Secret Phoenix Program. In 1969, he was medically-evacuated, first to Pleiku's 71st Evac Hospital, then the 1st Field Hospital in Tokyo for a month, then back to Womack Army Hospital at Fort Bragg in the United States, and finally, with a 3-Medical Profile, he was assigned to the 3rd Special Forces Group, where he became the Assistant S-2 (Staff Intelligence Officer). He was not allowed to return to Viet Nam because of his medical profile, although he kept trying to return. In June of 1969, Don was promoted to Captain and sent to the US Army Intelligence Officers School at Fort Holabird, Maryland, where he graduated on the Commandant's List. In 1970, Don was honorably discharged from the Army and began to pursue a number of careers. As a seventh degree black belt Master in four different martial arts, Don was a 1995 inductee into the International Karate Hall of Fame, and owns karate schools in southern Colorado. As a writer, Don is a top-selling author of 21 books, with over 1,500,000 copies of his books in print worldwide. He has been interviewed on FOX NEWS LIVE and on many radio shows and speaks all over the country. His newest novel, a modern day military thriller, CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION DETACHMENT, was released worldwide by Berkley (Penguin) in January, 2006 and sold out the 2^nd day on amazon.com, and has received many 5-Star reviews.”

Don has been a producer, director, actor, talk show host, cowboy, poet, speaker, a television pilot, and a successful feature film. Don has also been a licensed big-game guide and outfitter, stuntman, bodyguard, executive sales rep, and radio disc jockey. He is the father of six and grandfather of five. For Don’s complete bio and careers, please visit his website at: www.donbendell.com and www.bendellkarate.com

Michael D. Benge was born in Denver, Colorado on August 6, 1935. PRIVATE He served in the Marine Corps from 1956 to 1959, achieving the rank of sergeant, and was honorably discharged. He completed his Bachelors in Science degree in Agricultural Engineering at Oregon State University in 1962.

In 1963, he joined the International Voluntary Services (a forerunner of the Peace Corps), and served in Vietnam, becoming fluent in both Vietnamese and Rhade (the major ethnic minority dialect in the highlands). In 1965, he joined the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and served as a Provincal Development Officer in the CORDS program (Civil Operations and Rural Development Support) in the Central Highlands of South Vietnam.

While serving as the Senior Civilian Advisor in CORDs, he was captured by the North Vietnamese as he attempted to rescue four American civilians and a number of missionaries in an area that was occupied by a North Vietnamese Battalion. He was held in numerous camps in South Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and North Vietnam. He spent 27 months in solitary confinement, one year in a cage, and one year in a "black box." While in the “Plantation Gardens” in Hanoi, he served as the deputy to Senior Ranking Officer Col. Ted Guy.

Mr. Benge received several honors for his service in Vietnam. For efforts in rescuing eleven Americans (USAID personnel) before capture, he received the State Department's highest award for heroism. He received a second award for valor for his actions during captivity. He also received three medals from the Government of South Vietnam for his work in public administration and political affairs, public health, and ethnic minority affairs. And, he received several letters of commendation from Congressional delegations and others in recognition of his work in Vietnam.

After his release in 1973 during "Operation Homecoming," and while on medical leave, he returned to Vietnam and continued his work with the Ministry of Ethnic Minorities. In 1974, he was assigned to the USAID Mission in the Philippines, and after the fall of Vietnam in 1975, he assisted in processing refugees to go to the U.S. In 1978, he completed his Master's Degree in Agroforestry at the University of the Philippines in Los Banos. In 1979, he rotated to the U.S.

Mr. Benge has received recognition for his work in development beyond his contributions before, during and after his imprisonment in Vietnam. The King of Sweden honored him with an award patterned after the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize for his international work in developing fast-growing trees. He also received the J. Morton Sterling Award from the Arbor Day Foundation for his work in international forestry, and has received a number of commendations from USAID Administrators and from various other Agency personnel, cited as an exemplary USAID employee. Mr. Benge is now retired from USAID.

Mr. Benge spent 11 years in Vietnam, and with the exception of his time as a Prisoner of War, he worked in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. He is a student of the politics of South East Asia, and has written extensively about the politics of the region and of the human rights abuses against the Montagnard and Vietnamese people under the communist Vietnamese regime. As the Senior Advisor to the Montagnard Human Rights Organization based in Raleigh, NC, he works on human rights, political, immigration, and religious issues for the Montagnards in the United States and on behalf of those remaining in Vietnam, as well as other disenfranchised and abused peoples of SE Asia.

Journalist, historian and scholar John E. Carey retired from the United States Navy. At the end of the war in Vietnam, he participated in U.S. Navy at sea rescues of Vietnamese “boat people.” Later he married Honglien, who fled the Communists in Vietnam as a “boat people” during the Vietnamese Diaspora. Mr. Carey served in six ships, ultimately achieving Command at Sea. He had numerous tours of duty in the Pentagon including in President Ronald Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI). He was the Chairman of NATO's Advisory Group for Aerospace Research and Development and a technical advisor to the Bilateral Strategic Talks with Russia. Mr. Carey has lived in China and other overseas locations. He has a Masters Degree (with Honors) in International Relations. Mr. Carey is active in Human Rights activities and has written extensively about human rights issues with Honglien. Founder and former President of International Defense Consultants, Inc., Carey works for U.S. national security objectives, military operations and homeland defense.

Honglien says she has a story like so many other people displaced by war. She spent several years in Palawan in the Philippines and is now proudly an American citizen.

Mr. Dao is a former Major in the Vietnamese Air Force. He enlisted into the Vietnamese Air Force in 1964 and graduated Primary/Basic Pilot Training in the U.S.A. in 1966. Major Dao was appointed Acting Squadron Commander of 245^th Helicopter Squadron - 43^rd Tactical Wing - 3^rd Air Division, Bien Hoa, South Vietnam.

Hung B. Dao started writing under pen name Dao Vu Anh Hung since 1960. He initially associated with Ngay Nay owned by writer Hieu Chan. Subsequently, he became regular writer for numerous other newspapers and magazines such as Song Than, Hoa Binh, Kich Anh, Truyen Hay Thu Tu and Ly Tuong, a Vietnamese Air Force periodical. He appertained to the Chu Tu team of writers/reporters for various newspapers Tuong Lai, Tien Tuyen, Than Dan, Tranh Dau, Ben Nghe, Song and weekly magazine Doi. While living in America, Hung collaborated with many newspapers and magazines in the U.S as well as in Europe.

Mr. Dao was Administrator/Manager of The Voice of Vietnam Radio in Dallas, Texas from 1983-1985. He served two consecutive terms as President of Federation of the Republic of Vietnam Airforce Associations from 1966 to 2000. Chief Editor of special issues Duong May and Ly Tuong, VNAF Magazines from 1990 to 2000.

Ken Delfino was born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in Chicago, Waukegan, Illinois, San Francisco, Daly City, and Salinas, CA. After High School, Ken joined the US Navy in May 1964, graduated from San Diego NTC in August and was discharged on January 17, 1969 due to medical disability.

Attended Naval Inshore Operations Training Center, Mare Island, CA and trained in Suisun Sloughs. Continued training at Naval Amphibious Base, Coronado and went through Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape training and Vietnamese language training at Warner Springs.

While in the US Navy Ken served aboard USS Seminole AKA-104 for 1½ years before volunteering for the newly formed River Patrol Force (www.tf116.org ). Ken also served on PBR 152 in IV Corps from 1/1966 to 7/1968 running 490 patrols with 90% of them having no action! Ken assumed command of PBR 151 in July 1968 and on July 26 his Navy career ended when an accident eventually led to the amputation of his left leg. Ken retired as an E-4.

After being discharged from Philly Naval Hospital on December 30, 1968 Ken joined United Airlines working in their reservation sales center in San Francisco, CA as his intended career in law enforcement was shattered due to his disability. Ken enjoyed sales, public contact and solving problems and he worked for United 32½ years before retiring in February 2002. During this time, he also attended City College of San Francisco.

In 1987 Ken was invited to join the Kiwanis Club of Fairfield and got deeply involved in the service organization. Ken has held several offices and has chaired three international committees and has gotten involved in working with the high school Key Clubs.

Currently Ken volunteers with the Placer County Sheriff’s Department doing traffic control for events and also helped start up a youth football program in 2004 as well as a community group that puts on the Independence Day and Christmas Winter Festival. In July 2008 Ken was appointed to fill a vacancy on the City Council after the Mayor and one Councilwoman abruptly quit. Ken is currently serving as Mayor of Colfax, CA and his term of office ends in December 2012.

Ken has never regretted the time he served in Viet Nam. He said:
“Despite how my tour of duty and Naval career ended, I have never …for one moment …ever regretted the time I served in defense of the South Vietnamese people. The last communiqué to my family from my hospital bed in Japan was a postcard simply stating; ‘My only regret was not being able to finish the job!’ My father kept that postcard for me".

Tina Freeland (pen name) currently lives in Southern California and works in the Software Development field.

Left Viet Nam in her late teens, and emigrated to the United States in April, 1975, Tina Freeland was educated in the U.S. and has lived in Southern California since 1978. She holds a Bachelor in Business Administration as well as an MBA.

Tina actively participates in the efforts of bringing Democracy and true Freedom for Vietnam, and currently is a member of LLQDVN (www.llqdvn.org).

To Tina, writing is both a hobby, and an important tool in promoting, supporting, sustaining and expanding the Democracy movements for Vietnam both oversea and inside the country.

Mr. Freeman was most recently a trial lawyer and he has extensive experience as a mediator and as an arbitrator. He brings over eighteen years of experience as a top negotiator for Liberty Mutual, State Farm, and C.S.A.A. During his extensive career, he has been instrumental in resolving numerous, multi-million dollar settlements.

Mr. Freeman, a native of Southern California, spent eight years competing on the international kickboxing circuit. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree, with honors, in Business Marketing from California State University at Long Beach in 1987. He graduated with honors from California State University at Dominguez Hills with a Masters of Arts degree in Conflict Resolution and Negotiations in 1992. He obtained his Juris Doctor from Loyola Law School in 1997, and was admitted to the California Bar Association in 1997.

Colonel Stuart Herrington served 30 years as career Army Intelligence officer, including 8 years in Germany and nearly four years in Vietnam. His specialty was counterintelligence and interrogation. In addition to the Vietnam War, he is a veteran of Operations Desert Shield/Desert Storm, (the first Gulf War in 1991), and Operation Just Cause (the 1989 liberation of Panama). In both of these operations, he established and commanded strategic interrogation centers responsible for interrogation of senior enemy prisoner of war. His books include "Silence Was A Weapon: The Vietnam War in the Villages," an account of his service in Hau Nghia Province (recently republished as "Stalking the Vietcong: Inside Operation Phoenix,") "Peace with Honor? An American Reports on Vietnam, 1973-75," an account of his service in Vietnam after the signing of the Paris Agreements, and "Traitors Among Us: Inside the Spy Catcher's World," a memoir of his service as the Army's senior spy catcher. Since his retirement, he has twice returned to duty at the request of the Army, on missions that have taken him to Guantanamo Bay, and Baghdad, Iraq. Colonel Herrington has three children, all born in Vietnam during the War. Herrington evacuated from Saigon at 5:30AM on April 30,1975. He is currently the Director of Global Security & Investigations for Callaway Golf Company.

Andrew is a syndicated writer and an editor with the Pacific News Service, a short story writer, and a regular commentator on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered.” He co-founded New California Media, an association of 400 ethnic media in California.

His essays have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country, including the New York Times, The LA Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, The Baltimore Sun, The Atlanta Journal, and the Chicago Tribune. He has also written essays for magazines like Mother Jones, The Nation, San Francisco Focus, Proult Journal, In Context, Earth Island Journal.

His short stories are also anthologized widely and taught in many Universities and colleges in the US. A few of literary journals that published his short stories are: Manoa Journal, Crab Orchard Review, Nimrod International, Michigan Quarterly West, Zyzzyva, Transfer Magazine, and many others.

Lam’s awards include the Society of Professional Journalist Outstanding Young Journalist Award (1993), The Media Alliance Meritorious awards (1994), The World Affairs Council's Excellence in International Journalism Award (1992), the Rockefeller Fellowship in UCLA (1992), and the Asian American Journalist Association National Award (1993; 1995). He was honored and profiled on KQED television in May 1996 during Asian American heritage month.

Lam was a John S. Knight Fellow at Stanford University during the academic year 2001-02, studying journalism.

He has a Master in Fine Arts from San Francisco State University and a BA degree in biochemistry from UC Berkeley.

He is featured in the documentary “My Journey Home,” which was aired on PBS nationwide on April 7, 2004. In it a film crew followed him back to his homeland Vietnam. He is working on a radio documentary for April 30, 2005, a reflection piece on the 30^th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War for Public Radio International.

Lam is author of “Perfume Dreams: Reflections on the Vietnamese Diaspora” due out in the fall, 2005. You can contact the author at:

Lt. Bill Laurie was originally trained at Infantry Officer Basic at Fort Benning, Georgia; Combat Tactical Intelligence and Southeast Asia Orientation at Fort Holabird, Maryland; and Vietnamese Language School at Fort Bliss, Texas to serve as an advisor in Vietnam. Upon his arrival in Vietnam in 1971, the advisory role was being phased out and instead he was assigned to MACV J-2 as an intelligence analyst, first covering Cambodia and then concentrating on Military Region IV covering the entire Mekong Delta.

After leaving the Army in 1972, he returned to Vietnam for two more years as a civilian working for the Department of Defense through U.S Embassy/Defense Attache Office from 1973 to 1975. During his three years working in Vietnam, he had been in 18 of the 44 provinces of the former Republic of Vietnam dealing, working with not only U.S and RVNAF forces but also with the Australians, USAID, and the CIA. Bill has great command of the Vietnamese language; he can speak, write, and read Vietnamese.

Bill Laurie is a graduate of Arizona State University and holds two college degrees. (B.A., Political Science, 1968 and B.A., Economics, 1982. Bill also has Teaching Certificate for secondary schools, University of Phoenix, 1995). Bill was born and raised in Waukegan, Illinois.

He graduated from Northern State College in 1967 with a B.S. degree in History. He also holds Masters Degrees from Ball State University and the University of South Dakota. He entered the USAF in January 1968.

He was assigned to the 8^th Aerial Port Squadron at Tan Son Nhut AB, South Viet Nam, from November 1969 through October 1970. In this capacity he was involved in aerial re-supply operations throughout III and IV Corps. During the invasion of Cambodian in the spring of 1970 he flew 5 missions in 0-1E Bird Dogs in the Fish Hook region.

Colonel Mayes retrained into Security Police/Security Forces upon his return from South East Asia and served in a variety of Command and Staff positions:

Group Commander at RAF Lakenheath, UK, and culminating his career as Commander, Security Police/Forces Center, Kirtland AFB, NM. He served at various times in over 25 countries, with 15 years of overseas duty.

His decorations include: Legion of Merit/w Oak Leaf, the Bronze Star, the Meritorious Service Medal/w 6 Oak Leafs, the Air Force Commendation Medal, and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry, both Unit and Individual.

Colonel Mayes is a Distinguished Graduate from both the Squadron Officers School and Air Command and Staff College. He is also a graduate of the US Army War College. Colonel Mayes retired from the USAF in 1998. He resides in Rapid City, SD, with Patricia, his wife of 39 years.

Ed Metzner enlisted during World War II and served in the South Pacific. After honorable discharge in 1945, he attended Fordham College, receiving a BA degree in history and a commission as 2^nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army Reserve. Ed was recalled to active duty in 1952 and served in Korea. He continued to serve as a U.S Army officer and retired as a Regular Army Colonel in August 1982 culminating 36 ½ years of total service which included 7 years in Vietnam. Colonel Metzner military service education includes graduation from the Royal Canadian School of Artillery Staff Course, the U.S Army Command and General Staff Course, the State Department Foreign Service Institute and the Air Force War College.

United States	Foreign Awards
Legion of Merit, 3 Awards	Philippine Liberation Medal
Meritorious Service Medal, 2 Awards	United Nations Korean Service Medal
Bronze Star Medal, 2 Awards	Greek Expeditionary Force Korean Medal
Air Medal, 3 Awards	1 VN Army Distinguished Service Order
Army Commendation Medal, 2 Awards	1 VN Cross of Gallantry with Palm
American Theater Medal, WWII	2 VN Cross of Gallantry with Gold Star
Pacific Theater Medal, WWII	1 VN Cross of Gallantry with Silver Star
WWII Victory Medal	1 VN Cross of Gallantry with Bronze Star
National Defense Service Medal, 2 Awards	1 VN Staff Service Medal, 1^st Class
Korean Service Medal	1 VN Air Force Service Medal, Honor Class
VN Service Medal, 14 Campaign Stars	1 VN Navy Service Medal, Honor Class
Combat Infantryman Badge	1 VN Civic Action Medal
Parachutist Badge	1 VN Psychological Ops Medal, 1^st Class
Army General Staff Service Badge	1 VN Psychological Ops Medal, 2^nd Class
Korean Defense Service Medal

Colonel Metzner is an author of “More Than a Soldier’s War; Pacification in Vietnam,” his own account of his 7 years of service in Vietnam as Psychological Warfare and Pacification Advisor, Province Senior Advisor and Chief of U.S. Defense Attaché Liaison Section to the VN Joint General Staff. His second book “Reeducation in Postwar Vietnam: Personal Postscripts to Peace,” is written with stories from three Vietnamese who had worked with and befriended him during his time in Vietnam.

Professor Nguyễn Ngọc Bích is a specialist on Vietnamese literature, having taught the topic at George Mason University and Georgetown University, where he was in charge of such courses as Vietnamese Culture and Civilization. He is the author of such famous anthologies as A Thousand Years of Vietnamese Poetry (published by Alfred A. Knopf of New York, 1975) and War and Exile, a Vietnamese Anthology (East Coast U.S.A. Vietnamese Writers Abroad PEN Center, 1989).

In the last ten years, he has co-authored the Smithsonian catalogue An Ocean Apart on “contemporary Vietnamese and Vietnamese American art,” an exhibit that went around the United States for three years (from 1995 to 1998), and translated the poetry of Nguyễn Chí Thien, the most famous prisoner of conscience in Vietnam, including The Flowers of Hell and Blood Seeds Become Poetry (1996). More recently, he published the collected works of Ho Xuan Huong, the most famous woman poet of Vietnam (2000); a translation of the Persian poet Omar Khayyam’s Rubaiyat into Vietnamese (2002) and a lovely, fully illustrated book on Tet, the Vietnamese New Year (2004). He is also an occasional actor in such video productions as Vietnam: The Real Story (a product of Accuracy in Media), Hidden Treasures (produced by the New York Department of Education) and the recently produced Arlington: Heroes, History and Hamburgers realized by WETA.

Bích is now retired from his last position as Director of the Vietnamese Service at Radio Free Asia (since July 2003) and spends most of his time traveling, lecturing and writing on various aspects of Vietnamese culture and history. He is a senior research associate of the Indochina Center, George Mason University, and currently Chairman of the Board, National Congress of Vietnamese Americans (NCVA).

Quang Nguyen, Caddis Branding Agency founder, is both Creative and Art Director and principal strategist. He acts as lead strategist and oversee the design process.

Quang immigrated to the United States in 1975 from Vietnam at age 12. Graduated from California State University with a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts.

With over twenty years of branding and marketing experience, Quang served as Creative Manager for Flour Corporation in Irvine , California , Art Director for Sonance in San Clemente , California , and as Creative Director for Knox Corporation in Phoenix , AZ.

Highly skilled and experienced in all aspects of marketing and design, he is a visionary and practical strategist. He has extensive experience in the aerospace and defense, construction, energy, financial services and higher education, in addition to the municipality and public sectors.

Dr. Tien Gia Nguyen is a graduate of Saigon University, Medical School in 1964. Being a Vietnamese Air Force officer (VNAF), Dr. Nguyen also received his training at the School of Aerospace Medicine at Brooks Air Force Base (USAF), Texas in 1965 where he graduated as a Flight Surgeon. He served as a physician at the VNAF Medical Center at Tan Son Nhut Air Base until the fall of Saigon in April 1975. His last VNAF rank was a Lt. Colonel.

After the fall of South Vietnam, Dr. Nguyen was incarcerated by North Vietnamese communist in their most barbarous, inhumane re-education camp for three years. In 1981, he became a political refugee in Switzerland where he resumed his medical practice. Dr. Nguyen is currently living in Switzerland with his family.

In his acclaimed debut book, A Sense of Duty: My Father, My American Journey, Quang X. Pham delves into the difficulties of emigrating to the U.S. as a child refugee after the fall of Saigon. His father, a South Vietnamese pilot, was held captive for twelve years in communist reeducation camps while Quang, his mother and his three sisters, were evacuated to California. His separation from his father and his own military service as a Marines Corps pilot during the Gulf War and Somalia brought many challenges to Quang’s life. He recounts overcoming those obstacles with this affecting memoir about fate, hope and the aftermath of the most divisive war America has fought.

Quang was vice president/general manager with QTC Medical Services, a medical disability company, and CEO of Lathian Systems, a pharmaceutical solutions company he founded. He volunteers his time on the boards of charitable organizations and has received numerous community and military awards.

In addition to being a naval aviator, Quang was also designated as Foreign Area Officer (Vietnam) and served as aide-de-camp to a wing commander. Other involvement includes Inter-University Seminar on Armed Forces and Society, Marine Corps Aviation Association, USMC/Combat Helicopter Association, Military Officers Association of America, November 10th Association, Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Texas Tech Vietnam Center, Veteran Service Organizations and Vietnam War Memorial of Westminster.

Quang has given many speeches and has appeared on NBC, CNN, FOX, PBS, C-SPAN, and National Public Radio for entrepreneurial excellence and reflections on Vietnam. His writings have been published in the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, the Boston Globe, the Houston Chronicle, and the Orange County Register. A graduate of UCLA, he lives in Orange County, California with his wife, Shannon. For more information, visit his web site: www.asenseofduty.com.

Major My Tan Phan was Commander of the 3^rd Battalion, a unit of the 52^nd Regiment /18th Infantry Division, ARVN. Major My Tan Phan was sent to Fort Benning, GA in 1958 to 1959 for AACO #2 training and also in 1971 to 1972 for IOAC # 7-71 training. Prior to April 1975, Major Phan wrote as a freelance writer under the pen name Y Yen for some Vietnam Magazines. He continues to write periodically for some newspapers in San Jose.

During the last days of the war in South Vietnam, the 18^th Infantry Division fought gallantly and successfully repelled the North Communist IV Corps at the renowned Xuan Loc battle. In this perilous fight from April 9 to April 20, 1975, the 18^th Infantry Division inflicted heavy losses to the communists. At the end of the battle, the communists left approximately 5,000 bodies and 37 T-54 destroyed Soviet tanks on the battlefield. This great battle was recounted on several foreign newspapers and on the Journal of Military History 68, January 2004 (by George J. Veith & Merle L.Pribbenow.“ Fighting is an Art.” pp 163-204) The Xuan Loc victory of the ARVN was also confirmed by the High-ranking Communist officials Le Duc Tho, Political director of the Campaign, and General Van Tien Dung, the military field commander.

Following the abandonment of I Corps and II Corps by President Nguyen Van Thieu in March 1975, the Xuan Loc garrison became the northernmost forefront of the RVN. While in steadfast resistance, Xuan Loc finally had to be evacuated on April 20, 1975 under President Thieu’s order, so that he could resign (?) in the evening of the next day, the 21 April 1975. After the collapse of the RVN, Major My Tan Phan was incarcerated in“Communist re-education camps” located in various regions of North Vietnam for 10 years. He was released in 1984 and came to resettle in the U.S. in 1996.

Y Yen – My Tan Phan is currently residing in San Jose with his family. He is presently working as a SMT operator, night shift.

Currently lives in the Bay Area and teaches US. History and Government in the San Francisco Unified School District.

Left Viet-Nam and emigrated to the United States in his teens, Nguyen-Khoa Thai Anh has lived the last twenty five years in Northern California and experienced first hand the effort of reclaiming unbiased and unabridged history of the Viet-nam war here right in the midst of the liberal if not anti-war climate.

Having attended the University California at Berkeley as a graduate student, he knows the task of researching and presenting Vietnamese contemporary history is an uphill battle, albeit not totally undoable. As a Vietnamerican, his one earnest hope is to let mainstream Americans know that Vietnamese American are peace-loving but that doesn’t mean we have to let governments, (American or Vietnamese) trampled on our freedom and civil liberties.

Thai currently writes a monthly column for Nguoi Viet 2 and Dan Chim Viet and is a contributing op-ed writer for mainstream newspapers

- Assistant Director - Demonstration Projects for Asian Americans – State of Washington

- Director, Indochinese Service Center - Dept of Emergency Services – State of Washington

- Natural Disaster Coordinator - Dept of Emergency Services – State of Washington

- Claims Specialist, Special Investigation Unit – California State Auto Assoc. San Jose, CA

- Claims Supervisor, B.I Dept - Insurance Consulting Associates, Inc. Yorba Linda, CA

Dr. Tran is a graduate of Saigon Law University with a Law Degree in 1964. He was appointed to Saigon Municipal Court and was the youngest and one of the most respected Judges at the time. In 1967, the Vietnam National Police Academy invited Dr. Tran to teach Criminology and Criminal Procedures at the Academy. He also taught Criminology at Van Hanh University in Saigon. In 1974, Dr. Tran received his Doctor of Law degree (Ph.D.) from the same Saigon Law University. His Doctoral Thesis was highly praised by the Committee of Examiners.

After the fall of Saigon, Dr. Tran resettled in San Jose, Northern California. Dr. Tran was instrumental in the establishment and development of the Vietnamese Catholic Community in San Jose. To serve his community, Dr. Tran published the Chinh Nghia (Good Cause) Weekly Magazine from 1986 to 2001 and he developed a weekly radio program Tieng Vong Tinh Thuong (Echoes of Love) where he served as Editor in 1992 through 2005. He continues to write for various Vietnamese language newspapers in the States and, on many special occasions, has been invited as guest speaker.

- Political refugee in America in 1975, a successful business owner and now retired.

- Author of THE SAGA OF A VIETNAMESE IMMIGRANT published in April 2004 by Author House of Indiana. This book has been translated into Vietnamese titled CAU CHUYEN MOT DI DAN TY NAN VIET (the story of a Vietnamese political refugee immigrant) was off the press in May 2005.

Sidney is one of millions of Vietnamese scattered across the globe, the living legacy of the Vietnam War. He has lived in the U.S. for almost his entire existence. He is proud to be a Vietnamese American because it is in America that he matured into adulthood. He is honored to be living among my fellow Americans who are free citizens of a free country. Sidney also has a special love for his Viet heritage because it has formed his core values about family, tradition, learning, ethics and morality. He was born in Da Nang when it was still part of the Republic of Vietnam. He is a product of the American public educational system that has nurtured his sense of civic duty and virtue.

Sidney is a lifelong student because, he feels, without knowledge there would be no freedom. Sidney is a graduate of University of Houston, Texas. He holds two BS degrees, one in economics in 1994 and one in political science in 1995. He continued his education in a Master’s program in economics at Cal Poly but he decided to switch to a more practical MBA program at the beautiful seaside campus of CSU Channel Islands in the city of Camarillo, CA. His expected completion of the MBA will be the fall of ’06. He is currently employed as an Account Manager for Corporate Express, a subsidiary of Buhrmann, a major Dutch multinational corporation based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Sidney is an avid reader and follower of international relations and economics especially the Pacific Rim region, particularly Vietnam. He wishes to contribute to the democratization process for the land of his birth. He would also like to be a voice for his generation of Vietnamese American in order to educate the much younger generation of Vietnamese American that came after him about the hardship, suffering, and tribulation of their parents and grandparents’ generation. He hopes that the much younger generation will respect, preserve, and honor the rich heritage that was handed down to them.

Vu Duc Vinh is an author of two novels published in Hanoi in 1953 and 1954 under the pen name as Huy Quang. One of these two entitled Doi Nga (Two Diverged Paths) was a best seller. The Geneva Accord of 1954 divided Vietnam into two parts, and Vu Duc Vinh left for the South. In 1955 Vu Duc Vinh moved into journalism, and later became a contributing writer for different radio broadcasting programs for many years.

During the most critical period of the Vietnam war (1965-1969), Vu Duc Vinh worked as Director General of the Vietnam Radio Broadcasting Network, which included 13 stations throughout South Vietnam (*). Vu Duc Vinh also served in the Vietnam Air Force as an information and press officer, editor of the Vietnam Air Force Magazine Ly Tuong, and speech writer for Prime Minister then Vice President Nguyen Cao Ky of South Vietnam. While serving in the military, Vu Duc Vinh achieved the rank of Lt.Colonel.

Following evacuation from Vietnam in April, 1975 Vu Duc Vinh, his wife and four children arrived in the United States, and resettled in Seattle. In August of 1975, Vu Duc Vinh initiated the publication of the Dat Moi (New Land) Newspaper – the first Vietnamese newspaper ever published in the United States, and became its editor-in-chief for six years.

Lately, Vu Duc Vinh has authored a number of short stories, including Grandpa Grandson.

Note (*) The Saigon main station was attacked and invaded by the Viet Cong for 6 hours during the night of the Tet military offensive in early 1968. Its news program, however, continued to air amid the fire exchanges and bomb explosions in the city. The unyielding broadcast of Saigon radio during this military offensive coup had a positive psychological impact on the troops and the public of South Vietnam, and consequently helped the South Vietnam Armed Forces perform a successful counterattack against the Viet Cong.