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14th
Anniversary Luncheon
With Special Guest
Andrew Lam
Vietnamese-American Author and
Co-Founder of New America Media
Tuesday, November 10th, 2009
Washington Athletic Club, Seattle WA
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Mimi Gan
interviews Ms. Cuc about her UXO accident.
Ms. Ha of PTVN translates
(photo courtesy of Phong
Dang) |
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Author,
Andrew Lam speaks on his relationship to
Vietnam
(photo courtesy
of Phong Dang) |
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US DOS
Director, James Lawrence speaks about the
matching grant provided by his Office of
Weapons Removal and Abatement
(photo courtesy of Phong Dang) |
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Emcee,
Mimi Gan & PTVN Co-Founder Jerilyn Brusseau
(photo courtesy of Val
Mohney) |
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PTVN
Vietnam Program Officer Ha Pham, PTVN
Assistant Executive Director Joselynn Plank
and UXO survivor Cuc Nguyen
(photo courtesy of Val Mohney) |
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Making
Friends...Why we keep going...
(photo courtesy of
Phong Dang) |
Seattle - (November 10, 2009)
Were were honored to have a full house at the Washington
Athletic Club for our 14th Anniversary Luncheon.
It was truly a special event, with Mimi Gan
emceeing our important fundraiser. The event
opened with a warm welcome by PeaceTrees Co-founder
Jerilyn Brusseau. A year in review was
provided by PeaceTrees Vietnam's Executive Director
Blair Burroughs.
We were also honored to have
US DOS Director of the Office of Weapons Removal and
Abatement, James Lawrence come to Seattle and talk
about the $75,000 matching grant his office was willing
to make.
Surprise guest, Nguyen
Thi Cuc’s made her first visit to America. We were privileged to have a
glimpse into Ms Cuc’s life and hear how PeaceTrees
Vietnam has been a part of her courageous journey to
overcome the tragedy of her accident. Today she is a
contributing member of her community, a working mother and
a successful Para-Olympiad.
The event was closed by a
heart-felt story read by author Andrew Lam.
Click here to read his speech.
Cheers
from our Board of Directors went up following the
luncheon when we quickly surpassed the $75,000
fundraising challenge needed to secure the matching
grant from the U.S. State Department. Because of the
generous support of our donors, the new project to clear
explosives from over 100 acres of agricultural land has
officially launched. By this time next year, fifty-six
families will have a safe place to live and farm.
Our
donors helped us
we exceed our goal of raising $150,000 from the
luncheon. This generosity means that PeaceTrees Vietnam
can continue supporting accident victims and their
families and providing mine risk education to help
prevent future accidents.
The groundbreaking $75,000 matching grant from the United
States Department of State Office of Weapons Removal and
Abatement allows PeaceTrees to
clear agricultural land for ethnic minority families in
Quang Tri Province. Which in turn allows these families to plant
suitable crops and thereby avoiding malnutrition. This
grant was conditioned on PeaceTrees Vietnam raising a
matching amount, primarily through the November 10th
luncheon. However, please note that the funds raised at
the Luncheon do not have to be used for the agricultural
project. |
