Dear Valery,

Thanks for writing THRESHOLD OF NEW HOPE and giving us much good information on the dispersal of the Vietnamese Brothers and former students.  The renewed
organizations in the US, Australia, France, etc. testify to the faith and zeal of the Brothers and that have successfully transmitted the spirit of the Institute to others.

Thanks too for bringing us up-to-date on what the Brothers in Vietnam are doing despite the hardships imposed by the government.  Sooner or later these restrictions will gradually lessen and perhaps the Brothers will find the new works for the poor will be their choice rather than re-founding schools.

Sincerely,

Bro. S. Dominic Ruegg, fsc

HELLO SISTER    I NEED TO KNOW IF THE STORY THAT BROTHER VALERY WROTE KNEW THE BROTHERS THAT I MET AT THE  VIETNMESE BROTHERS IN LAFAYETTE?  HIS BOOK IS SO INTERESTING AND I OFTEN WONDER HOW THE BROTHERS IN LAFAYETTE KNEW THE FAMILY OF MRS. PHAM THAT I SPONSERED AFTER MEETING THE FAMILY WHO DOMINIC CAME WITH.   HIS BOOK IS SO INTERESTING AND I LEARNED SO MUCH ABOUT HOW AND WHY THEY CAME TO THE BROTHERS IN LAFAYETTE.  HIS BOOK HAS TAUGHT ME SO MUCH ABOUT THE FIRST VIETNAMESE   HOW DID THE BROTHERS KNOW MRS PHAM AND HER FAMILY/?? CAN YOU FIND OUT HOW AND WHO KNEW MRS. PHAM AND HER FAMILY.  I HAVE NEVER LEARNED ABOUT YOUR FAMILY AND MRS PHAM SO THIS BOOK I HAVE BEEN REVIEWING IS THE FIRST TIME I AM LEARNING FROM THIS BOOK.  IS THE BROTHER LIVING IN CA. DOES HE EVER COME TO LOUISIANA AND DO YOU KNOW HIM/  LET HIM KNOW THAT IF HE WANTS TO VISIT LAFAYETTE HE IS WELCOME TO MY HOUSE.  LET ME KNOW SOME IF THESE QUESTIONS.   TELL YOUR SISTER IN VN HELLO AND SHE IS TAKING OVER A BIG JOB TAKING CARE OF THE LITTLE HELPLESS ONES.  TAKE CARE AND SEND ME SOME OF THE ANSWERS  TO KNOW FOR THE FIRST TIME HOW LAFAYETTE WAS CHOSEN TO BE SENT TO LAFAYETTE AT DE LA SALLE.  IF YOU KNOW THE BROTHER  VALERY TELL HIM I LOVE THE BOOK AND FOR THE FIRST TIME I LEARED AND SAW A VIETNAMISE.

Brother Valery,

Good evening. I hope things are going well for you.
I have received today your parcel with six books (6 x 2 = 12).
Many thanks for your generosity. I had a look through the both volumes. What a good word ! Such an experience cannot be forgotten ! I took part in committees welcoming the boat-people coming from Vietnam at the beginning of 70ths. I am very interested in hearing or reading your tragic history. I greatly appreciate you share with me those terrible years.

Let us pray together for our Institute in your country.
I am waiting for Brother Gregoire, my friend, and Patrick.
Here at Montreal, I am in connection with Pierre Nguyen Thanh.

All the best for you.

Fernando

My dear Brother AN,

It is nice to know the name that the Brothers call
you in Vietnam.
Thanks be to God that you have written this account
of the lives of the Brothers during those terrible years.
I knew that you and many other Brothers suffered but
not the exact circumstances and now that has been made
quite vivid in your account.
For us here in the U.S. who have never experienced any
thing at all like this, it is a revelation and an opportunity
to experience your sufferings vicariously.
I have just completed reading the entire book and thoroughly
enjoyed it.

Thanks again,

Bro. S. Dominic Ruegg, fsc
 

Hello, Valery.

I was happy and honored to receive a copy of your volume "District of Saigon and La Salle Mossard Community."
I am a bit tardy in offering you my thanks and congratulations because I wanted to read it before sending you this note.
You surely did the district of Saigon a favor by offering so many reminiscences about so many individual Brothers and communities and what they encountered during the '70s. I knew some of those Brothers (e.g., Theophane who was at SMC, Moraga, when I was in Moraga a decade or more ago on saabbatical. Moreover, you have a marvelous memory of details that happened over thrity years ago. And, of course, the climax of the moving narration is to relive the lives of thcommunity of La Salle Mossard in that camp.
I hope that you and all the Brothers in San Jose are very well and happy.
I still keep in touch with John Chung and through him have met he ediftying ex-FSC Theophane and have gone to a number of the impressive reunions of the Vietnamese Lasallian alumni in the fall in the D.C. area.
I myself am well and am happy to be able to continue to teach full-time.
God bless...
emery

Hi Valery

Thank you so very much for the recent book you sent me on the District of Saigon and the "final days"
I have read through it and find it absolutely wonderful and sad and exciting! A great tribute to the Brothers of Vietnam! I was honored to be able to visit them while working in SECOLI and will always remember that time.
Congratulations Valery and a great work!!

Dominic

For more information, email to: valery@stmarys-ca.edu