Re “50 years later, why the fall of Saigon resonates in San Diego” (April 29): I was in the fourth grade at Jefferson Elementary in North Park. A Vietnamese brother and sister were placed in my class. Neither of them spoke any English and they were clearly terrified to be there. My teacher, Mr. Darass, left the classroom and quickly returned with another teacher. She spoke to them in French.
Their eyes lit up and the fear peeled away. Their eyes said it all — they knew then that they were welcome and accepted into this strange new world.
These refugees fled with, literally, nothing more than the clothes they were wearing. They did not come here wanting or expecting that they were entitled to be given anything. They hunkered down, worked hard and provided their children with a path to success. Today those children and grandchildren are our doctors, lawyers, engineers and more.
This has been my own inspiration in the pursuit of the American Dream.
— Kelly Graeber, Encinitas
