Wayne and Tracy after arriving at Ton Son Nhat airport in Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) 
Wayne looking through a doorway, reflecting on his trip 
Tracy with children at the Vyda Resettlement daycare 
Wayne showing his tattoo to boys at Tra Lien village 
Wayne and Tracy handing out scholarship (tuition assistance) to students at Quang Tri High School 
Wayne showing children the pictures of them he took with his digital camera 
Wayne and Tracy enjoying lunch with Quang Tri HS scholarship students 
Tracy with children at Hai Truong Daycare center 
Wayne and Tracy flying from Saigon to Phu Bai 
Wayne and Tracy (at top of stairway) with their D.O.V.E. Fund travel companions |
for the Dove Fund Newsletter after their trip to Vietnam Inspired by a DOVE Imagine being contacted by two fellow members of A Company after 38 years; who still hold his memory dear to their hearts. Vince Acosta, a bunk mate, has great stories to tell of his friend, and John Craven had a vision to build a school in honor of his fallen comrades. It started as our own mission to visit the site where the school was being built in Sr’s honor in Dak Lak,Vietnam - the area where Sr served. We were shocked and excited to think that Jr’s father was receiving this great honor. This news opened years of unanswered questions so it was important for Jr to see the school and visit the area where his father served. We made arrangements to travel half way around the world with complete strangers, members of the D.O.V.E. Fund. It was a demanding schedule. Upon our arrival in Vietnam, there was barely time to adjust to the sites, smells and traffic. It was nothing at all like Sanford, Maine. In three days in some of the poorest villages in the area we visited 15 schools or daycare centers, distributed gifts to hundreds of kids, handed out 112 scholarships for continuing education, learned about the micro-finance program, and met kind, friendly people every where we went. There was a mix-up at the provincial level government office and we were not able to visit the school site after all. It was with great sadness felt by the entire group that we were unable to visit our school on this trip. However, we do plan to return next year for the dedication of our school. Aside from the obvious differences in culture and the friendliness and gratitude of the Vietnamese people, the thing that amazed us the most is the instant feeling of welcoming the D.O.V.E. Fund group bestowed upon us and how accepting the group was of us into their family. We were also amazed by the tremendous amount of work and effort that the D.O.V.E. Fund puts into providing a better life for those less fortunate. Seeing the smiles on children’s and villager’s faces was worth every mile we traveled. After this experience our mission now is to speak about the D.O.V.E. Fund every chance we can. We would like to give a very special thank you to Mr. Do and Theresa Nguyen for allowing us to participate in the incredible outpouring of love and caring for your people; to John and Gail Craven for caring enough about a soldier with a son to find us, and to the other members – you are all very special - our hearts will always be with you. Wayne & Tracy Elkins |
Click on Unit Crest to Return to: Company A 70th Engineer Battalion (Combat) (Army) Vietnam Veteran's Index Page |
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