From Darkness to Light

The fall of Saigon was the beginning of Mai Tran’s adventure as one of the hundreds of thousands of boat people who escaped from Vietnam. According to the report of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, one third of boat people died at sea by killings, storms, illnesses, and food shortages. Currently, there are more than 1.6 million boat people spread all across the world. This is Tran’s resilient journey from darkness to light, from hiding in a secluded jungle area, to floating on a small vessel, and eventually embarking onto the Skyluck ship, packed with thousands of refugees for six months and ultimately finding freedom in the USA. He never thought that he and his sister, who escaped with him as young teenagers, would ever see their family again.