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News and Upcoming Events for Vietnamese in Cleveland
2024
Vietnamese Cultural Garden on One World Day 2024
The Cleveland Vietnamese community demonstrated their heritage at One World Day in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. One World Day has been the official event of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation since 1946. They hosted visitors in the Vietnamese Garden.
Watch the video of the Parade of Flags.
Joe Meissner and other veterans in the Vietnamese Garden on One World Day 2024
Bishop Malesic celebrates Tet at St. Boniface Church
Bishop Edward Malesic and St Boniface pastor Father Mark Dao Quoc Minh concelebrated a Mass on February 11 with the the Vietnamese Apostolate.
Bishop Malesic at St Boniface Church Photos courtesy of the Catholic Diocese
After Mass, he posed for photos with some of the community who were wearing native Vietnamese dress, including ao dai - long, split tunics worn over trousers - and traditional headpieces. Then bishop also enjoyed a variety of homemade, traditional foods and entertainment.
The 2024 Cleveland Asian Festival was a rousing success. Almost 50,000 people attended the annual 2 day festival that included performances, food, cultural displays, health screenings, games, kids and family activities and more.
Asia Plaza roof shot of crowd at Cleveland Asian Festival
There were traditional and modern performances on two stages. There was something for everyone. Younger people really liked the Asian Pop Dance Competition. Plenty of martial arts on the second stage. And so on.
Friendship Foundation of American Vietnamese 11th School Built for orphans and needy children in Vietnam
The Friendship Foundation of American Vietnamese is a Cleveland Ohio based non-profit with the mission "to build bridges of friendship between the people of Vietnam and people of other countries." The Friendship Foundation has built schools and orphanages and assisted in many other ways in their numerous trips back to Vietnam and in fundraising and leadership from Cleveland. Their most recent achievement was their eleventh school and education construction project completed with the help of attorney Margaret Wong.
New school in Vietnam built by the Friendship Foundation
Vietnamese Lady Statue Installed in Cleveland Cultural Gardens
Over 20,000 lbs. of marble in the base and statue were installed in the Vietnamese Cultural Garden in Cleveland Ohio. The statue and marble came from Vietnam. This video was sped up 5 times the real time as the workers place the base and then the 9' tall statue. Then Gia Hoa Ryan looks as her dream finally came to fruition.
The Lady is here!
After many years and tens of thousands of dollars, monuments for the Vietnamese Cultural Garden have arrived. The centerpiece will be the statue of the Vietnamese Lady which will be mounted on a huge block of marble weighing many tons. These and other works were commissioned by the Friendship Foundation under the leadership of Gia Hoa Ryan and Joe Meissner.
Joe Meissner and Gia Hoa Ryan with block of marble
The marble was hewn from Marble Mountain in Vietnam. It's been a long journey as several years ago the statue broke during the trip from Vietnam and then shipping issues from Covid prevented another trip. But the monuments have arrived in Cleveland and soon will be set up in the Vietnamese Cultural Garden on MLK.
Here's a tease of the Vietnamese Lady statue. Wait till you see her standing up!
Vietnamese Cultural Garden on One World Day 2023
One World Day has been the official event of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens Federation since 1946. Over 50,000 people visited the gardens on One World Day 2023. The Vietnamese community participated in the Parade of Flags which had 1500 people from over 53 countries.
Cleveland Vietnamese Community in the Parade of Flags at One World Day
After the Parade of Flags they welcomed visitors to their Garden.
The official dates for the Vietnam War are Nov. 1, 1955, to April 30, 1975. It totaled almost 20 years and was the longest war in the history of the United States. Every year for the past 34 years, the Vietnam Veterans of America Greater Cleveland Chapter #15, the Vietnam Veterans of America West Shore Chapter # 249, South Vietnam Veterans, and the Vietnamese Community have recognized April 30TH with a memorial ceremony marking the end of the war and to honor those who didn't come home.
Friendship Foundation of American Vietnamese 10th School Built for orphans and needy children in Vietnam
The Friendship Foundation of American Vietnamese is a Cleveland Ohio based non-profit with the mission "to build bridges of friendship between the people of Vietnam and people of other countries." The Friendship Foundation has built schools and orphanages and assisted in many other ways in their numerous trips back to Vietnam and in fundraising and leadership from Cleveland. Their most recent achievement was their tenth school and education construction project completed with the help of attorney Margaret Wong.
New school in Vietnam built by the Friendship Foundation
The Cleveland Vietnamese community was out in full force at the 76th annual One World Day on the site of the upcoming Vietnam Cultural Garden. There was music, entertainment, food and fun as members of the Vietnamese community shared their culture with thousands of visitors on One World Day.
The Friendship Foundation of American Vietnamese is a Cleveland Ohio based non-profit with the mission "to build bridges of friendship between the people of Vietnam and people of other countries."The Friendship Foundation has built schools and orphanages and assisted in many other ways in their numerous trips back to Vietnam and in fundraising and leadership from Cleveland. Their most recent achievement was helping orphans and needy children with scholarships.
Cleveland's Vietnamese community was well-represented at the 75th annual One World Day in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. They marched in the Parade of Flags and attracted hundreds of visitors to their Cultural Garden to learn about the culture.
Vietnamese Garden in One World Day Parade of Flags 2021
The Friendship Foundation of American Vietnamese is a Cleveland Ohio based non-profit with the mission "to build bridges of friendship between the people of Vietnam and people of other countries."The Friendship Foundation has built schools and orphanages and assisted in many other ways in their numerous trips back to Vietnam and in fundraising and leadership from Cleveland. Their most recent achievement was helping to complete their Seventh Educational Building construction project in Vietnam.
The children each drew up their own "Thank-you" message
We asked community leaders of various ethnic heritages to share some holiday traditions of their culture. Miss Gia Hoa Ryan, leader of the Friendship Foundation, shared some memories.
The Vietnamese community of Cleveland hosted a groundbreaking event on the site of the Vietnamese Cultural Garden on May 30, 2020. Because of the Covid-19 virus, masks were worn and social distancing was practiced.
There were remarks from Friendship Foundation of American Vietnamese leaders Joe Meissner and president Gia Hoa Ryan as well as Councilman Matt Zone, Judge Marilyn Cassidy, Dr. Wael Khoury, Brunswick Mayor Ron Falconi and many others.
CWRU Vietnamese Students Association Tet Celebration
On February 8, 2020, members of the Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) Vietnamese Students Association (VSA) held their first ever Tet Celebration, a cultural show to celebrate the Lunar New Year, on campus. The event aimed to share Vietnamese cultural with the campus community while creating the festive atmosphere of the New Year that many international students miss while studying abroad.
Vietnamese Theme of Orchid Mania at Cleveland Botanical Garden
Cleveland Botanical Garden celebrates one of the world’s most exotic and beautiful flowers at their annual flower show, Orchid Mania. The theme of the 2020 Orchid Mania is Vibrant Vietnam.
This year Orchid Mania celebrates the natural beauty of Vietnam, and the Vietnamese culture that cherishes nature and plants. From the warm tropical forests and expansive coastline to rolling hills and mountains, plant diversity thrives throughout Vietnam. Orchids grown in the region are diverse and celebrated throughout the year. Orchid Mania explores four highlights of plant culture in Vietnam – natural areas, agriculture, food, and flowers.
Ms. Gia Hoa Ryan, a leader of the local Vietnamese community and Vietnam Cultural Garden, assisted with the design and items in the presentation such as food items, bicycles, musical instruments and more.
Vietnamese Cultural Garden on 74th annual One World Day
The Cleveland Vietnamese community was out in full force at the 74th annual One World Day on the site of the upcoming Vietnam Cultural Garden. There was music, entertainment, food and fun as members of the Vietnamese community shared their culture with thousands of visitors on One World Day.
Vietnamese Cultural Garden on One World Day in Cleveland
The 10th annual Cleveland Asian Festival was held on the weekend of May 18 and 19 in Cleveland's AsiaTown neighborhood on Payne Avenue. It has become a not-to-miss annual event with great entertainment, food, shopping and fun.
Vietnamese community at International Cleveland Community Day
International Cleveland Community Day at the Cleveland Museum of Art is a celebration of the rich diversity of our region’s multiethnic communities, featuring traditional music and dance performances, cultural displays, and ingallery experiences. During this vibrant afternoon, visitors enjoyed presentations from more than 50 community groups expressing the continued vitality of the global cultures and arts that enliven our city.
The Vietnamese community was represented with a banner of the Vietnamese Cultural Garden.
Vietnamese Cultural Garden banner in Cleveland Art Museum
Vietnamese Cultural Garden in Cleveland - 73rd annual One World Day
The Cleveland Vietnamese community was out in full force at the 73rd annual One World Day on the site of the upcoming Vietnam Cultural Garden. There was music, entertainment, food and fun as members of the Vietnamese community shared their culture with thousands of visitors on One World Day.
Raising a Vietnamese Flag on One World Day in Cleveland
The opening ceremonies featured singing of the Vietnamese and US national anthems and remarks from Vietnamese Garden leaders Gia Hoa Ryan, Joe Meissner, Brunswick Mayor Ron Falconi and others. Cleveland Councilman Matt Zone also spoke and presented a proclamation from the City of Cleveland.
Gia Hoa Ryan and proposed center piece statue of the Garden
The annual Asian Pacific Heritage Day Celebration was held in the Cleveland City Hall Rotunda on May 30, 2018. Chia-Min Chen, Asian Liaison for the City of Cleveland was the MC for the evening. Besides food and networking the offical program included remarks from Chias and Gia Hoa Ryan, Community Relations Board Member and leader of the Vietnamese community.
Gia Hoa Ryan, Community Relations Board Member
The keynote speaker was Peter Paik, Teacher & Debate Team Coach of University School who told stories showing how is truly a wonderful thing to be a teacher.
Amit Ghose, a Cleveland Metropolitan School District teacher from Joseph M. Gallagher School, spoke about the culture and history of Nepal and Bhutan. He introduced a few of his students who performed Nepalese cultural dances.
The 2018 Cleveland Asian Festival was another huge success. The 9th annual Cleveland Asian Festival was held on the weekend of May 19 and 20 in Cleveland's AsiaTown neighborhood on Payne Avenue. It has become a not-to-miss annual event with great entertainment, food, shopping and fun.
Vietnamese community at Cleveland Multicultural Holiday Celebration
The Cleveland Vietnamese community was well represented at the 8th Annual ICC-WIN Cleveland Multicultural Holiday Celebration on Wednesday, December 6, 2017 at the Global Center for Health Innovation in Cleveland.
Gia Hoa Ryan and Joe Meissner are on the board of ICC-WIN and helped organize the event.
Gia Hoa Ryan and Joe Meissner at the Friendship Foundation table
Gia Hoa Ryan, Oahn Loi-Powell, Evan Powell and Madi Harris representing Vietnam
Joe Meissner, Gia Hoa Ryan, Debbie Yue and Vincent Cononico
The Ohio Asian American Economic Summit took place November 14, 2017 at Ariel International Center in Cleveland. Ariel International and Margaret Wong & Associates LLC were the event sponsors. Ariel CEO Radhika Reddy had worked toward this event for years and with the support of Margaret Wong was able to fill the room with people interested in doing business in and with Asia and a stellar group of speakers and panelists including the Consul General of India who flew in from New York and the Consul General of Japan who came in from Detroit.
Le Cong Tien, Counselor/Economic Affairs from the Vietnamese Embassy in Washington DC spoke about doing business in Vietnam.
Watch the video of his presentation.
Le Cong Tien, Counselor/Economic Affairs from the Vietnamese Embassy
Thanks to Ms. Gia Hoa Ryan and attorney Joe Meissner for bringing Mr. Tien to the Summit.
Vietnamese Cultural Garden Cleanup for One World Day
A hard-working crew spent time in the beautiful weather on Saturday getting work done in the Vietnamese Cultural Garden preparing for One World Day which will be Sunday August 27 from 11 AM to 7PM.
Joseph Meissner received the Freedom Award at the American Nationalities Movement of Ohio's 56th annual Captive Nations Dinner on July 20, 2017. Meissner called up Toan Huynh who has been a Cleveland school teacher for the last 36 years. During the Vietnam War, Huynh was kept prisoner in a communist concentration camp and he warned of the evils of communism.
Joseph Meissner received the Freedom Award at the American Nationalities Movement of Ohio's 56th annual Captive Nations Dinner on July 20, 2017. Joe Meissner called up Gia Hoa Ryan and Oanh Loi-Powell to tell about the new Vietnamese Cultural Garden in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens chain.
Vietnamese Cooking demonstration by Pho Thang Cafe
New to the 2017 Cleveland Asian Festival was a demonstration of Asian cooking. Nancy and Susan from Pho Thang Cafe presented two dishes.
They prepared Vietnamese Chicken Cabbage Salad and then Vietnamese Summer Rolls.
Vietnamese history, soldiers and Cultural Garden in Cleveland
Lt. Colonel Joseph Meissner served with the Green Berets in Vietnam. He connected with Miss Gia Hoa Ryan who came from Vietnam in 1971 and formed the Friendship Foundation. Joe tells some of the history of the Vietnamese people (like the Trung Sisters) and Miss Ryan explains the plans for the Vietnamese Cultural Garden which will be part of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens.
Escape from Vietnam - A Refugee's Journey to Reach the American Dream
Loi Dang-Nguyen, Ph.D. was the keynote speaker at the 2nd annual ASIA, Inc. Friendraiser at Ariel International in Cleveland. She told how her family, which included 12 siblings, had to suddenly flee the communists in 1975. She told of being part of the boat people and how they arrived in a refugee camp in Florida and eventiually settled in Akron, Ohio.
Loi Dang-Nguyen, Ph.D. giving her keynote speech
Dr. Dang-Nguyen told of the cultural issues her family had in their new country and how they have given back to their community.
After completing some educational charity work in Dien Bien Phu Province in Vietnam, Joe Meissner and his group journeyed to the city of Binh Duong. They became involved in several weddings with some memorable stories.
Health Disparities in Asian Populations November 10, 2016
Margaret Wong and Associates and Case Western Reserve University joined together to create an evening reception to promote health, education, and awareness to the Asian community in Cleveland. The event featured an educational seminar by Li Li, MD PhD, Mary Ann Swetland Center for Environmental Health at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Professor and Director. Dr. Li spoke about Acculturation and Health Disparities in Asian Population.
Healthy Asian Cooking by Rose Wong November 10, 2016
Rose Wong founded Pearl of the Orient restaurant in 1978. It was the first to offer Northern and Szechuan cuisine in Cleveland Ohio and continues to be a favorite among Chinese food cognoscenti.
Rose created two healthy dishes and answered questions about woks, soy sauce, MSG and more.
Battle of Dien Bien Phu, Psychological Operations, and the Thai People by Joseph Patrick Meissner
An eleven year old boy kneels beside his bed and studies the pages and maps of the Cleveland Plain Dealer laid out on the bed spread. The ongoing media story for several months has been the titanic struggle at Dien Bien Phu in Northwestern Vietnam. Daily, the Viet Minh Communist forces have tightening their trench line noose around these gallant French forts manned by French foreign legion troops, other French soldiers, Moroccan and African French forces, Vietnamese units of Emperor Bao Dai, and local Thai and tribal groups. The Communists were called the Viet Nam Doc Lap Dong Minh Hoi (League for the Independence of Vietnam)-- or the Viet Minh, as it became known colloquially.
This is concrete relief beside Col De Castries bunker showing brave French defenders. I salute them for their dedication and sacrifice
The Vietnamese Cultural Garden and Vietnamese community participated in the 71st One World Day on August 28, 2016. They began with the Parade of Flags.
Vietnam in Parade of Flags
Throughout the day members of the Vietnamese community of Cleveland hosted hundreds of visitors in the Vietnamese Cultural Garden and shared Vietnamese food and culture.
The Cleveland Food Adventurers Passport event in August 2016 was to Vietnam at Pho Thang Restaurant at 815 Superior Avenue East, Cleveland OH.
Owners Henry and Nancy Troung prepared a very special traditional Vietnamese dinner which included four courses: appetizers, soup (pho), entrees and dessert.
Attendees also enjoyed seeing some of the colorful fashions of Vietnam.
And Vietnam Veteran Green Beret Lt Colonel Joseph Meissner told the story of 4 heroes of Vietnam. The heores were:
Cleveland's Asian Immigrant Communities August 10, 2016
On Wednesday, August 10, 2016, Global Cleveland hosted a panel discussion at the Maltz Museum of Jewish Heritage titled: Begin the Conversation: Cleveland's Immigrant Communities Today: Pan-Asian Community.
Four members of the Cleveland Asian community spoke and answered questions from moderator Jeffery Allen: Gia Hoa Ryan who came to the US from her native Vietnam in 1971, Asim Datta who came from India, Johnny Wu who has lived in Panama, Taiwan and other places and represented the Chinese community and Nupur Goel who is in the 11th Grade at Gilmour Academy. Her parents emigrated from India 20+ years ago.
Jeffery Allen, Asim Datta, Nupur Goel, Johnny Wu and Gia Hoa Ryan
Here is a sample video of Gia Hoa Ryan who came from Vietnam in 1971 and told the story of the Cleveland Vietnamese community.
Vietnamese Cultural Garden Work Day
The August 7, 2016 project was to clean up the site for One World Day on August 28, Raise the proud Yellow and Red striped Flag of Viet Nam, and Prepare the Cleveland ground for a Beautiful Flower garden. The Morning began with a Salute to the flag by everyone standing at attention, a Review of the Day's Importance, and prayers for all who gave their lives in Viet Nam.
On Sunday June 26 the Vietnamese Cultural Garden Committee hosted a community event for everyone entitled "BRUNCH A LA VIET NAM" at the Sai Gon Plaza in Cleveland's Detroit-Shoreway neighborhood.
Gia Hoa Ryan, Director of the Friendship Foundation which sponsored the event stated, "Our goal was to educate our entire community about the beautiful Vietnamese garden we are establishing on Dr. Martin Luther King Boulevard. We will join the other gardens that foster appreciation of the many ethnic groups making up our Cleveland. Our garden will proudly display our national flag of the gold field with three broad red stripes symbolizing the North, the Center, and South of our motherland. Our garden will tell the story of the beginning of the Vietnamese people in the marriage of the Mountain Dragon King with the Fairy Princess of the Sea."
The event attracted some two hundred people, representing Cleveland's diversity.
A highlight of the 6th annual Holiday Celebration of Cleveland's Diversity held in the atrium of the Global Center for Health Innovation in the Cleveland Convention Center by the International Community Council-Worldwide Intercultural Network (ICC-WIN) was the multicultural fashion show.
Models: Lianana Powell, Marilyn Cassidy, Oanh Loi Powell, Uyen Dam, Michelle Zone and GiaHoa Ryan.
The Ao Dai (Ao Zai) is the iconic traditional clothing of Vietnam. It is fitted, full-length dress worn over loose fitting trousers and dates back to 1744 when Kung Vu Vuong of the Nguyen (Wynn) Dynasty decreed both men and women should wear an ensemble of trousers and gown that buttoned down the front. The modern version dates to the 1930's.
The Ao Dai (Ao Zai) still remains popular and influential in the modern day Vietnamese culture.
Gia Hoa Ryan from Cleveland's Vietnamese community explained the Vietnamese clothing she and her group were wearing to Ken Kovach of ICC-WIN at the Cleveland Museum of Art's International Cleveland Community Day in the Atrium of the museum. This included male and female and young and old.
Vietnamese Cultural Garden
Members of the Vietnamese Cultural Garden Committee of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens met at the future site of the Garden. This historic meeting was captured in photos and video.
Anthem of Free Vietnam (Tieng Goi Công Dân) in Cleveland
Members of the Vietnamese Cultural Garden Committee of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens gathered around a flag at the future site of the Vietnamese Garden on MLK Blvd and sang Tieng Goi Công Dân, which was the national anthem of South Vietnam from 1948 to 1975. It is now called the "Anthem of Free Vietnam".
More from the new Vietnamese Cultural Garden soon
Tet Nguyen Dan and a new Morning of Hope for the Vietnamese-American Community
by Joseph Meissner
This is a Tet Celebration morning. It is Tet Nguyen Danh, the huge festival season for Vietnamese all around the world.
Families will travel from all lands in order to return home at Tet. In Viet Nam they enjoy the warmth and sunshine, while on this Cleveland morning, all is gray with wet mushy snow everywhere. But all still celebrate here with the fruit baskets, the special candies of stringy white coconut, tasty dried fruits, nut-flavored watermelon seeds that you must crack open with your teeth, delicious banh chong cakes packed in the center with all sorts of fillings, "li si" of gaily decorated red envelopes containing new money gifts for the children, and the thin branches of the small flowering yellow buds that especially mark the coming of the New Year.
Vietnamese Fashion at Cleveland Multicultural Event
Representatives from the Cleveland Vietnamese community participated in the International Community Council - Worldwide Intercultural Network's (ICC-WIN) 5th annual multicultural holiday celebration at the Global Center for Health Innovation in the Cleveland Convention Center in Cleveland Ohio. They modeled Vietnamese costumes at the International Fashion Show which featured traditional costumes of dozens of countries.
About 1000 people celebrated the Annual Mass and Gathering on Sunday, October 5, 2014 at 12 noon at St. Clarence Church. This is the 17th year the event was hosted by the Asian Ministry of the Diocese of Cleveland. It was an afternoon of family celebration of Asian culture and spirituality beginning with the celebration of the Mass with the Most Rev. Roger W Gries, OSB along with priests from the different Asian Catholic communities.
The cultural and ethnic diversity of the Asian Catholic communities assembled at the Mass was reflected throughout the celebration. Members of the various Asian communities came together with their own traditions, dressed in colorful ethnic clothes: shimmering saris, kimonos, karawangs, hanboks, barongs, and ao dai. The entrance procession included Vietnamese drums. During the Mass there was an incense ceremony by the Vietnamese, and the Indian aarti. Hymns were sung by the choirs in various Asian languages: Tagalog (Filipino), Korean, Vietnamese and Hindi (Indian).
The readings and the prayers of the faithful were also said in various Asian languages.
Cleveland City Hall Rotunda
May 28, 2014 The City of Cleveland Community Relations Board, led by Asian Liaison Chia-Min Chen, hosted an Asian Heritage Day Celebration on May 28, 2014 in the Cleveland City Hall Rotunda.
Over 60 Asian community groups and organizations participated. Chia-Min Chen called them up to the stage one at a time and each gave an elevator speech explaining their organization. The following Vietnamese groups were represented:
Quan Am Temple of Vietnamese Buddhists of Ohio
Vietnamese Community of Greater Cleveland
Vietnamese Friendship Foundation of Cleveland
Learn more about each organization (and the other Asian groups) including photos and videos of the group leaders at the Asian Organizations in Cleveland pages.
Gia Hoa Ryan and Joseph Meissner are currently on another good will trip to Vietnam to help teach and assist with other projects to help the people.
Joe sent this interesting tale from a wedding they attended. Joe said:
We were invited to a local wedding. Couples here consider it good luck to have guests come from afar to wish them well. So Gia Hoa was especially honored and we sat with the groom's family.
There is a wonderful time at a Vietnamese wedding when the couple and their attendants visit each table and they drink toasts and take special photos with the table guests.
So it came to pass that this couple with the bride in a beautiful white dress and her husband in a nice white tuxedo visited our table.
Gia Hoa had a great toast for the wedding couple: "Mot Cham Nam hanh phuc." That means "may you have a hundred years of love and happiness," or in other words, "Blessings forever"
It then came Meissner's turn. So he said, "Co mui hai cong gai va con giai, sau cong gai va sau cong giai."
The couple did not quite understand his Vietnamese, so he repeated it again. "May you have twelve children, six girls and six boys,"
"Oh My God," said the bride in her best English.
We learn later that the Bride's mother was number nine in a family of eleven.
Of course Gia Hoa herself is Number One in a family of twelve brothers and sisters.
2013
Vietnamese community erects shrine to Our Lady of La Vang
To understand the importance of this shrine to the Vietnamese Catholics, one must only understand that Our Lady often appears when needed most, to provide comfort to those persecuted for their faith as she did in the forest of LaVang in 1798. As Vietnamese Catholics were escaping the onslaught of the communists seeking their destruction, it was their Catholic faith and their belief in Our Lady of LaVang that brought great comfort.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) (Newton D. Baker Chapter) and Joint Veterans Commission of Cuyahoga County hosted a special event titled: The Vietnam War: A Presentation and a Conversation.
It featured a presentation by Colonel David W. Taylor (USAR-Ret) who is the author of the book: Our War the History and Sacrifices of an Infantry Battalion in the Vietnam War. The event was held at Saigon Plaza in Cleveland and hosted by Lt Colonel Joseph Meissner and Gia Hoa Ryan.
Ron Schwachenwald, president of the Association of the U.S. Army - Newton D. Baker Chapter and Joint Veterans Commission of Cuyahoga County, and Gia Hoa Ryan
2013 Cleveland Asian Festival
May 18-19, 2013
The 4th annual Cleveland Asian Festival attracted 38,380 attendees over the weekend of May 18-19, 2013. They spent over $2 million in the AsiaTown neighborhood. There were dozens of performances from local, regional, and national performing groups including headliner Cheesa from NBC's The Voice.
People enjoyed Asian cuisine from over 20 different restaurants and shopping in the World Market which was filled with merchants of Asian themed products while sponsors had informational displays at their tent.
Debbie Hanson, Joe Meissner, Gia Hoa Ryan and Sheila Crawford
2012
Congratulations to Le Nguyen, Asian Liaison, City of Cleveland Community Relations Board, who was given a proclamation of appreciation by Mayor Frank Jackson at Asian Pacific American Heritage Day in the Cleveland City Hall Rotunda on May 17, 2012.
A diverse group of Asian Americans (Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Indian and others) gathered in the Rotunda of Cleveland City Hall to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Day. In addition to the speeches, entertainment and food, Mayor Jackson gave a proclamation of appreciation to Le Nguyen, Asian Liaison, City of Cleveland Community Relations Board.
Lt. Colonel Joe Meissner, Mona Alag, Margaret Wong, Mayor Jackson, Blaine Griffin, Le Nguyen, Lisa Wong and Grady Stevenson
Beyond the Rice Paddies - Book Review by Linda West
(born Tran Thi Bach Yen Oanh )
The 111 pages of Beyond the Rice Paddies are organized into a series of 3 or 4 page stories. You will keep saying to yourself 'Just one more' until you realize you have read the entire book.
It is a fascinating look into the world of a young girl in Vietnam in the mid-1960's. Tran Thi Bach Yen Oanh (the author, now known as Linda West) lived with her paternal grandmother, the beloved Ba Noi, in the village of Bien Hoa near Saigon.
The vignettes describe the joys (some American chewing gum, a doll with yellow hair, etc.) and hardships (a toilet comprised of two rickety slats over a maggot and fly infested area) of life in that historic place and time.
The war affects the villagers but not always directly. For example, Young Oanh wakes up one day with 'bubbles' over her one side that they determine were caused by a powder that came from a plane. Bodies are left in the market square to be claimed. Her hut has a dugout area so she and her Ba Noi can hide from the bullets when firefights erupt.
The author tells of the joy of the parade as the "giant-sized" American GIs marched into town to go "Beyond the Rice Paddies' and fight the Viet Cong. She then describes the fear and confusion when only a handful of them limp back a few days later, sans the fanfare.
Her mother worked as a 'bargirl' in Saigon and eventually marries an American who takes Oanh and her brother to the US in 1970. The author is now a real estate broker, a mother of three children and lives in Tucson, Arizona.
It's a fascinating yet humbling book that will make you count your blessings and perhaps look at war and the world in a different way.
Giahoa Ryan was inducted into the Cleveland International Hall of Fame in a dinner ceremony on Wednesday May 11, 2011. Margaret Wong inducted Ms Ryan.
Should Asian-Americans change their names to make them easier to pronounce? Watch this eloquent reply from Lt. Colonel Joe Meissner on behalf of Ms Gia Hoa Ryan.
Gia Hoa Ryan at podium at Cleveland International Hall of Fame
Every year I return to my First Motherland of Viet Nam. I go back to see my Mother, visit with my many family still there, and pay honor at my Father's grave site. As the oldest of twelve children, it is my duty to guide and help all of my brothers and sisters, our children and grand children-both in Viet Nam and America-so they may all lead productive and happy lives.
I also go to Viet Nam to carry out the many activities of the Friendship Foundation. Our Foundation mission is "to build bridges of friendship" between the wonderful people of Viet Nam and the wonderful people of America.
In seventeen years of humanitarian work, our Foundation has sponsored over one thousand volunteers to Viet Nam where they have conducted educational, medical, legal, and charitable work. At the same time, we have hosted hundreds of people from Viet Nam--including students, lawyers and business people, and medical and governmental personnel-to come to my Second Motherland of America and to our great City of Cleveland. They come to work, learn, and enjoy time with us.
I thank all of you for this honor of inducting me into the Cleveland International Hall of Fame. I congratulate all the other inductees who richly deserve this achievement.
It is my great dream that we together will find many ways so that all of our diverse peoples can share their talents, traditions, and cultures with each other in peace and friendship.
Joe Meisner, Giahoa Ryan and Le Nguyen at Cleveland City Hall for a Diwali celebration
Dr. Dieu Thuc Do named to Inaugural Class of Cleveland International Hall of Fame.
Dr. Do, a decorated veteran of both the U.S. Army and the Army of South Vietnam, has been the family doctor to Cleveland's Vietnamese immigrant community for more than 30 years. Dr. Do joins a stellar cast of inductees in the inaugural class of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame.
The first annual city wide Cleveland Asian Festival was a resounding success! Over 10,000 people attended the event held Saturday May 22, 2010 at East 30th and Payne Ave.
The Socialist Republic of Vietnam is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea to the east.
With a population of over 86 million, Vietnam is the 13th most populous country in the world.
Vietnam
The conquest of Vietnam by France began in 1858 and was completed by 1884. It became part of French Indochina in 1887. Vietnam declared independence after World War II, but France continued to rule until its 1954 defeat by Communist forces under Ho Chi Minh.
Under the Geneva Accords of 1954, Vietnam was divided into the Communist North and anti-Communist South. US economic and military aid to South Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a cease-fire agreement in 1973. Two years later, North Vietnamese forces overran the South reuniting the country under Communist rule.
Despite the return of peace, for over a decade the country experienced little economic growth because of conservative leadership policies, the persecution and mass exodus of individuals - many of them successful South Vietnamese merchants - and growing international isolation. However, since the enactment of Vietnam's "doi moi" (renovation) policy in 1986, Vietnamese authorities have committed to increased economic liberalization and enacted structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce more competitive, export-driven industries.
The country continues to experience small-scale protests from various groups, the vast majority connected to land-use issues and the lack of equitable mechanisms for resolving disputes. Various ethnic minorities, such as the Montagnards of the Central Highlands and the Khmer Krom in the southern delta region, have also held protests.
Read more about the Vietnamese and other Ambassadors. If you are interested in being considered to be an official ClevelandPeople.com Ambassador to the Cleveland Vietnamese community, please contact us.
are organized into a series of 3 or 4 page stories. You will keep saying to yourself 'Just one more' until you realize you have read the entire book.
