Press Releases

They had no idea their lives would change so significantly.



In 1970, Tim (Khiem) and Cathy (Thuy) Tran were top international students from South Vietnam who were awarded scholarships to study in the United States.  They studied for two years at Pacific University in Oregon, after which Tim pursued his undergraduate degree at the University of California, Berkeley, and Cathy finished her degree at the University of Oregon. 
 
Per the conditions of their scholarships, the two returned to South Vietnam in 1974.  When Saigon was overrun by communist forces in 1975, the family endured great hardships. In 1979, Tim and Cathy managed to escape via boat.  After a life-threatening voyage they were placed in a refugee camp in Malaysia.
 
Eventually the Trans were able to immigrate to the United States and became naturalized citizens in 1986. Tim went on to become the Chief Financial Officer of Johnstone Supply, and Cathy worked for U.S. Bank, then Standard Insurance, and became an accounting manager. In 2017, the Trans established a Library Endowment Fund at Pacific University. In honor of their gift, the library building on the Pacific University Forest Grove campus was dedicated as the Tim and Cathy Tran Library.
 
Tim Tran’s new book, American Dreamer: How I Escaped Communist Vietnam and Built a Successful Life in America published June 2020 by Pacific University Press, offers a complete account of the harrowing and turbulent times, tracing the pivotal events that occurred during his early life, college years in America, his mandatory return to and ultimate escape from Vietnam, to his rise to the heights of corporate America.
 
American Dreamer—How I Escaped Communist Vietnam and Built a Successful Life in America
Tim Tran
 
List $18.99 Paperback $8.99 Kindle 390 pages   Publisher: Pacific University Press (June 20, 2020)
ISBN-10: 1945398027   ISBN-13: 978-1945398025  Text with photographs, 6 by 9 inches
  
What People Are Saying
 
“An exceptional memoir. America Dreamer reminds us why the United States is a beacon of hope around the globe. Tim Tran’s book stirs the heart and reminds us of the sacrifices others make to become Americans. The rest of us would do well to sacrifice far less to help preserve the nation that has been so good to us.”

— Former US Congressman Les AuCoin
Author of Catch and Release: An Oregon Life in Politics
 
“Oregon history is rich with stories of courageous individuals who overcame tremendous odds. Few stories are more compelling and inspirational, however, than that of Tim Tran. In “American Dreamer,” Tim shares the remarkable journey that brought him from communist Vietnam to personal and professional success in Oregon. It should be required reading for anyone who doubts that the American dream is alive and well.”

- Kerry Tymchuck
Executive Director, Oregon Historical Society
“What I remember most [about the Vietnam War] is all the horrible, horrible things we did, and that is part of our story and we forget it at our peril. But on the other hand, there’s another story, and that’s the story of two Vietnamese young people, coming to this country, falling in love with it, and remembering us and then returning that love in this magnificent gift [the Tim & Cathy Tran library]. That’s the other side of the story, and we need to remember both sides, I think.”
- George Evans, Professor Emeritus, Pacific University