Dzung

In the fall of '06, Rob and I were awaiting travel approval to go to Vietnam and adopt Ben. At the same time, a young, Vietnamese man named Dzung was starting his freshman year at Hendrix College where Rob works. We contacted him and asked him to translate a thank you letter for the caregivers at the orphanage where Ben was living.

That December, while we were in Vietnam adopting Ben, Dzung was home for Christmas break. We were able to see him in Hanoi and he got to meet Ben.

His beautiful mother, Kim took us on a tour of Hanoi, to the puppet theater and to a wonderful Vietnamese dinner.

Back in Arkansas, Dzung came to our house and cooked for us!

When Dzung was a sophomore, another Vietnamese student named Mai started at Hendrix.

When Ben was first learning to ride his bike (and I could still keep up with him on foot), we would take his bike to Hendrix "Park" where Dzung would meet us and help cheer Ben on as he learned to ride.

In the spring of '08, we hosted a small gathering of Vietnam friends for dinner. Mai and Dzung are on the far left; then me and Ben; Ken, Jessica and Beckett; and Kim and Isaac.

A few days later, we took Dzung to the airport to return home for summer vacation. We didn't know it at the time, but we would be seeing him again very soon.

That summer we received travel approval to go to Vietnam and adopt Liam. Dzung and Mai's families hosted an amazing dinner for us. It was a rare treat to spend the evening with these beautiful families. We are so blessed by their friendships.
Rob holding Ben, me, Dzung's mom, Mai's mom holding Liam, Mai's sister, Mai's dad, Mai, Dzung's dad, Dzung

This is Dzung's sweet mother holding baby Liam.

Dzung is so precious to our family. He is kind and thoughtful to our boys. I love how he is leaning over to Ben with his arm around him. He kept telling him to look at me each time they went around so I could get a picture.

He plays and laughs with them. Dzung is very fun. Not all college students would spend time at a bounce house with a four and two year old.

This past Wednesday, we had the honor of spending the afternoon on Hendrix campus with Dzung's mom and aunt as they are visiting! The boys had a great time running and running and running. I was worn out when we left. Last night, they all came to our house for a dinner party to celebrate....

Today Dzung graduated from Hendrix College with Honors. I am so proud to know him. We consider him family and we are so fortunate to have such an amazing role model for our boys. Congratulations, Dzung. We love you!

Dzung is headed home for the summer but will be returning in the fall to begin an MBA program at Hendrix. How lucky are we, that he will be here another year!