Journey back to Vietnam by Justin Mott

A couple weeks ago I received an assignment from the Dallas Morning News to go to Nha Trang to photograph a reunion. The reunion was of a group of former Vietnamese orphans, now living in the US, who fled Vietnam shortly after the fall of Saigon. The group had been planning the trip for 5 years. Many of them are now in their 40’s scattered throughout the US with families of their own but they kept in touch over the years. 35 years after the war some were returning to Vietnam for the first time since they fled. One man, Ty Cope, was with his father John who adopted him in Dallas, Texas. John was a soldier during the war and later returned to volunteer at the orphanage in Cam Ranh where he first met Ty.
On this trip Ty, now in his 40’s with a family of his own was to meet what he was told was his biological father. At a large reunion dinner Ty was surprised with a speech from a man who later revealed he was Ty’s father. The resemblance was obvious but as I was crouched down on my knees trying to capture the moment Ty turned to a friend and whispered “how do I know this is my father.” I can’t even imagine all the emotions going through his body trying to process everything and the awkwardness of having this moment so public.
I had followed Ty around along with the other Cam Ranh orphans all day documenting their emotional reunion. It was just one day but it made me think about how unique my job can be sometimes. I started the day as a stranger to Ty and then a few hour later I’m right next to him during one of the most powerful moments of his life. Then the next day I’m off most likely never to see these people again.
I’d like to thank everyone from the Cam Ranh reunion for graciously allowing me to be a part of their day.

Here is the published story online:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/pt/slideshows/2010/06/pho_061210_vietnam/