Searching for Mr. Smith

Help us find the man who saved our lives...

Jim Smith in Saigon, 1974 with (L-R) Tuong (15 y.o.), Lam (9 y.o.), Kim Phuong (2 y.o.) and Lan (11 y.o.)

We're hoping to find information on Mr. Jim Smith, an American who helped five children escape Vietnam in April 1975, a few days before the fall of Saigon.

Jim was a friend of our mother's, Phan Thi Nuoi, who was born in Soc Trang in the Mekong Delta and worked in Saigon - we believe as a nurse. Her son Lam was born in May, 1965 in My Tho, Vietnam; daughter Kim Phuong was born in June, 1972 in Saigon.

Jim arranged for Lam, Kim and three cousins to leave the city on a commercial jet on April 26, 1975. Nuoi was unable to escape with them; she later died in a Malaysian refugee camp in 1981. The children were adopted and grew up in and around Pensacola, Florida.

Read more about Kim and Lam's story here:

Watch a video about Kim's story here:

If you were in Saigon in 1975, or if you may have known Mr. Smith after his return to America, please contact us. We would like to thank him and his family for helping us escape.