Phong was a living example of service above self, serve to change lives, and living the 4 Way Test. We didn't get a chance to have him in our club very long, but what a difference he made in over one year!
No doubt, if you attended the August 5 Rotary meeting last year, you will remember we had Terry Kaltenbach, via Zoom, from the USS Midway. Terry shared rich stories about different operations the Midway was a part of.
The most dramatic and impactful piece of information Terry shared, was the evacuation of Vietnam and the helicopters rescuing survivors from falling Saigon. Thousands of evacuees were loaded into helicopters and taken to the Midway. Upon the conclusion of Terry's presentation, Phong shared the survival story of his family. He and his family were rescued by helicopter and flown to the USS Midway. The moment Phong shared this detail in his family's history, there wasn't a dry eye in the room. The connection to Terry's retelling history, and Phong's living through it, made for a powerful moment for our club.
We all felt so connected to Phong through the sharing of his family history. He was a hard worker, helping build the community garden raised beds, championing our successes as a club, and most recently, spearheading the Cornelius Veteran's Raffle. He was a Veteran himself and wanted the legacy of John Cornelius to live on through this fundraiser that raises tens of thousands of dollars each year for the Prescott VA Hospital.
The Vu family has asked for donations to be made to the Rotary Club of Sedona Village in Phong's memory.
