From Sea To Service

"After all, emigration is not just a chronicle of sorrow and regret. It is also a powerful story of contribution and adaptation."
Mary Robinson, President of Ireland, An Address to the Irish Parliament and Senate, February 1995


From Sea To Service is the story of Marc Nguyen's remarkable escape from Vietnam, his incredible journey to the United States and his commitment to a life of service to others. The book documents his harrowing efforts to leave the chaos of the Vietnam War and his early experiences as a vulnerable refugee child. Marc escaped the terrors of the war in April 1975 and eventually found his way to Boston where he was taken in by a Catholic family. Thanks to his unshakeable faith and inspiring grit, he graduated from the US Coast Guard Academy and went on to a distinguished career of service to the nation and to humanity. The memoir also includes the amazing story of his wife, Hong, a fellow Boat Person who was able to escape with her family several years after the Communist takeover of the country. Unable to flee Vietnam immediately after the war ended, Hong and her family were forced to live for three years under Communist rule and then dramatically escaped Vietnam via a death-defying open ocean voyage to Hong Kong in 1978. Her family was ultimately resettled in Colorado, where she excelled in academics and graduated from pharmacy school. She married Marc, her soulmate, and they began a life together, raising a family, united by their faith and a bond to honor their promise to live lives of service.
The story was narrated to Coast Guard Captain Michael Graner, a former instructor at the United States Coast Guard Academy, who befriended Cadet Marc Nguyen, the young Vietnamese Boat Person; "Mr. G" became a lifelong mentor and family friend to the couple. The United States Coast Guard plays a prominent role in this story; it was the service that intertwined their lives. The book details the inspiring story of perseverance and gratitude for the many blessings Marc and Hong received and their commitment to pay it forward.
The book contains a few themes that bind the story together. Both Marc and Hong are devout Catholics whose faith has been a pillar and guide. They both saw the power of education as a vehicle out of poverty; as they often said, "education is the way out." In both cases, Marc and Hong realized they were carrying the hopes and dreams of their family on their shoulders. Failure was not an option as they accepted the responsibility of achieving the American dream. The book details the inspiring story of perseverance and gratitude for the many blessings they have received and their commitment to honor their promise.