Former Vietnamese Refugee Tim Tran Joins With Marine Veteran Bob Ferguson For Discussion Feb. 8

A Vietnamese refugee who became a successful executive in the United States and a Marine Corps veteran will join for a special presentation on Pacific University’s Forest Grove Campus on Feb. 8 at 6:30 p.m.

The event will include Khiem “Tim” Tran’s stories of survival as he escaped from Communist Vietnam and went on to become an American success story. Tran, who graduated from Pacific in 1974 along with his wife Cathy, last year published American Dreamer: How I Escaped Communist Vietnam and Built a Successful Life in America, a sometimes-harrowing story of that journey. It took four attempts for the Trans to escape Vietnam, and in the effort, his father was killed. Tran, for whom Pacific’s Tran Library is named, went on to a career as a financial executive in Oregon. He is a Pacific University trustee.

Bob Ferguson, a Marine Corps officer who grew up in rural Oregon, will join Tran for the program. Ferguson is the author of the often-humorous memoir of his upbringing and service in Vietnam, Some Days Chicken, Some Days Feathers. 

The program will include a question-and-answer session, and both authors will stay to sign books and meet with members of the audience. A limited number of books will be available for purchase.

The event in the Tim & Cathy Tran Library is free but advance registration is requested.