YouTube, WMTW-TVThey say that mothers know what’s best for their babies, and their safety is always their priority even if it means letting go of them.
Product Of Poverty
PexelsNguyen Thi Dep assumed the responsibility of taking care of her siblings and father when she was just in her early 20s.
She Found A Job
PexelsShe worked as a phone operator and office cleaner at the U.S. Army base in Saigon, South Vietnam where she met Joe O’Neal, an American Army sergeant.
The Fruit Of Their Love
PexelsJoe then left Dep who was two months pregnant during that time when the Paris Peace Accords was signed in 1973 and the U.S. government ordered all American soldiers to come home.
Her Baby Was In Danger
YouTube, WMTW-TVDep and Phuong Mai, her daughter, have been living happily for three years until she heard that communist troops were coming for biracial children because they see them as children of traitors.
A Difficult Decision
PexelsIn order to keep Mai safe, Dep had no other choice but to leave her in an orphanage. She knew that Mai would be part of Operation Babylift, where the U.S. airlifted thousands of children out of Vietnam for adoption.
40 Years Later
YouTube, WMTW-TVMai, now named Leigh Smalls, found her mom after seeing the “Miss Saigon” musical.
The Moment Of Truth
PexelsEventually, Leigh got connected to her half-sister after taking a DNA test on Ancestry.com.
The Long-Awaited Reunion
YouTube, WMTW-TV24 hours after receiving an email from her half-sister, Mai finally got to speak with her mom, Dep, and in no time, Mai planned a trip to Vietnam to finally see her long-lost mother.
Watch Dep and Mai’s emotional reunion in the video below.
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