Thirteen years ago, when my wife and Maryeanna only build our hairdressing salon in the shopping ranks Greenspoint Mall, every morning we visited the Vietnamese man and selling fried pies. He spoke very poorly in English, but was always courteous and friendly, and soon we mostly through gestures learned his story.
Vietnamese boy named Lee Van Waugh. By day he worked in a bakery, and in the evenings with his wife, they learned English by using audio recordings of lessons. Later, Lee said that they spent the night in the dusty bags in the back room of the bakery.
In northern Vietnam, the family Lee Van On was one of the richest and wealthiest. But after his father Lee was brutally murdered, he and his mother moved to South Vietnam, and after graduation began working as a lawyer.
Like his father in his time, Lee has flourished. He quickly realized that the vast areas occupied by the Americans, we can build houses, and soon became one of the most successful contractors in the country.
Once, during a visit to North Vietnam, Lee was seized and put into prison, where he spent three years. He narrowly escaped massacre, managed to return home to South Vietnam, but soon was arrested again. The government of South Vietnam announced its "planter" with the North.
Having stayed in prison, Lee was free and organized a fishing company, again becoming one of the richest men in South Vietnam.
When Lee learned that the troops and of the United States are going to leave his country, he took an important decision affecting the course of his life. He gathered all his capital, loaded him on board a fishing vessel and his wife left home. In the Philippines, Lee exchanged his wealth on a passport of that country, and they were sent to a refugee camp.
Lee has a meeting with the President of the Philippines, kindly gave him its development program, the fishing business in this state and soon again become involved in business. Two years later, Lee successfully establish and developing the fishing industry in the Philippines, decided to fulfill his cherished dream - to move to live in America.
However, the dream of America is not only lured Lee, but also terrifying. He realized that in the new country, he would have to start from scratch. His wife later confessed to us that when they sailed to America, she saw her husband leaning over the side of the ship and wanted to jump into the water. My wife kept Lee from the fateful step.
"Lee, - she said - if you jump overboard and drown, what will happen to me?" We're together for life. Do not you leave me alone? " Supporting his wife instilled in Lee the confidence and he stopped thinking about suicide.
Lee and his wife arrived in Houston in 1972. They were in a foreign country without knowing the language. But the Vietnamese family has always supported his countrymen, and soon his cousin to let him and his wife live in a small room in the back of the bakery that it contained a series of trade Greenspoint Mall. My wife was a hairdresser hundred yards from this bakery.
Sister Lee suggested that he and his wife work in the bakery. After paying all the taxes I get $ 175 a week, and his wife - 125. Their annual income was 15,600 dollars. After some time, my sister Lee invited him to buy the bakery, making the first payment of $ 30,000 dollars. The remaining 90,000 dollars they had to pay her parts.
With a weekly income of $ 300, Lee and his wife continued to live in a small room in the back of the bakery, helping to clean the room, two years eating only what was done in their institution. As a result of two years they managed to save up money for a down payment for the baker.
Lee explained to us because of its position: "When we moved into the apartment, we will have to pay for it. The apartment needs furniture, the purchase is too costly. If we buy an apartment, we will have to buy a car to get to her job. The car is required constantly refilled with gasoline, which also costs money. also need insurance. If we have a car, we may want somewhere to go, then have to ruin a decent clothes ... In general, buying an apartment to our advantage: we can never save 30,000 dollars for a down payment for the baker. "
History Lee has continued. He and his wife still have put aside the necessary funds for a down payment, have given her cousin, but it still remained to 90,000 dollars. Lee decided that while he and his wife can not buy an apartment and they continued to live in the same tiny little room in the back of the bakery for another year.
I am pleased to inform readers that Lee Van In and his wife lived very economically, yet managed to accumulate for three years, the remainder of the amount and become owners of the bakery. Then they finally allowed themselves to buy an apartment, but continued to live very economically, saving every dollar earned.
You may ask, was whether Lee Van In a Millionaire? I am happy to answer you this question in the affirmative.
/ John McCormack /
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