The Voice of Love was founded in 1998 by a group of Vietnamese immigrants led by Hau Trinh. As a young man, Trinh immigrated to the US in 1980 with his younger brother, Chau, and they were adopted by an American couple, Wally and Audrey Ness.
With the help of his adopted parents, Trinh went on to complete bachelors and masters degrees in electrical engineering and worked at Rockwell for 16 years before becoming a self-employed importer. Having experienced the devastation in Vietnam and also the kindness of strangers, Trinh wanted to find a way to help people who were still struggling in Vietnam.
Around this time Trinh met Hien Nguyen. As a fellow immigrant and boat refugee from Vietnam, Nguyen was moved by the selflessness of the refugee camp volunteers. Having found success in the US, he felt it was his turn to give back to those in need. Nguyen introduced Trinh to his brother-in-law and his wife, Quang and May Tran, who had also been thinking of forming a Vietnamese charity in Raleigh.
After a long discussion with the group, Quang and May flew back to Vietnam and visited an orphanage in Vietnam, Nam Hung Orphanage. May describes the conditions as barely livable and meeting the children there brought her to tears. Upon their return to Raleigh, the Voice of Love Foundation was formed and immediately began organizing their first charity dinner. This event raised $40,000 and the charity dinner has remained an annual event for the past 15 years.
Please visit our projects page for more details about the events we have held and the projects that we have supported.