Tran Dinh Truong

Tran Dinh Truong (born 1932) a Vietnamese-American was born in South Vietnam.

Biography

A devout Anti-Communist during the Fall of Saigon, as the Principal owner of the Vishipco Line, the largest shipping company in South Vietnam he used his company’s resources, of 24 commercial ships and hundreds of trucks, to aid in the evacuation of thousands of South Vietnamese civilians and military personnel while the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN), defended South Vietnam against the invading Communist North Vietnamese Army and their Viet Cong Agents.

In May 1975, he immigrated to the United States and in retaliation for leaving his occupied homeland of South Vietnam, his parents and siblings were torturedFact|date=August 2007 and imprisonedFact|date=August 2007 by the Communist government of Hanoi.

He began his hotel business in New York City, first with the Hotel Opera on the Upper West Side in Manhattan, and then his current Hotel Carter in Midtown Manhattan and Hotel Lafayette in Buffalo, New York. Along the way Mr Truong owned and operated other NYC hotels as well, including the infamous Hotel Kenmore Hall on 23rd Street which was seized from Mr Truong by the US Marshal Service in 1994 because of deplorable conditions and rampant crime within the building.

When he heard of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States he immediately, as a New Yorker, and former CEO of the Vishipco Line, contributed $2 millionFact|date=August 2007 of his personal funds to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.

In May 2004, Tran Dinh Truong was awarded a Golden Torch Award, by the Vietnamese American National Gala in Washington D.C. Mr. Tran is also on the Board of Directors of The United Way of New York City.

He is also stated to be the current richest Vietnamese person, having his total assets worth $1 billion. [cite web | url = http://english.vietnamnet.vn/reports/2006/02/542910/ | publisher=VietNamNet Bridge|title = Who is the richest Vietnamese?| date=2006-02-19|accessdate = 2007-12-28]

He resides in New York City. In his spare time, he likes to write, swim, and cook.

References

External links

* [http://finmaccool.blogspot.com/ Information & Legal Documents on Kenmore Hall]
* [http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:Z-6IGBetHuMJ:www.navasa.org/PressReleases/2003/TranDTruong.pdf+Truong+Dinh+Tran+&hl=enVietnamese Benefactor Tran Dinh Truong to be honored at NAVASA Recognition Banquet]
* [http://www.carterhotel.com/ Hotel Carter]
* [http://ah.bfn.org/a/washngtn/391/ Hotel Lafayette] Photos
* [http://www.unitedwaynyc.org http://www.unitedwaynyc.org]