I hope you meet Ric Troyer one day.

Ric grew up in the San Francisco Bay area just in time to be eligible for the Vietnam War. Ric didn't want to go to war. It was something that he ended up doing for a multitude of reasons — just like so many other young fellows back then. He survived, came home and carried on with his life, in Canada. That's a story in itself. Maybe Ric will share it with you over coffee one day.

After many years Ric decided to return to Vietnam as part of an inner healing process. I suppose you could say he was pulled back to Vietnam — by the heart.

Ric says that a war isn't over when soldiers leave the field. Its victims remain. Ric is anti-war. All war.

When he returned, Ric saw Vietnam, its natural beauty and its people through new eyes. He saw also the after effects of the War. Too many Vietnamese people were missing limbs because of land mines. Land mines continue to maim to this day. He saw poverty. He saw children born with disfiguring birth defects. The local people insist that the prevalence of birth defects began with Agent Orange being sprayed on their fields, homes, villages and their bodies.

Ric bought Vietnamese tricycles for those without legs. These hand-powered tricycles allow people to live at the same height as everyone else. They offer autonomy and "face" and they free family members who have been assigned to care for them, so that they can go to school or do work. "These tricycles transform lives," says Ric. He bought rice. He arranged for medical supplies to be donated. And more.

Ric talked to anyone who would listen. The first time I sat down for coffee with Ric I gave him a twenty dollar bill. He told me exactly how much rice that would buy. 100% of donations given to Ric go to direct aid. Other people gave Ric money for tricycles. He'd bring back photos of people riding them. That's got to be a rush — like, you hand some cash over to some guy who flies at his own expense to the other side of the planet, buys a tricycle for a guy without legs, flies back and shows you a photo of the other guy.

After a while lots more people became interested in what Ric was doing. One such person was John Dumesnil of Kamloops BC. He helped establish the non-profit charity, the "Canadian Friends of Vietnam Society" and did a lot more as well. Another interested person who jumped in with both feet and a smile was Bruce Churchill of NRI Distribution in Kamloops. "He's been supporting me from the get-go." say Ric.

In Vietnam on one of his trips, Ric met Mai. They are married. I met Mai when they visited here a few months ago. We all hiked up to the top of Mount Douglas for the 360 degree panoramic view. That day we talked about a website.

And for the past couple or so months I've been working on a website for the Canadian Friends of Vietnam Society.

Often Ric and I sat, he in Kamloops and me in Saanich, deep in discussion and problem-solving via iChat video-conference, working on the kazillion little details for the site. Daryl Jones at NRI set up the webspace and troubleshot some namesever issues. Daryl provides ongoing tech support. NRI provided the webspace. This website is a community effort. It's information, photos and slide shows will startle, amaze and touch you.

Today this site is officially launched. Take a look at it RIGHT HERE.


We hope you love visting this site and check back regularly as it grows. We hope you'll find lots to think about, to talk about and that you share it with your friends.

And finally, Ric, thanks Man. Big time. It's an honour to hang with you.