In 1984, Jenny Do, '06 Art History, left Vietnam with her mother and younger brother. Relatives in San José had agreed to sponsor the entire family, but because Jenny had turned 18, she also applied as an individual to leave the country. "Somehow the two applications crossed," she says, "and I ended up, briefly, in Texas."
Not the smoothest of transitions for the 23rd Assembly District's 2007 Woman of the Year and recipient of the city of San José's Lifetime Achievement Award, but even upon arrival Jenny Do had more than her own fate and comfort in mind.
"When I left, I left behind many people who were in a very bad condition, very poor. It was always my mission to help the others who couldn't get out."
The daughter of an American soldier, Do was born in Vung Tau and grew up in Saigon, where she sketched portraits with the black powder she'd made by scraping the burnt wood beneath the cooking pots, working in light provided by oil lamps. "I grew up with a passion for art, but I knew I couldn't make a living at it. I always knew I needed to bring income to more than just my family," she says.
Once settled in San José, she found work in Santa Clara County's Refugee Office, a position that allowed her to "do something for the Vietnamese American community" and earn a paycheck. While working, she attended Lincoln Law school, graduating in 1996. Only after she had set up a private practice in downtown San José, did she allow herself to, once again, become "immersed in art."
As a student at SJSU, Do continued to litigate, to paint, to volunteer and to advocate for Vietnamese Americans. She served on the city of San José Arts Commission, lectured on Vietnamese American studies at San José City College, contributed to the Viet Tribune newspaper, and curated exhibitions at Stanford University and the King Library that promoted Vietnamese American arts and culture. In recognition of those accomplishments, she received a 2005 Belle Foundation grant for cultural development.
She also co-founded Humanity through Arts. "When I do charity work, I always try to employ art as an element," she says. "Even in my legal practice, I use art as a vehicle." When the Humanity through Arts group decided to host a Vietnamese American art exhibit, followed by an auction that benefited Cô VN (Creating Opportunities in Vietnam), FHF (Friends of Hue Foundation) and VAPA (Vietnamese American Professionals Alliance), Do thought: why not start an art gallery? "So I rented additional space next to my law office," she says, and GreenRice Gallery was launched.
In July 2007, the indomitable Do was diagnosed with breast cancer.
"When I came out of the hospital, after surgery, I was very upset with how Kaiser handled my case. I felt I was nothing but another number. We have a phrase in Vietnamese: ‘You are the fish on the cutting board.' I consider myself an informed citizen," Do continues, "a vocal member of the legal community. If that was my experience, what would it be like for those who couldn't express themselves or speak English?"
With admirable frankness, she revealed her own health condition in the Viet Tribune and, at GreenRice, curated a show of art by women cancer survivors. Do's contribution, "Once Upon a Breast," was an installation piece incorporating syringes used in her chemo treatments.
As often as three times a year, Do returns to Vietnam to visit orphanages and other shelters that serve Agent Orange and leprosy victims.
"I visit to see how I can help. It's not because I am wealthy. I just connect the dots. I connect people who can help with people who need help."
When the Xuan Phu Children's Shelter in Hue, in central Vietnam, was in danger of closing because of economics, Do "jumped in," began raising funds and saved not only the orphanage but doubled its size.
Many of the children at the orphanage had lost their parents in a flood that devastated the region in 1999. "They'd been through so much. I couldn't bear to think they'd be uprooted once more," she says.
Throughout her illness and recovery, Do has served as executive director of FHF. "People were surprised. They expected me to be sick and I did lose sleep at night, but I also kept forgetting I was sick. Because of the kids. I knew I had to fight for them."
Although trying to "take to heart" her husband's and son's advice to "stop saying ‘yes' to every project," one project that remains top on her list is her memoir about "what happened after the war and after Communism. Those 10 years were the darkest for Vietnam," she says. "But, at the same time, they were the best years of my life."
- Kat Meads
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