The Middletown Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution awarded the Americanism Medal to Thy Cavagnaro at the annual NJDAR state conference last week. Vietnamese Born
In presenting the award, chapter president Michele Donnelly noted that Cavagnaro “exemplifies all the qualities of this award for a naturalized citizen – Leadership, Trustworthiness, Patriotism and Charitable Service.”
The recipient of this prestigious award was born in Vietnam and escaped hours before the fall of Saigon, April 30, 1975, in her uncle’s boat, coming to the United States as a 1-year-old refugee with her parents and siblings.
Naturalized at age 7, her experience coming here at such a young age, and under such difficult circumstances, has shaped her life.
As an adult Thy began to appreciate the history of the Vietnam War and felt endless gratitude for the opportunities this country afforded her. She was especially thankful to the American soldiers who were willing to risk their lives to defend democracy – for a country that wasn’t theirs – and who then came home to their own country to face an ungrateful nation.
Thy wanted to give back to these soldiers and let them know how valued they really were. She began personally thanking veterans she met and in doing so, started to uncover the deep, complex burdens these veterans still carried.
This further spurred her on, in 2017 she founded Thanking Vietnam Veterans in Barnegat. She designed, built, and dedicated the first of its kind Vietnam Memorial in Barnegat on March 29, 2018, the first year after the Vietnam War Veterans Recognition Act was signed into law.
There is no other memorial of its kind in the US which was erected and funded solely by a Vietnamese refugee in honor of those soldiers who fought for her country.
Since 2018, Thy has hosted small dinner groups with veterans to allow time for her to have meaningful one on one conversations with them.
As testament to the impact she has on the veterans, she often receives sentimental gifts including South Vietnamese flags or crucifixes that the soldiers received in Vietnam they preferred to give to her rather than their own family members.
She has been asked by the VA to present her story to veterans as part of their veteran therapy sessions.
To further educate students on issues of democracy and immigration, Thy created an interactive presentation that tells the story of her family’s harrowing escape from Vietnam, and of the trauma the American soldiers experienced both while fighting a war and upon their return home.
Using exercises she created, Thy helps students develop empathy and understanding of the experiences of both the refugee and the soldier.
She is currently presenting her program to students at Barnegat Elementary, Middle and High Schools; East Brunswick High School; Seton Hall University ROTC cadets; with more schools coming on board in 2024.
The honor recipient received considerable recognition for her work including on March 29, 2022, when she was acknowledged and entered into the United States Congressional Record; in 2024, she received a State Proclamation from Governor Murphy. She has received Certificates of Appreciation from DAV Chapter 81, Marine Corp League 667, VVA Chapter 889 and VFW 10092.
In 2017 she received a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition; in 2018 she received a Vietnam War Memorial Citation, and a Distinguished Republic of Vietnam Navy Unit Award from the US Exercise Tiger Foundation. She is a guest or keynote speaker at numerous events per year and her story was picked up by the Associated Press, which resulted in publication in every major news outlet, including Military Times.
