Van Ho

In 1980, Vanessa Ho Gatensby was just three years old when her father and eldest sister escaped from their home in South Vietnam. A year later, her mother, brother, and two older sisters also escaped in the middle of the night. For the next four years she waited to be reunited with her family while living and working in the home of her aunt and uncle. When she and her grandmother were finally greeted by her family in Toronto, Ontario, she didn’t recognize her father or eldest sister. It took her many years to feel like a true member of her family once more. Today, Van is an account executive, and she lives in Brampton, Ontario, with her husband and two children.