David Boroff/New York Daily News
They say that time heals all wounds but sometimes, even 45 years cannot bridge the gap between lost lovers. Jim Reischl, a Vietnam veteran was able to finally reunite with his long-lost Vietnamese girlfriend after 45 years – but the whereabouts of the daughter they had together remains a mysterious.
An old photo of the former couple, Jim Reischl and Nguyen Thi Hanh that he used to find her again. (Photo: Jim Reischl Facebook)
Reischl tracked down Nguyen Thi Hanh many decades after he had said goodbye to her during the summer of 1970. Reischl, an Air Force sergeant who was stationed outside Saigon, left even though she had told him she was pregnant.
Hanh gave birth to daughter Nguyen Thanh Nguyen Thuy on Dec. 18, 1970, she told the paper. Her name meant “First Tear,” as she “was alone and didn’t have any family with me at the time.” She let a friend take the baby to an orphanage, but the friend disappeared and the orphanage had no record of the baby, she told the paper. She says she has never stopped looking for “First Tear.”
Reischl had been relentless in searching for his former girlfriend since 2005, after his second marriage ended in Minnesota. However, he only remembered her as Linh Hoa, which was not her actual name.
He traveled to Vietnam five times in the last few years, and placed ads in local papers.
“I am in search of you,” read a recent ad. “It has been many years. I am not looking for a relationship. I want you to know that. I just would like to talk with the wonderful lady I knew in 1969 and 1970.
Late last year, Hanh saw an article on her iPad which featured a photo of the young couple and memories came rushing back. They reconnected and met for the first time.
After Reischl left, Hanh would meet her husband, who is now suffering from the effects of a stroke. They have two grown children, but it is not clear if Hanh has forgiven Reischl for leaving when he did. He is trying to help her find their child with the help of his former flame’s DNA. Hanh has mixed feelings about the reunion but says her ultimate goal is in finding her daughter, and what became of her.
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