Mr. Zong Lor Thao, Soldier, SGU Veteran

The Hmong Minnesota Veterans of the Secret War Preservation Project In June of 2022, SGU Organization was a recipient of a grant from The MN Humanities Center to perform this Preservation Project. SGU promoted the Project to community for them to come share their stories. This Preservation Project is a humanitarian effort: to preserve, document, and record the last surviving stories of Hmong veterans and their widows from the CIA-backed clandestine paramilitary operation in Laos from 1961-1975. This was known as the Secret War, a part of the Vietnam War. Our history has been part of Minnesota’s story since 1975. An estimated 4,500 Hmong veterans and widows live in Minnesota (2004). Only a few of their personal experiences are documented for research purposes, general public use, or family collections. The Project will gather, preserve, and share the legacies of about 30 individuals; enriching the historical record and Hmong identity. These veterans, widows, and orphans took part of this Project to share and preserve their stories, and twenty-one (21) stories have been transcribed into English and are available at the SGU office for research and documentation purposes. "This work is funded in part by the Minnesota Humanities Center with money from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund that was created with the vote of the people of Minnesota on November 4, 2008." Website: www.sguveterans.org/preservation-project Project duration: June 2022-December 2023