The Fall of Saigon was a significant moment in history.

Being an index for the end of the Vietnam War, there’s a lot of history to sink your teeth into.

While some folks are familiar with the war efforts of the People’s Army of Vietnam and the capture of Saigon, there were some other equally notable events leading up to the event.

Here is how we come to the story of Nguyen Thi Dep.

During the Vietnam War, Dep enlisted to help with war efforts and she found work as an office cleaner in a U.S base in Saigon.

As a young woman in the war, this was the best she could do to provide for her family.

“I just wanted to do something to have some money to help my family.” – she said to WBUR

Dep found herself in a love affair with American sergeant Joe O’Neal at the base.

She eventually conceived a child – but not one she’d be able to see grow up.

There was news that communist forces were on their way. Information stated that they would kill any biracial children they came across.

Nguyen Thi Dep’s baby girl was now a target, and she had to do something.

Her best bet was Operation Babylift, a mass aerial evacuation of children in South Vietnam.

Giving up her baby girl for adoption was the last thing Dep wanted to do. It hurt, but she knew it was necessary to keep her daughter safe.

The girl’s father, Sergeant O’Neal, had to leave Vietnam after the 1973 Paris Peace Accords. No American troops were permitted to stay in the Vietnam base, and Joe had no choice but to leave Dep and their baby girl.

Dep’s daughter was only three years old when she became one of the hundreds of thousands of children to be part of Operation Babylift.

After the plane left, Dep had a change of heart and hurried back to the orphanage to see if her daughter was still there. Alas, she was a day too late.

Dep’s daughter grew up and lived a life of her own in America for four long decades.

It wasn’t till after those four decades that Dep found her again.

Now 48, the baby girl was no baby girl anymore. Her name was Leigh Small. She grew up with her adoptive family and now even has a family of her own. Leigh had never known much about her brief three years in Vietnam or about her biological mother.

Then one day she got an unexpected email.

It was from a family member whom she had never met. “We’re half-sisters,” the stranger told her. The woman told Leigh everything, including about her Vietnamese mother, who was looking for her.

The email and discovery came after Dep and a friend used the internet to help search for Leigh (whose name they didn’t even know). With the help of ancestry.com and lots of double-checking, they verified that Small was Dep’s long-gone baby girl.

This news was a lot to take in for Leigh. She’d felt in the past that a piece of her was missing. Now, that piece found her.

Obviously, this couldn’t be left at a simple email exchange.

A reunion was in order.

First a video call, then a live meet. Dep and Small were ecstatic to finally meet, and even seeing each other on video call was surreal.

“I told everyone in my family and said, ‘Oh, I found my daughter!’ ” – Nguyen Thi Dep said in WBUR’s coverage of the story.

Leigh nearly broke down, but she couldn’t be happier. Her mother had never stopped looking for her. When they spoke on a video call, Dep made it clear how happy she was for her daughter.

She wanted her to live safely and happily, and that’s precisely what she got.

Travelling to Vietnam after 2 months of gearing up, Leigh finally got to see her biological mom in person. Although the trip was brief (just a few days), it was precious.

“I hugged her and I said, ‘That was so wonderful’ and I wanted to make a promise that we’ll be back.” – Leigh Small said to WMTW

Leigh intends to keep that promise. They’d been apart 40 years too long. Now it was time to make up for that lost time. We all know that time spent catching up can be very precious and memorable.

Watch the video below!

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Source: AirTV, WBUR, WMTW, Operation Babylift on Wikipedia