By Abby Kinoshita, Talon Staff Reporter

Imagine packing up your life and moving to a foreign country, having to learn  a new language and go to a new school, think about having to start over; you have to make new friends, readjust to the new lifestyle and of course, the new language.

This is what Hao Truong has gone through. He’s a quiet, focussed, freshman in some of your classes. You probably didn’t know Hao moved here from Vietnam and he is attending school here to learning English. Hao came to America about six months ago with his family.Currently as a freshman he has had the opportunity to take advanced classes such as Physics and Algebra 2. He specifically likes Algebra 2. “He really is a smart kid,” Hao’s physics teacher, Ted Cramer states. “His cousin Twan was here at HRV last year. Twan went through the same sort of thing. He too moved here as a freshman to learn English. However Twan went back after he graduated to see his family.”

Hao plans to stay in the US for hopefully the rest of his life. After high school he’d like to attend at a university to further his education, but he doesn’t know what occupation he’d like to take up. “My favorite part about being here is school” says Hao. Truong also enjoys listening to music and watching movies. Robert Wellenstein, Hao’s Algebra 2 teacher says “Hao is awesome. He definitely struggles with English, but he is a stellar kid, he’s smart, focussed, polite, on task. He has those qualities we don’t grade, but are so important to have in everyday life.” Truong misses Vietnam and plans to visit when he can, but says “Hood River is a lot like Vietnam. The climate and the cars are very similar. It is not Vietnam, but it feels like home.”