In 1979, at the age of 14, Loni fled Vietnam on a homemade boat, leaving her family and childhood behind. “I didn’t even know what the United States meant,” she recalled, “but something in my mind was telling me I should go.” After 10 months in an Indonesian refugee camp, Catholic Charities placed Loni with a foster family in Syracuse.

With help from the InterReligious Council of Central New York, in 1987, Loni and her new husband, Sinh Duc Truong, opened an Asian grocery store. The store is located in on the city’s northside, a Syracuse neighborhood that has been home to waves of immigrants from around the world for generations. After more than 15 years, both Loni and Sinh Duc were reunited with their parents and siblings. “Sometimes I sit back and think about the past,” Loni says. “I think I made the right decision, but at the time I didn’t realize that I was leaving for good. When I finally saw my family again, I was so happy. I would love to go back to Vietnam to visit, but not to live—this is my home now.”