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  Hi, I also worked for the Ockenden Venture/Kilmore House in 1975. I too often think of all the children and staff I became in contact with.. Quoc ( who welcomed me with a freindly bite) Cuong, Thi Puoc,Binh, Long and Sang, Mai (who spent many a weeknd with me and my family) and many others and also the vietnamese ladies who made the lovely lunches they were brilliant!!!
  
  I am in search for Renee Baa Beach, Shirley Philips (now Graves)and anyone else who I worked with in 1975 it would be great to hear from anybody who I used to know...
  
  I thankyou for reading....
  
  Debbie Tobin (was Swinburne)

  By nannymcphee4 at 15:54 on 09/03/12

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  Hello I was a schoolgirl of 14 living in Camberley, Kerry Walkinshaw and my friend Karen Bourne and I went to help out with the Vietnamese children as often as we could during the first few weeks they arrived and then all summer 1975 and again in 1976.
  
  My memories are few but strong - I remember Twee the blind boy with the greatest affection but also Xan Ngoc (not sure of the spelling but I remember hearing he was going to be adopted by a Scottish couple and called David.) Also little Ty and all those wonderful little boys running around Kilmore house and gardens so happily. The team who worked there were absolutely lovely and I had the best summer of my life helping however and whenever I could.

  By kerryaclark at 16:26 on 01/03/12

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  I am trying to contact anyone who worked at Kilmore House (Ockenden Venture) in May 1975 and remembers the Vietnamese orphans who came to Ockenden. The main influx came via a Daily Mail evacuation flight from Saigon in early April 75. I was not involved with that episode.
  
  My involvement was a little later. At the time I was in the RAF based in Singapore. We had adopted a baby boy through an organisation Friends For All Children (FFAC) who had 4 orphanages in Saigon. We were awaiting issue of his Passport and Exit permit. On 4 April, a USAF Galaxy aircraft crashed shortly after take off from Saigon in which over 100 orphans and escorts died. We had no idea if our son was on that aircraft. I was unable to get any information from our Embassy or FFAC - Saigon was a chaotic place at that time.
  
  I decided I should get myself to Saigon as soon as possible and flew there by courtesy of the Royal Australian Air Force 2 days later. On arrival, I found that our son had been evacuated to Australia and he was eventually re-united with us in Singapore 3 weeks later. Matthew is now 37 yrs old, happliy married and runs his own events catering business.
  
  I could not get out of Saigon immediately, so I set about trying to get a small party of orphans out. This I succeeded in doing, leaving on 11 April on a Royal Canadian Air Force evacuation flight with 5 babies and a 10 yr old blind boy. The babies ages ranged from 3 weeks to 9 months. We flew to Hong Kong where the children were transferred to the Br Military Hospital. I arranged for them to be flown to UK via an RAF Aeromedical flight, once they were all declared fit to fly. They left Hong Kong for UK at the end of Apr/early May 1975.
  
  On arrival in UK (RAF Brize Norton) they were taken to the Ockenden Venture to be looked after while arrangements were made for them to be placed with their adoptive parents. Three of the children were replacement children for families whose original children died in the Galaxy - in fact, one family lost 2 children in the crash.
  
  I am now, after all of thes years, writing an account of the evacuation of these children and what happened thereafter. If anyone reading this have any memories of this small group of children, I would very much like to hear from them. I live near Oxford - Tel 01865 890375.
  
  Sincerely, Mike Pritchard

  By mikepritchard at 10:05 on 28/02/12

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  Hi to the contributors to this thread. I remember Kilmore in 1975 onward as my then fiancees sister worked there and we visited and helped out. I can see the window of the room we slept in on the photo prior to demolition above. All the children had handicaps of various sorts and I particularly remember Ty Phuoc, who would fit in the palm of my hand and in todays terms would probably be best described as autistic. My fiancee and I tried to adopt her but were eventually told that her needs were too complex. I'm not sure whether we could have managed her but were keen to give it a go. My fiancee's sister who worked at the Venture then was Sue Crompton and was noted for her small height (she was about four foot or so tall) and I eventually lost touch with her. I've been wondering what eventually happened to Ty and wondered if this programme might stir any memories? Sorry but don't know what happened to anyone at the Venture myself. Thanks

  By Peridot1 at 14:37 on 05/07/11

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  INFORMATION needed. Please help me to find Nguyen Thi Hong Hanh. She was born in 1964 and came to England in 1975. She came with the other children to the Ockenden house as far as we know. She would have been 10 or 11, and she originally stayed at Hoi Duc Anh orphanage in Saigon. Someone in Saigon wants to get in touch with her. If anyone has any photos of Hanh or any information it would be gratefully received. Thank you

  By fishergelic at 20:21 on 09/03/11

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