Earlier this week, the Electro Soft team celebrated the retirement of PCB Assembler Bien Dinh, a 17-year employee of GWL Technologies. Bien worked with us since 2017, when we acquired GWL.  But we didn’t learn this dedicated employee’s incredible story until recently.

Bien had been a member of the Vietnamese police force for nine years when, during the Vietnam War, he was captured by North Vietnamese forces and imprisoned. He spent five years as a POW, allowed to eat just one bowl of rice per day. Shortly after his release, Bien was captured again and spent another five months in captivity.

Thanks to a political asylum program, Bien and his family were able to relocate from their native country to the United States. They moved first to Arizona, where Bien’s sponsor resided. Later they moved to Texas, before finally settling in Pennsylvania. Since living here, he has returned to Vietnam four times to visit his parents.

Two years ago, Bien became a United States citizen.

This holiday season, we are thankful to Bien for his quiet and brave spirit. In the short time he’s been a member of the Electro Soft family, he has been a dedicated and hardworking individual. Always kind and focused on the job at hand, Bien carried with him an incredible story that very few people even knew about.

We at Electro Soft wish Bien and his family a wonderful and joyous holiday season, and a very happy retirement.