Children's author Nhung N. Tran-Davies has been honoured by her alma mater with University of Alberta Alumni Honour Award. The award recognizes the significant achievements and contributions over a number of years by University of Alberta alumni to their profession and/or their community.
Displaced during the Vietnam War, Nhung, her mom and five siblings arrived in Canada from a Malayasian refugee camp in 1979. When she arrived in Canada at the age of five, she was gifted a doll, which was the inspiration for her picture book, The Doll. Nhung's other children's books include Daddy is a Conundrum!, A Rain of Rice, Green Papayas (a TD Canadian Children's Literature Award finalist) and Ten Cents a Pound. In addition to being an author, she is a philanthropist, and physician in rural Alberta.
The University of Alberta's awards citation is below.
Nhung N. Tran-Davies, ’96 BSc(Spec), ’02 MD
Nhung Tran-Davies is a rural Alberta physician, author and philanthropist whose empathy and energy make life better for people in her community and around the globe. The former Vietnamese refugee founded the Children of Vietnam Benevolent Foundation, a non-profit organization that supports underprivileged children. She has sponsored Syrian refugee families, mentors U of A medical students, and writes children's books with themes of hope and resilience. In the town of Calmar, Alta., where she lives and works as a family physician, she established a gallery that opens opportunities in the arts, while her many scholarships and endowments empower youth and amplify marginalized voices. Tran-Davies is a humble yet powerful force whose legacy of kindness and justice will resonate for generations.
This year's alumni award recipients will be celebrated at a ceremony held on October 23 from 7-9 pm at the Horowitz Theatre.