Dinh Mai was born in 1941 in Thu Thanh Kien Song Ninh Vietnam. His family left North Vietnam in 1954 to avoid religious and political persecution and settled in South Vietnam. They stayed in South Vietnam until 1975. Mai worked for a United States agency in Vietnam, and his boss helped him and his family escape before the North Vietnamese invaded their town. Since being in the United States Mai and his family have lived in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas. Mai and his family moved to Portland in 1989 to be closer to his wife’s families. Mai has run a few different successful businesses since being in the United States, in both Houston and Portland he owned seafood stores. Mai is currently retired and now lives in South East Portland.

In this interview, Mai describes his experiences in both Vietnam and in the United States. He describes what it was like to leave both North and South Vietnam to flee persecution from the North Vietnamese. For the majority of the interview, Mai covers his experiences in Portland. He talks about when he first arrived in Portland and living on the Northside while starting up a business. He also is an avid member and participant at Our Lady of Lavang. He goes into the history of how this catholic church, and how he and his congregation stay involved in their church. Mai also stays involved in his community through the Vietnamese Community of Oregon. He was the Vice President from 2010 to 2012, and he is currently a consultant for the current Vice President. He ends his interview encouraging his community to remain politically active and using their rights as a citizen to vote.