Vinh The Do was born outside of Hanoi, Vietnam in 1946. He attended elementary school in Hanoi until 1954 after the battle of Dien Bien Phu. He and his family decided to leave and go to Saigon, which is where he spent his formative years. He attended college and studied in the Faculty of Pedagogy and the Faculty of Letters where he obtained degrees in English as a Second Language and Western Philosophy. He then taught English and worked as a counselor at Long Thanh high school. He did this until he left Vietnam in 1978. He was sponsored by a friend in Portland. After he moved to Portland, he got a job at the Indo-Chinese Center where he worked as a counselor for Vietnamese refugees. He also continued his education in the United States and obtained a Master's degree as well as a Ph.D in counselling.

In this interview, he discusses his time in Vietnam and his transition to the United States. He begins by recounting his education and job experiences in Vietnam. He also discusses his decision to stay in Vietnam after the fall of Saigon to help take care for his family. He then goes on to talk about the process of escaping Vietnam on a boat and his experiences as a refugee in Thailand. He explains the process of finding a job in the United States, and how he eventually ended up at the Indo-Chinese center. He also describes the work that he did for the center and the process of being a counselor for Vietnamese refugees. The work he did for the Indo-Chinese Center inspired his research for his Master and Ph.D.