Janet Gardner
Dear Hein,
I am so sorry to hear about the death of your husband, Pham Q. Thai, who was a dear friend of mine in the 1990s and hard worker for our company, the Gardner Group. I met him at a conference and he helped me as a translator then also as associate producer.
I wish I could speak Vietnamese so we could speak directly to each other.
I met you when you first arrived at his apartment in the Bronx. He asked me to write a letter for immigration vouching for your marriage with Thai on your behalf. I know that Thai loved you very much and that you will miss him terribly.
I wish that you could have contacted me when he was sick because I would have liked to see him one more time. I know that he had a recurrence of lung cancer from smoking no doubt. I tried to talk to him about stopping many times and knowl that you must have as well. My own husband also died of cancer in 2011 at age 72.
Thai and I collaborated on three films about Vietnam of which we were both very proud.
They were "A World Beneath the War;" "Precious Cargo;" and "The Last Ghost of War." All were shown on public television and won awards. Thai's name was on the awards beside mine. We traveled to Vietnam with a cameraman for each one and worked closely with Vietnamese officials from the Cinema Department and the Department of Foreign Affairs. Thai was very knowledgeable and a wonderful partner.
I would like to send you some flowers and visit if you would welcome that.
My sincere condolences,
Janet Gardner
118 Washington Street
P.O. Box 166
Rocky Hill, New Jersey 08553
Mobile phone: 732-809-0744