Vinh Nguyen

Vinh Nguyen was born in Saigon, Vietnam. After the Vietnam War ended, life in South Vietnam changed completely. In the summer of 1981, Vinh’s parents arranged for him to be smuggled out of the country along with 134 other Vietnamese on a tiny boat that was barely seaworthy. After the boat was rescued by an oil tanker, Vinh lived in refugee camps in Thailand and Indonesia before finally being accepted by the United States and relocating to Des Moines.At the age of 22 with no English language skills, Vinh had many difficulties adjusting to life in Iowa. He has never forgotten the help he received, and he now works to help others, lending his skills and support to many projects and activities in the Vietnamese, Southeast Asian, and Language Minority communities. He also serves as a storyteller, speaker, and consultant for many topics related to Vietnam, refugee and resettlement process, and second language acquisition issues throughout Des Moines and surrounding areas.

Alex Rice

Alex Rice is a West Des Moines native who left Iowa for college and lived all over the US — and on three other continents — before returning home to Central Iowa in 2021. She holds a Master’s Degree in Public Management from Carnegie Mellon University and is the executive director of the Willkie House, a youth-serving nonprofit founded in 1917. Alex is fluent in French and is an avid cyclist, gardener, and traveler. Open Book pairs her interest in education with her belief in the power of learning from others’ experiences.