Trung Nguyen, Lake Anne’s Maintenance Supervisor, is RCC’s Renaissance man. 

Affectionately known as “Mr. T,” he is an avid gardener, photographer, tropical fish fancier, singer/songwriter and sound engineer.  Though English is not his first language, it proves no barrier to his keen wit and infectious sense of fun.

In his native Viet Nam, Mr. T was a professional sound and recording engineer and an avid amateur musician.  He was a singer/songwriter who sang and played keyboards, guitar, bass and drums in a duo with his wife. 

After the Viet Nam war ended, Mr. T and his family were sent to reeducation camps.  They spent the next 10 years trying to escape from Viet Nam.  During this time, Mr. T’s son, Tony, went alone to the U.S. at the age of seven to live with relatives who sponsored his immigration.  It was to be 11 years before Mr. T and his son were reunited. 

After 10 years of failed escape attempts, Mr. T. decided that the danger was too great a burden on his family.  He redirected his efforts to an attempt to leave the country legally.  The paperwork for exit visas took seven more years to obtain.   

Mr. T and his wife and daughter arrived in the U.S. in June 1995.  After two weeks in the U.S., Mr. T was hired to work in building maintenance and electricity for Erols.  Later he became Facilities and Mailroom Coordinator and stayed with the company until it moved to Princeton, NJ.  Mr. T found a job at RCC and began working in RCC’s Maintenance Department in April, 2004. 

Mr. T, who recently celebrated his 34th anniversary, says that he’s got a child in software and one in hardware.  His son, Tony, is a Computer Systems Information engineer, while his daughter Vi has a career in Information Technology with Booze Allen.   

Mr. T’s latest project is inspired by his hobby, collecting rare tropical fish.  He is in the process of designing a super low-maintenance, low-cost, salt water fish tank that will make it possible for people of modest means to own exotic salt water fish.  The tank will be more than just a fish bowl; it will mimic an entire reef system with the waves, lighting, temperature and ph levels of the fishes’ natural habitat. 

When asked what he likes best about his work, Mr. T says,

"I love this job because I meet artists and enjoy their work—their paintings, the music—and I see them at work.  I enjoy seeing the kids playing and dancing.  It’s lovely…I want to thank everyone on the staff for being very helpful—special thanks to the PICs at Lake Anne for all the help they give maintenance staff."

 

 

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