SIMON KEOGH
VIC State Representative

Hi everyone,

My name is Simon Keogh and I am an adoptee from Vietnam.  I came to Australia in 1973 after spending a few months in Providence Orphanage in Can Tho and my new life began in Melbourne.  My adoptive parents have always been very open and supportive of everything I do and told me I was adopted at a very young age. They have a natural born daughter who is 4 months older than I and we have always been very close.

Growing up in Australia for me as an inter-country adoptee has been not without its issues but I have come to understand these issues are common with overseas adoptees.  There are an unique set of circumstances that bring every adoptee to their new country and with them, a unique life.  We not only face the challenges of growing up and finding our place in the world as does everyone, but us adoptees, face an even more complex path to self identity than the majority of the community.

It’s not only until I reached my early thirties that I resolved some of the challenges I faced,  I felt I needed to seek some support and information about inter-country adoptees.  I discovered ICASN and that led me to connect world wide with many adoptees, some of which came from Vietnam and now reside in several different countries.  I  became a member and through ICASN met some wonderful people with whom I could share my story of adoption and also hear other adoptees stories and experiences.

I am also a member of AVI (Adopted Vietnamese International) and I volunteer my time for ICASN in Victoria at the Adoption Information Service (AIS), a government sponsored forum designed to improve not only intercountry adoption issues and post-adoption support,  but also foster care and birth family issues.  It is through these channels that I have become an ICASN Representative and my aim is to help and support anyone who needs it, if only to listen with an understanding ear.

ICASN meets for social occasions and if you are an intercountry adoptee and would like to meet or just ask me some questions / share experiences, drop me a line anytime.

My email address is ottothefish@yahoo.com.au
Regards
 

Simon Keogh
(Tran Trung Nghia)