History & Design:

The Vietnamese Cultural Garden was built in 2023 with a long and narrow shape and a rise in elevation in the back, to echo Vietnam’s geography of a narrow stretch of land nestled between the Pacific Ocean on the east and mountains to the west. The garden’s focus is a 13-foot-tall marble statue, representing “Phu Nu Viet Nam,” which translates to “Women of Vietnam.” It honors the Vietnamese women whose contributions, sacrifices, love and strength form the backbone of Vietnamese society. The statue is hewn from the Marble Mountain of Vietnam.

The northern end of the garden features the Dong Son Drum, a powerful symbol in Vietnam. Typically made of bronze, the drum has been used in ritual ceremonies for centuries. It represents power, prosperity and spiritual connections to nature and the cosmos.

Much of the Vietnamese community in Northeast Ohio, estimated to be about 4,000, is comprised of families who came from South Vietnam in the 1970s and 1980s as refugees from political upheaval.