The resilient 28-year-old Heroine Le Thi Bach Cat

Having passed away at a very young age while undertaking a special mission, the search for and collection of information about her has been a challenging journey, but one also filled with emotions and surprises.

Young lecturers from 4 universities

Le Thi Bach Cat was born in 1940 in Mai Dong hamlet, Mai Bang village, Nghi Thuy commune, Nghi Loc district (now Nghi Thuy ward, Cua Lo town). Her father was a village teacher who taught Chinese characters, so Bach Cat received an education from a young age and became an active member of the local Youth Union and Children's Union. In 1958-1959, she was one of the first generation of teachers at Nghi Tan Primary School, Nghi Loc district.

She taught locally for a short time, and then, with her agility, intelligence, and talent for physical education and sports, she became a teacher.Le Thi Bach CatShe was sent by the Nghe An Department of Education to study at the Central Sports Teacher Training School, run by the Soviet Union, and was retained as a lecturer. Having dedicated herself to teaching from 1960 to 1965, lecturer Le Thi Bach Cat transferred seven times to eight different institutions, including four universities (now Vinh University), the Hanoi University of Physical Education and Sports, the Bac Ninh University of Physical Education and Sports, and the Central Sports Teacher Training School.

In addition, Le Thi Bach Cat also taught at two secondary schools, including Huynh Thuc Khang High School and a continuing education school for cadres. Her significant contribution during her teaching years was the establishment and development of the "Culture, Sports, Music, and Art" department, the predecessor of the Faculty of Physical Education at Vinh University. For this achievement, the Minister of Education and Training posthumously awarded Le Thi Bach Cat the "For the Cause of Education" commemorative medal.

The vibrant youth

"I am going to repay my debt of gratitude to my teacher / To hold the chalk and guide my younger siblings."This is a verse recorded in the "blood letter" that teacher Le Thi Bach Cat sent to the First Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Youth Union, expressing her great wish to go to the South to fight.

Joining the special team, the class, then designated K33, where she and her colleagues studied, comprised over 300 officials from the fields of Education, Culture, Health, and Sports.

During the three months of training before their mission, sending letters home was difficult, and the trainees had to adhere to strict secrecy. Before heading south, the trainees were given new names to maintain anonymity during the march. The name...Le Thi Bach CatThe documents were also sent back to the North, and from there, she adopted the new nickname Le Lien Xuan.

From the day she went to fight in the South until her death, only four years passed. During those years, teacher Le Thi Bach Cat was also known by another name, Sau Xuan. While fighting in Saigon, she was assigned to the Central Bureau's Education Subcommittee, Saigon-Gia Dinh Regional Youth Union, in charge of student affairs. During her secondment to Da Lat, she worked with secret agents to closely monitor the area, build bases, and develop revolutionary forces.

Later, upon returning to Saigon, Ms. Sau Xuan was reassigned to work in District 4 as a District Party Committee member in charge of youth affairs and Secretary of the Saigon City Youth Union. Under the guise of a female factory worker named Dinh Thi Lan, Ms. Sau Xuan successfully completed her tasks in enemy propaganda and built many revolutionary bases...

In preparation for the Tet Offensive and Uprising of 1968, Ms. Sau Xuan was transferred by the Regional Party Committee to the inter-district 2-4 (now District 1, Ho Chi Minh City) with the title of District Party Committee member, Secretary of the Youth Executive Committee, and concurrently Secretary of the armed propaganda Party branch of inter-district 2-4.

Implementing the plan of the General Offensive, Ms. Sau Xuan directly led the mobilization of the people, coordinating with armed teams and other commando units to rise up and attack the enemy in the areas of Pham Ngu Lao, Chuong Duong Wharf, Hiep Thanh Alley, and Van Don Wharf, inflicting painful blows on the enemy.

On May 5, 1968, during an attack, Ms. Sau Xuan and her comrades had to retreat into Alley 83, De Tham Street, to hold their ground. As the battle raged, as platoon leader, Ms. Sau Xuan ordered two uninjured comrades to withdraw to preserve their forces, while she and two others remained, fighting to the death against the enemy, tenaciously firing until their last bullet. Before falling, despite being wounded, she did not forget to throw her last grenade at the enemy and shout, "Down with American imperialism!", "Long live Ho Chi Minh!" The youthful life of teacher and soldier Le Thi Bach Cat ended at the age of 28.

The pride of the people of the coastal town.

Fifty-five years after the sacrifice of martyr Le Thi Bach Cat, on September 20, 2024, the President of Vietnam signed a decision posthumously awarding her the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces. Time has passed, and her siblings are no longer alive; receiving this honor is Mr. Le Van Duoc, her nephew and the son of her older brother.

Mr. Duoc shared: "We received this decision late in the afternoon of September 20, 2024, and I tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep. When my mother went to work in the revolution, I was still young and have no memories. My father, probably because he missed his youngest sister so much, rarely mentioned old memories when he was alive."

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When he passed away, I knew he was still deeply troubled by the fact that he hadn't found her grave and hadn't completed the paperwork to acknowledge her contributions. As her son and grandson, I knew that responsibility rested with me.

Mr. Le Van Duoc

The journey to find documents for martyr Le Thi Bach Cat began with Mr. Duoc and his family in the early 1990s.

During that process, the first stroke of luck was perhaps the family receiving a referral from the Department of Physical Education and Sports, and then working with officials from the National Archives Department 3 to access the complete records of martyr Le Thi Bach Cat, from her time as a student, teacher, lecturer, and before heading south to fight.

Based on these invaluable documents, for over 30 years, Mr. Duoc has continued to visit the places where martyr Le Thi Bach Cat once lived, worked, and fought, meeting with witnesses and listening to many stories about her. Her courageous, resourceful, and selfless fighting spirit, along with her courageous sacrifice for her comrades, are crucial factors that have led her family to believe that she will be posthumously awarded the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces by the State.

Although martyr Le Thi Bach Cat has passed away, the Le Van Duoc family still maintains a cherished corner to preserve the mementos and images they have recorded during their more than 30-year journey of searching for information about her.

In Ho Chi Minh City, the name of female commando Le Thi Bach Cat is given to a street in Ward 13, District 11, a secondary school, and has become the name of an award for young people in the city named after President Ho Chi Minh.

Right here in Cua Lo town, there is also a street named after Le Thi Bach Cat. The school named after her, many years ago, also resounded with the traditional song "We are very proud that our school is named after the heroine Le Thi Bach Cat.".

My parents named me Bach Cat, a name associated with coastal people, meaning "Lao wind, white sand." Bach Cat later came to be understood as natural, strong, and cheerful, just like my own heroic life. In that distant place, I'm sure she's still smiling...