Mother Plans Her Own Airlift

Wisconsin State Journal

SAIGON, South Vietnam (AP) - A Georgia mother with five children of her own and five adopted Vietnamese orphans started a campaign Wednesday to move an entire orphanage of nearly 400 youngsters to the United Slates to save them from "godless" Communism.

Betty Tisdale of Columbus is in her late 40s and is the wife of a retired U.S. Army pediatrician. She arrived Tuesday night from America.

Miss Tisdale said she had raised $123,000 in two days in the United Stales to: transport the children from the An Lac — or Happy Haven — orphanage set up by the late Dr. Tom Dooley, which she has been helping to support since 1961.

Foster parents awaii the children in America, she said. Now she must convince South Vielnamese officials lo grant visas to the children, who' range from infants'to',

teen-agers.

"All I've done for 14 years is raise money for An Lac so that the children could grow up in their own country to be better-educated citizens of their own country," said Mrs!

Tisdale. "But I don't want them to lose their, minds and souls to what I call a godless' society." She said she didn't think the Communists would harm the children

physically but "would immediately indoctrinate them to grow up as Communists.-" ;