Lisa Drummond
In Memoriam
On Thu, Jan 21, 2021 at 10:18 AM michele thompson <thompson.michele@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
Dear Members of VSG,
We have suffered yet another very sad loss. The statement below was written by several of Lisa’s friends and colleagues in Vietnamese studies.
Vietnamese studies has lost one of its dearest friends and colleagues. Lisa Drummond, Associate Professor at York University passed away on January 19, 2021 after a long illness. Lisa was a pioneer researcher in Vietnam, an intrepid geographer who led and inspired her colleagues to explore and experience cultural practices in conference sites globally. A cultural geographer through and through, we remember her researching and guiding us through back streets and secret corners of the cities where conferences were held. She lived in Hanoi in the early 1990s and some of us remember her presence in cafes, bia hơi and cơm binh dân around the city. She traveled to Vietnam and lived there frequently since, especially after adopting little Chester in 2010. She received her PhD from Australian National University in Human Geography and worked tirelessly on projects pertaining to the changing face of Hanoi, including two exhibitions, co-curated with Natalia Kraevskaia, "5000 Hoan Kiem Lakes" in 2007 at the Vietnam National Fine Arts Museum and "Hanoi. A City in Art" 2010, celebrating 1000 years of Hanoi, at the Goethe Institut. Always a collaborator, she co-edited many volumes with her friends including Consuming Urban Culture in Contemporary Vietnam, with Mandy Thomas, Routledge, 2003; Gender Practices in Contemporary Vietnam, with Helle Rydstrom, National University of Singapore Press, 2004; The Reinvention of Distinction: Modernity and the Middle Class in Urban Vietnam, with Van Nguyen-Marshall and Danièle Bélanger, Springer, 2012 and more recently, Socialist and Post-Socialist Urbanisms, with Douglas Young, University of Toronto Press, 2020. Her laughter, good humour and friendship will be greatly missed.
Sadly
Rose Marie Battisti, Danièle Bélanger, Natasha Kraevskaia, Van Nguyen-Marshall, Thu-Huong Nguyen-Vo, Helle Rydstrom, Kathy Stockner, Nora Taylor, C. Michele Thompson, Angie Ngoc Tran
C. Michele Thompson
Professor of Southeast Asian History
thompsonc2@southernct.edu
From: Vsg <vsg-bounces@mailman11.u.washington.edu> On Behalf Of tobias_rettig@yahoo.com.sg
Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2021 9:18 PM
To: James Anderson <jaander2@uncg.edu>; michele thompson <thompson.michele@sbcglobal.net>; Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>; Benedict Kerkvliet <ben.kerkvliet@anu.edu.au>
Cc: stockner@bulkley.net; battisti <rbattisti@aol.com>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Very sad loss of Lisa Drummond
Dear Michele,
Thank you for sharing about Lisa Drummond's passing on.
I had one single brief conversation with Lisa (probably when she was at ARI) and remember that we (or I) shared about the health effects of final Ph.D. writing. She was a good and empathetic listener, and I can see what little I saw during that brief encounter really well captured in your and your colleagues' obituary about Lisa's personality.
My thoughts and prayers are with Lisa's family, friends, and colleagues during this period of mourning.
Tobias
Tobias Rettig
Singapore – independent
On Friday, 22 January 2021, 09:37:21 am SGT, Benedict Kerkvliet <ben.kerkvliet@anu.edu.au> wrote:
Thank you, Michele and everyone else who wrote about Lisa.
My wife and I came to know Lisa fairly well at the ANU while she was a PhD student there and in Hanoi when her time there happened to overlap with ours. Her excited interest in Vietnamese culture and people was infectious.
I mourn with all of you.
Ben
Ben Kerkvliet
Emeritus Professor
Australian National University
Canberra
Affiliate Graduate Faculty
University of Hawai'i
Honolulu
________________________________________
From: Vsg <vsg-bounces@mailman11.u.washington.edu> on behalf of James Anderson <jaander2@uncg.edu>
Sent: Thursday, January 21, 2021 11:34 PM
To: michele thompson <thompson.michele@sbcglobal.net>
Cc: stockner@bulkley.net <stockner@bulkley.net>; VietnamStudies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>; battisti <RBattisti@aol.com>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Very sad loss of Lisa Drummond
Dear Michele and friends,
I'm so sorry to hear this sad news. Lisa was a wonderfully generous person and a skillful guide of Hanoi's back alleys when she would take us on midnight bike rides around town in the mid-1990s.
My thoughts are with all her family and friends in this difficult time.
Best wishes,
Jamie
James A. Anderson, Associate Professor
Department of History
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro
2121 Hall for Humanities and Research Administration
Greensboro, NC 27402-6170
Phone:(336) 334-5992
Fax: (334) 334-5910
From: Vsg <vsg-bounces@mailman11.u.washington.edu> On Behalf Of Judith A N Henchy
Sent: Friday, January 22, 2021 9:45 AM
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Very sad loss of Lisa Drummond
Dear Michele and Friends of Lisa,
I am deeply saddened by Lisa’s loss. Although I did not know her well, hers was one of those names that constantly came up in discussions about exciting new work on contemporary Vietnamese society. Clearly she was an influential force in the growing strength of Vietnamese studies. She will be greatly missed.
I only really spent time with her her once, which was in Singapore many years ago. At that time our conversation – yes, over cold beer – focused more on her observations about Singaporean society than Vietnam, but her insights were fascinating. As someone who had lived in Singapore in the 1980s I was delighted to hear her scholarly, comparative, and humorous thoughts on the island state. It was a memorable encounter and one that I cherish.
With condolences to those who were close to her at this sad moment.
Judith
Judith Henchy, Ph.D., MLIS
Head, Southeast Asia Section
Special Assistant to the Dean of University Libraries for international Programs
Affiliate Faculty, Jackson School of International Studies
University of Washington Libraries
On Jan 22, 2021, at 1:10 PM, Harriet Phinney <harriet.phinney@gmail.com> wrote:
Dear all,
I am shocked and so very sad to learn that Lisa died. I spent a lot of time with Lisa in Hanoi in the early - mid 1990s. I have so many memories.... At that time in my life, she was a wise and supportive friend, and a delight. And as your wonderful tribute points out, she had a marvelous laugh; it was infectious. I am so sad for our collective loss, but mostly for Chester, her family, and her close friends. Take care and keep her smile and laugh in your hearts. I know I will because even though I have not seen her in years, she is still there.
All the best, Harriet
*PS. If anyone has a recent photo of Lisa that you'd be willing to share, I'd love to have a copy. Thank you.
Dear Harriet,
This is not at all a recent photo but Lisa sent this to me several months ago. It was taken in Ha Noi sometime in the mid-1990s and certainly shows Lisa’s famous smile.
warm regards
Michele
From: Vsg <vsg-bounces@mailman11.u.washington.edu> On Behalf Of Erica J. Peters
Sent: Friday, January 22, 2021 2:01 PM
To: Vietnam Studies Group <vsg@u.washington.edu>
Subject: Re: [Vsg] Very sad loss of Lisa Drummond
Very much appreciating this thread commemorating Lisa -- she was always kind to me, both at conferences and emailing about opportunities she thought might be of interest. I am so saddened to learn of her passing.
Erica
Erica J. Peters
Independent Scholar
Twitter: @EricaJPeters
Email: erica@ericajpeters.com