For those who don’t know me, my name is Alan and I am ong, Au Van Y, oldest grandson. When my grandfather passed away last week, I knew that I had to say a few words about him.
My grandfather was a brilliant man who overcame a lot of obstacles and accomplished a lot in his lifetime. When I think about him the words that come to mind are: hard worker, devoted, caring, faithful, respectful, and family man.
Here is a quick timeline/history of my grandfather…
He was the 3rd oldest of 6 kids (ALL BOYS). He graduated from high school and enlisted in the army, where he proudly served for 3 years. During that time, he met and married my grandmother, Le Thi Le, in 1951. Few years later, they had their first child, my father, and then an additional 9, totaling 10 children (5 boys and 5 girls). On top of that, grandpa left a legacy of 28 grandchildren and 32 great-grandchildren.
Vietnam went through tough times as the Communist took over the North. It was then that he moved his family South to a providence called Ho Nai, Bien Hoa in 1954.
While there, he was involved in all aspect of the Catholic church. He started in choir and then served as Director. Eventually, he headed the Pastoral Council at the church.
In 1965, he started up a factory to harvest rice and corn to not only support his family, but the entire community.
It was in early 1975 when the Communist entered the South. For months, he planned and gathered all his immediate and extended families wanting and willing to escape Vietnam from the Communist. Grandpa used his connection he had with the military to arrange a navy ship to transfer them out to international water. On April 29, 1975, seven families totaling 64 people escaped Vietnam. For 3 days, they sailed until they met up with a US ship. 8 days later, they landed on Guam Island where they then flew and stayed 2.5 months on Wake Island.
On Aug. 1975, they finally made it to the United States at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas. The families didn’t want to get separated, so they waited for a sponsor willing to take them all. It was on Sept 18, 1975 when a chicken processing plant in Broken Bow, OK took them in.
On May 1976, they uprooted OK and moved to Wichita Falls, TX for a better life and opportunities for their children.
My grandfather needed to support his family, but with very little English, he got hired on as a janitor at Sheppard Air Force Base. He worked hard every single day and made an honest living supporting his big family with little of what he made. His family and his faith has been his guiding light and his strength. After 10yrs of working there, he retired and dedicated his time between his family and the Vietnamese Catholic church.
During his time in Wichita Falls, he organized and established a small Vietnamese community. He helped build a church where there would not only be spiritual support but also support of all sorts for the Vietnamese community. For example, there were no asian/Vietnamese groceries or supplies in the area, so he arranged for assistance on truck shipments from California. The truck would unload supplies on my grandparents front porch and the Vietnamese community would gather there for their goods.
My grandfather had a big heart and his arms were always reaching out to help people. Every now and then there were refugee families that came to town. My grandfather would give them food and clothing and let them stay in his house until they were able to move out on their own.
My grandfather was very devoted to the Vietnamese Catholic Church. He headed the pastoral council and made sure the church would thrive and grow. Wichita Falls will always be his home away from home.
But he eventually moved to Arlington to be closer to his other children, where he lived until his passing.
I loved to visit my grandfather and would say that we were very close. I might even say that I was his favorite. I remembered this one time when all the kids were running around the house. It would just make him mad, especially when we would run out through the front door while he was sleeping in the living room. I think it was because we were letting out all the cold air. Anyways, he stopped and called me over to his bedroom. He reached on top of his dresser and handed me a watch. He didn’t give me a reason, but just handed it to me with a smile. I can still imagine as if it was just yesterday.
Ong was very smart, bright and a hard worker. That is what I thrive in life, is to be like him. I respect him greatly and will cherish all the time we spent together. He will be missed greatly. I LOVE YOU ONG NOI!
Again, I would like to thank everyone for being here today to pay your respect to my grandfather. He would be pleased to see so many of his friends and family here today.
Thank you.
