Thanh Tran Memorial Fund
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Our brother Thanh Tran passed away from a heart attack in the early morning hours of February 8, 2020.
His life was defined by hardship, sacrifice, perseverance and love. Thanh's dream was to see his daughters succeed and to give them the opportunities that he never had for himself. With his unexpected passing, we want to see our brother's wishes through by supporting his daughters. Your contribution will be put towards the education and basic needs of Ariana, Angelina and Alianna.
Thanh was born in Saigon, Vietnam in 1965. In 1979, following the end of the Vietnam War, Thanh's family escaped Vietnam on a boat with few clothes and belongings. While at sea, his family endured two horrifying pirate robberies, thirst and hunger.
When their boat finally reached land, they learned that they were in Malaysia and were taken to Bidong Island. Thanh, his parents, grandmother and six brothers and sisters settled into a refugee camp for 9 months. Having recently endured the trauma of the war and their perilous journey, Thanh became the family caretaker. He navigated the chaos of the camp and made sure that his family always had enough to survive.
His family finally arrived in the United States in late 1979. Shortly after they settled in Arlington, Virginia, Thanh took on his first job cleaning office buildings at night while he attended community college during the day. What little money he earned went to supporting his family.
After community college, Thanh began working at a printing company and he remained in that industry for over 30 years, until his passing. During the 1990's, Thanh found this career to be stable and well-paying. However after the dot com boom, the print industry saw a sharp decline and his salary was reduced while his health benefits were completely eliminated.
In order to make ends meet and to get health insurance, Thanh took on a second job at a Walmart store that was over 50 miles away from his home. At Walmart, he restocked shelves and did inventory from the evenings until the early morning hours.
After several years of working at Walmart, Thanh found a better job at Quest Diagnostics in Chantilly, Virginia. It was at this job, at 4:00AM where he suffered from a heart attack and passed away.
Despite his own lack of opportunities and the need to work two jobs, Thanh was able provide enough so that his children could thrive in school. His eldest daughter Ariana is now in her second year of college. Unfortunately, with his sudden death, their family has lost their only source of income.
With your kind donation, we will continue Thanh's lifelong mission of ensuring that his daughters have any necessities and the opportunity to go to college. We will be establishing individual Virginia 529 college savings accounts for each of Thanh's daughters. Lydia Tran, Thanh's older sister will be the administrator of these funds and will be dividing the donations equally among all three girls after the funeral.
His life was defined by hardship, sacrifice, perseverance and love. Thanh's dream was to see his daughters succeed and to give them the opportunities that he never had for himself. With his unexpected passing, we want to see our brother's wishes through by supporting his daughters. Your contribution will be put towards the education and basic needs of Ariana, Angelina and Alianna.
Thanh was born in Saigon, Vietnam in 1965. In 1979, following the end of the Vietnam War, Thanh's family escaped Vietnam on a boat with few clothes and belongings. While at sea, his family endured two horrifying pirate robberies, thirst and hunger.
When their boat finally reached land, they learned that they were in Malaysia and were taken to Bidong Island. Thanh, his parents, grandmother and six brothers and sisters settled into a refugee camp for 9 months. Having recently endured the trauma of the war and their perilous journey, Thanh became the family caretaker. He navigated the chaos of the camp and made sure that his family always had enough to survive.
His family finally arrived in the United States in late 1979. Shortly after they settled in Arlington, Virginia, Thanh took on his first job cleaning office buildings at night while he attended community college during the day. What little money he earned went to supporting his family.
After community college, Thanh began working at a printing company and he remained in that industry for over 30 years, until his passing. During the 1990's, Thanh found this career to be stable and well-paying. However after the dot com boom, the print industry saw a sharp decline and his salary was reduced while his health benefits were completely eliminated.
In order to make ends meet and to get health insurance, Thanh took on a second job at a Walmart store that was over 50 miles away from his home. At Walmart, he restocked shelves and did inventory from the evenings until the early morning hours.
After several years of working at Walmart, Thanh found a better job at Quest Diagnostics in Chantilly, Virginia. It was at this job, at 4:00AM where he suffered from a heart attack and passed away.
Despite his own lack of opportunities and the need to work two jobs, Thanh was able provide enough so that his children could thrive in school. His eldest daughter Ariana is now in her second year of college. Unfortunately, with his sudden death, their family has lost their only source of income.
With your kind donation, we will continue Thanh's lifelong mission of ensuring that his daughters have any necessities and the opportunity to go to college. We will be establishing individual Virginia 529 college savings accounts for each of Thanh's daughters. Lydia Tran, Thanh's older sister will be the administrator of these funds and will be dividing the donations equally among all three girls after the funeral.
Organizer and beneficiary
My Le
Organizer
Chevy Chase, MD
Lydia Tran
Beneficiary