May 24, My friend/college roommate Teng, was in Ames and contacted me to meet for lunch! My freshmen year of college Teng and I were dorm roommates and then got an apartment together.. We had lots of good memories and she is such a fun loving, happy, full of life person. Teng and her husband came to Iowa to celebrate her nephew's graduation. She spent the week and visited friends and family. Teng asked for some dining options, and she chose Provisions, a newer, classier restaurants in town. It was so nice to see her, visit, and laugh. In talking, we decided we needed to show her husband the ISU campus and also for us to reminisce. They hopped in my vehicle and I gave them a tour. We could pick out and remember all the popular buildings, and there were many new buildings too. Teng looks the same as she did in college and is still her spunky self. She never stops laughing while asking me, "Have you gotten taller?" She is a financial consultant in Las Vegas and doing well. Her daughter graduated college and as Teng explains, she works to pay for concerts, travels, and having fun.
Teng has an interesting story, that I really didn't know much about until I later read it on her social media post. We need more Governor Ray's in this world!
Forty four years ago, on a Sunday morning in October 1979, The Vongpanya's first set foot in Iowa. A chartered jumbo jet brought them and nearly 230 other immigrants halfway around the world from their homes in Laos. All the families possessions were tucked into one suitcase and one cardboard box. The V family-five siblings ages 4 to 14 and their parents, Oth and La-was allowed to come to Iowa because of Governor Robert Ray invited war weary refuges from Southeast Asia to start a new life in the states in places like Bloomfield, Ottumwa, and Fairfield. No longer would these refugees have to fear communist might kill them in retaliation for working for the United States government during the Vietnam war. Decades later the V kids still express their gratitude for the way the community rallied around them, finding them a home and stocking it with furniture and clothes, helping Oth line up a job, providing tutors to help the kids learn English and above all else, treating them with dignity and compassion. They know the people of Iowa and Governor Ray gave them a life changing opportunity and hope. The Vongpanya family have worked hard since that fateful day in 1979 to be worthy of the blessings this state provided them. I am confident Governor Ray would be proud of what Oth and Laa and their kids have achieved. All five of the kids graduated high school. They earned college degrees. They have married and started their own families. They have purchased houses, been gainfully employed, and served in the US military. They have been on community boards and are all US citizens.
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