Ty Thi Tran's Obituary
Ty Thi Tran
A mother's strength of will to provide a better life for her family.
One of the most significant things that Mrs. Ty Thi Tran's family will carry with them is their mother's intense Catholic devotion, her amazing strength of will, and her ability to keep the family together through even the worst of times. As the matriarch of a very large family by today's standards, she escaped war-ravaged Viet Nam in 1975 with her nine children without the assistance of her then-living husband. Together with her eldest 21-year old son, Thach Tran, and speaking only limited English, they fled their homeland for a better life in the United States with her other eight children, whose ages ranged from 4 to 17. After a harrowing journey aboard a US Naval cargo ship that carried them and numerous other Vietnamese people packed in like sardines, all ten family members made it safely to Camp Pendleton, a Marine base temporarily used as a refugee resettlement camp in California. As a sign of her devotion to God and her Catholic faith, she prayed fervently that all of her children would survive the voyage oversees in order to avoid being buried at sea. Back in her homeland, Mrs. Tran's husband, a town police chief, remained behind in their hometown of Bien Hoa, Viet Nam in order to support the peacekeeping efforts during and after the Fall of Saigon. Mr. Tran was captured and imprisoned in a “reeducation” camp for ten years. Not long after being released and due to head injuries, he passed away alone without his family in 1984 while still in Viet Nam.
Prior to fleeing her homeland, Mrs. Tran had built a very successful and thriving abattoir business and almost single-handedly supported her family from the proceeds of that business. Having previously lived under communism regime in the North, this accomplishment did very little to convince her that staying in Viet Nam after the Fall of Saigon would be favorable for her family. Her risk paid off in the end - all of her children have achieved the American Dream by becoming successful adults after receiving their education in the United States. This is a testament to the very high expectations and extremely strong work ethic she instilled in each of them. Mrs. Tran's children are forever grateful for her sacrifice.
Mrs. Tran proudly held a membership in the 'Hội Con Đức Mẹ' ('Daughters of the Blessed Virgin Mary'), a mostly Vietnamese Women's Club at Saint Ann Catholic Church in Tacoma, where she met regularly with other Vietnamese Catholics to pray, sing and socialize. During her final days, it was evident of her devotion to God in her continual chanting of Catholic prayers and songs and requests for everyone around her to join in.
Born December 25, 1927 in Phu Gia, Nam Dinh in Viet Nam, Mrs. Tran emigrated from North Viet Nam to Bien Hoa in South Viet Nam with her husband and their eldest son in 1954, where they lived until 1975. After arriving in the United States, she raised her family initially in Enumclaw and then in Tacoma, Washington. She passed away May 4, 2018 in Tacoma.
Mrs. Tran leaves behind an enormous family staunchly devoted to her, including her 8 living children, 3 daughters-in-law, 5 sons-in-law, 18 grandchildren, 2 step-grandsons, 6 grandchildren-in-law, 12 great-grandchildren, and 5 step-great-grandchildren.
Preceded in death by her youngest daughter, Muoi Tran, her husband, Tru Tran and her oldest son, Thach Tran, Mrs. Tran is survived by daughter-in-law Ha Nguyen of Lakewood; granddaughter Aivi Tran; daughter Ngoc Lan Le of Tacoma; grandson Lai Le and his wife Nhu Nguyen and their children Vinh, Kay Linh and Kai; granddaughter Dao Nguyen and her children Kenneth and Matthew; granddaughter Nguyet Magin and her husband Brandon and their son Tyler; granddaughter Bo Pha Le; grandson Hoang Le and his wife Sum and their children Caleb, Sophia and Emmelia; grandson Lucky Le and his wife Simontha Lay and their children Darrien and Lillian; daughter Bich-Que Nguyen of Lacey and her husband Dieu; granddaughter Bich-Hanh Towe and her husband Larry and their children Ryan, Alex, and Hanha; grandson Thoai Nguyen; son Luong Tran of Lakewood and his wife Thoa; granddaughter Ngoc (Jade) Wilkinson and her husband Jason; grandson Louie Tran; daughter Hong-Thuy Nguyen of Federal Way and her husband Khoa; grandsons Dan and Jonathan Nguyen; daughter Phuong-Loan Rector of Gig Harbor and her husband Tony; step-grandson Sean Rector and his wife Latasha and their children Iyahna, Sean Jr., and Stephon; grandson Michael Rector; daughter Cam-Le Nguyen of Puyallup and her husband Tuong; grandson Andrew Nguyen; son Anh Tran of Tracy, California and his wife Tuyen; grandsons Dominic and Alexander Tran; granddaughter Theresa Tran; daughter Thu-Suong (Suey) Byrnes of Shoreline and her husband Dan; and step-grandson Trevor Byrnes.
Mrs. Tran's viewing will be held for her family and friends in the Celebration of Life Center, Willow Room on Thursday, May 10th from 12-8PM (a Vietnamese Catholic mourning ceremony will take place at 6:30PM) and on Friday, May 11th from 9AM-6PM at Mountain View Funeral Home located at 4100 Steilacoom Blvd SW, Lakewood, WA 98499.
Her Funeral Mass is scheduled for 10AM on Saturday, May 12th at St. Ann Catholic Church located at 7025 S. Park Ave, Tacoma, WA 98408. Followed by graveside at Gethsemane Catholic Cemetery, Federal Way, WA.
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