Life Story: Chhay Un
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Losing a family member can be a painful experience. But a family in Rosemount has found reasons to smile as they remember a fascinating man.
Chhay Un was the father of six children and a husband of 55 years.
"He's just a really happy, happy man and I speak of him in the present because I still feel like he's here," said Milton Un, his son.
He was one of the first Cambodian immigrants to move to the Twin Cities in the early 1980s. And once here, he had a powerful impact on those who followed him.
Family photos suggest Chhay knew how to have a good time. You see him surrounded by his kids, grandkids and his wife.
What is missing from the photo collection are Chhay's days a young man in Cambodia.
A war there from 1975 to 1979 killed an estimated three million people.
"His experiences during the war in Cambodia, they were not times for celebration. So in the United States, every opportunity was a time to celebrate," said Silvy Un, Chhay's daughter.
After moving to Minnesota, Chhay got a job as a school janitor. He had worked as a civil engineer in his homeland.
"He was a problem solver," Milton said. "When he was in Cambodia, his job was working on designing roads."
Silvy says her father took it all in stride.
"He was very proud of the fact that he was able to earn a living to support his family," she said.
His kids say he valued education and made sure all six of them went to college.
"Growing up it was like, 'You finish your homework? Work on tomorrow's assignment! What's it going to be? Work two chapters ahead.' It was always keep pushing, keep pushing, keep pushing," Milton said.
Silvy said he appeared to be an unassuming guy, but there was more than meets the eye.
"He was a non-native English speaker, so unless you asked him what his experiences were, you would never know," she said.
They say Chhay did not like to talk about the war, but his wife, Kim Hoy Un, often shared stories.
"It's very bad memory. In that time they kill a lot of people. They kill like over three million people," she said.
She says the first few years in Minnesota were difficult. As the first Cambodian family to live in Rosemount, they got stares and things thrown at them.
"When we moved here, the neighbors, they don't like us, you know. They throw the rock, they put the toilet paper on the trees, everything," Kim Hoy said.
About 9,000 Cambodian immigrants live in Minnesota today. Many attend a Buddhist temple in Hampton that Chhay Un helped build.
And many of them credit him with helping them make the transition to a new country.
Chhay Un died on July 14 after a brief battle with cancer. He was 81 years old.
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