Va Vang passed away peacefully on a sunny afternoon on Saturday, February 22, 2025, in her Fresno home, surrounded by her loved ones.  She lived a gracefully beautiful 102 years.  She was sent home to meet her Lord and Savior by her children, nephews, nieces, grandchildren and family members singing Amazing Grace in Hmong.

Born on June 15, 1922, in a remote village in Laos, Va was raised to be hardworking, loyal, caring, kind and loving.  She was married to her first husband, Jou Toua Yang.  They have two children, a son named Ceeb and a daughter named Shoua.  Sadly, she lost her first husband, Jou Toua.  Not long after, she also lost her son Ceeb.

She would eventually remarry Chong Tou Vang, but they never had any children together.  Va would become a mother to Chong Tou's children and raise them as if they were her very own.  She would also go on to help raise a multitude of nieces and nephews while Chong Tou was off fighting alongside American allies in the United States Secret War in Laos.  Chong Tou passed away on October 30, 2022, in Sanger, California.

After the fall of Laos to the communist regime in 1975, the family was left with no other options but to seek refuge in Thailand.  The family lived in the Ban Vinai refugee camp in Thailand until they were sponsored to come to the United States of America, settling in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin in 1980.  The family would move to Appleton, Wisconsin to be closer to relatives.  In 1982, the family moved to Fresno, California in search of better economic opportunities.

As she had no children with Chong Tou, with a caring heart full of love and compassion, she would go on to raise his children & grandchildren in California as her very own.  Into her golden years, Va often enjoyed gardening and sunbathing on the front porch.  Whether it be watching cars drive by in anticipation of the arrival of her grandchildren or listening to the songs of birds singing, she absorbed it all like the sun rays dancing on her paper-thin skin.  She often shared, "Working hard with all your heart and strength and having no regrets," were her words of wisdom.  She was the classic epitome of beauty, elegance, and the cliché, "She asked for so little, yet gave so very much!"  Deeply rooted in her faith and her church, she gave so much, being true to her God.

When she did something, it came from a deeply rooted belief in God and the life that He gave.  As we reminisce of the kind and loving person Va was, we are reminded of the verse found in I Corinthians 10:31, "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."