Xuan Nguyen

Xuan was born on December 8th, 1947 in Lộc Ninh, a little town just north of Saigon. She was one of seven kids. Her father, Nguyen Nhu Chương, was a French translator for a company in the rubber industry. Her mother, Nguyen Thi Hạnh, sold vegetables at the neighborhood market. In Vietnam, Xuan attended high school at Trung Vuong, Saigon and went on to study at Saigon Law School. After getting married, she left school early to work at Saigon Bank.

She met her husband, Nguyen Minh Anh, in a class teaching traditional Vietnamese music. In Vietnam, they lived a humble but happy life with three children - Khue, Tu, and Phuong. But in 1975, war and political oppression forced them out of Vietnam, and they found refuge in America, eventually ending up in Austin, Texas.  Their youngest son, Viet, was born in Waco, Texas.

Xuan went to technical school during the day and took care of the children at night. Once she received her degree, she worked at Motorola, troubleshooting and fixing semiconductor equipment for 22 years. After taking early retirement from Motorola, she changed careers once again and became a translator like her father had years before. She helped Vietnamese people communicate in many situations, from simple bill payment to complicated legal hearings. One time, she even helped deliver a baby entirely over the phone! 

Xuan’s hard work allowed her a comfortable life in America, and she adapted well. Yes, her egg rolls and fried rice were magnificent, but her American staples like spaghetti, lasagna, and French fries were also in the rotation. And like a good ol’ Texan, bless her heart, she had a genuine love for football. 

Xuan was a fearless traveler. She and her husband once arrived in Germany with no arrangements. They landed, somehow tracked down a rental car, grabbed a map, and figured out how to get to their friends in Denmark. Other countries Xuan visited were Mexico, Canada, Switzerland, France, Israel, Cambodia and her home country of Vietnam. 

While she took pride in her career over the years, Xuan’s real passion was the Vietnamese Baptist church where she was notorious as an unapologetic worship recruiter to every Vietnamese person in town. She translated documents into Vietnamese and created publications for the Vietnamese Baptist community. She often led the choir in song and even wrote many hymns of her own. 

God was first, but Xuan loved her family more than anything. Her perseverance and hard work gave the opportunity for all four of her children to get college degrees, including two graduate degrees. Her oldest daughter, Khue, is a software developer. Her second daughter, Tu, is a finance specialist for a Baptist children’s home. Her son, Phuong, is a middle school band teacher in Colorado, and her youngest son, Viet, is a film/television director in Los Angeles.

While awfully proud of her children, they were often pushed aside and ignored for Xuan’s nine grandchildren. They were her pride and joy. With the kids’ ages ranging from 5 to 24 years old, Xuan’s insistence upon excellence gave the kids great nuggets of advice like: “You won the geography bee? Well, you need to win the math bee, too,” as well as, “Why didn’t you get into a more famous law school?” 

Xuan is survived by husband, Nguyen Minh Anh; her four children: Khue, Tu (Denise), Phuong, and Viet (and their spouses); Nine grandchildren; her surviving siblings are Pham Thi He, Pham Thi Ban, Nguyen Như Đuc, Nguyen Nhu Van, Nguyen Thi Thanh Mai.

Rumor has it that, even in heaven, Xuan is going around recruiting people for song and worship. It perfectly sums up how she lived her life: fearless, full of faith, and persistent.

A Visitation will be held at The Gabriels Funeral Chapel on Monday, July 24, from 11am- Noon with the funeral services beginning at noon. Immediately following the service, there will be a small reception. The burial will be held at Cook-Walden Memorial Hill in Pflugerville beginning at 2:30pm.