It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our father, Prum Horn, at the age of 82. On April 24, 2020, his spirit was peacefully freed with his family and wife of 60 years by his side at Circle of Life in Bentonville, Arkansas.
Our father was born on March 15, 1938 in Prey Veng Cambodia to Mr. and Mrs. Prum Nu. He was the 5th child of 8 children. From the day he was born, he lived a life full of adventure, danger, and firsts. Each experience reaffirmed his love of family, life and country and drove his endless determination to improve the lives of his family and others.
After joining the Cambodian Air Force in 1957, he attended the Ecole de Formation des Sous-Officers de l’Armee de l’Air in Rochefort, France and École Supérieure et d'Application du Matériel in Bourges, France. Before he continued his education and training at various US Air Force bases, such as those in Texas and the Philippines, he fell in love with and married our mother, or as they would call each other “ma’naik,” which translates from Khmer literally to “one person” but for them meant “my only one.”
He completed his military career honorably as Colonel of the Cambodian Air Force, serving as a Regiment Commander responsible for the security of Pochentong Air Base in Cambodia up until the fall of the Khmer Republic in 1975. Our father was incredibly brave, risking his life to defend his country while protecting our family and countless others who were desperately trying to escape the violence.
We immigrated to the US, a country dramatically different from the one we had just fled. We spent our first six months living at Fort Indiantown Gap before eventually settling in the nearby town of Lebanon, Pennsylvania.
He worked hard to give us the childhood and American life we had. His first job in the US was at Gill Rock Drill Manufacturing Co, Inc. located in Cornwall Lebanon, Pennsylvania. He was then employed at Butler Manufacturing Company in Annville, Pennsylvania for more than 20 years. When he decided it was time to put away his steel toe boots for good, at his retirement party, the company honored him for his perfect attendance.
He was a natural leader, active within the Cambodian community locally, nationally, and internationally. He advocated to end the suffering of the Cambodian people and to create resources necessary for the preservation and resurgence of the Khmer people and its culture. He served on numerous boards and founded many social and cultural associations, fostering outreach and a sense of community. While living in Lebanon, he opened our home to many Cambodian families, providing them with a place to stay and helping them establish a new life in America. At one point, we had up to 20 people sharing one bathroom and one kitchen.
He was proud of his family. As we got older, he not only boasted about our accomplishments, but also of the sheer size of our family. He would tell everyone he’d meet about how many children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren he had and their accomplishments.
He was preceded in death by his 3rd eldest daughter Serey Prum. He is survived by his ma’naik of 60 years, Mrs. AngKy Suos; 4 daughters, Mrs. Prasoeu Leng, Mrs. Pisey Tes, Mrs. Piset Heng, and Mrs. Pidor Yang; 3 sons, Mr. Sophornarath Horn, Mr. Sophornarith Horn, and Mr. Sophornarak Horn; 20 grandchildren and 7 great-grandchildren.
We will remember our father in countless ways: as a powerful communicator, a handsome man with a booming voice and a soft heart, and a father with a gentle smile and boisterous laugh who loved meaningful conversations. He was respected and admired by his friends, those he interacted with, and strangers alike. Our father will be greatly missed by his family, friends, and the community he unselfishly served. We were all captivated by him.
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