Duoc Thi Lestico

Duoc Thi Lestico, age 78, passed away peacefully, surrounded by her loved ones, on Saturday, January 26th, 2019 at St. David’s Medical Center in Austin, Texas. She was born on July 3rd, 1940 in Saigon, Vietnam to her mother, Lanh Do, and father, Thanh Hoang.

She revered her maternal grandmother, Hai Thi Le, and her uncle, Gioi Van Nguyen, as they were paramount in her wellbeing and upbringing as a child. Being the oldest born of 22 siblings, she lived a life of caring for and nurturing her family. Growing up, not only did she play a prominent role in the caretaking of her many siblings, but she was a contributing member of her community, often helping neighbors and friends acquire food or medicine.

At the age of 18, she attended and graduated from Saigon Nursing School. She used her knowledge of medicine to administer vaccines and other medicines to those in her community who needed healthcare, while also working as a nurse at Saigon Hospital. To broaden her knowledge and gain experience, she acquired a job as a pharmacy technician. In 1967, 12 years after the commencement of the Vietnam War, she began working at the United States Embassy in Saigon as an accountant and computer data enterer. Meanwhile, she studied photography, a passion of hers, where she would often serve as the class model. In 1970, she gave birth to her daughter, Xuan Anh. On April 25th, 1975, five days before the fall of Saigon, she was able to get herself, her daughter, and nine more family members out of the country on a military cargo plane via her connections with the Embassy. After stops at US military bases in the Philippines and Wake Island, they arrived at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas. She would later be sponsored by Bill and Jean Kiernat in Madison, Wisconsin. Almost immediately, she began working in the pharmacy at St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison, where she would meet her husband of 38 years, Mitchell Robert Lestico. She married Mitch on July 25th, 1981, and in 1986, she would give birth to her son, Brian. In 1993, she relocated to Round Rock, Texas where she would spend the rest of her life.

She dedicated her life to her family and her faith. She quite literally saved the lives of many of her family members and always made sure they stayed connected and supported. In retirement, she spent most of her time worshiping at various Buddhist temples in the Austin area.

She is survived by her beloved husband, Mitch; two children, Xuan Anh (Jason) Sweeney and Brian (Carolina) Lestico; three grandchildren, Ariana, Ian, and Alea; and many brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, and cousins.

To honor her life and legacy, the funeral service will be held on Wednesday, January 30th, 2019 from 8:30 a.m. until 12:00 p.m. noon at Cook-Walden/Capital Parks Funeral Home, 14501 North Interstate Highway 35, Pflugerville, Texas.

In lieu of flowers, those interested may offer a monetary donation to a gofundme account which will be divided among the three Buddhist temples in Austin she frequented the most. https://www.gofundme.com/in-memory-of-duoc-lestico