Tien Kim Nguyen

Tien Kim Nguyen, a devoted wife, mother, sister, grandma, and grandaunt passed away peacefully at home surrounded by her loved ones in San Jose, California on Wednesday, August 24, 2022. Tien was born on November 15, 1934, in South Vietnam. She has lived through three wars when Vietnam was part of French Indochina, then came Japanese occupation during WWII, then again between the North and South Vietnam, aka The Viet Nam War. During this tumultuous wartime, she met and married her husband of 60 years until he passed away almost a year just prior. She took herself through secretary school and raised the children while her husband was often away on deployment or military training. In 1975, when South Vietnam lost the war, her husband was sent away to concentration camp in the North, and the family was branded as unpatriotic by the winning side, forced to rid of all possessions and casted out to the countryside. While raising the four children, and bringing basic necessities to her imprisoned husband, she fell gravely ill with kidney disease due to physical exhaustion and undernourishment. Despite the inadequate medical care in Viet Nam at that time, she survived the ordeal and returned home to her children. Her husband was later released after almost 6 years of imprisonment. They both decided that he needed to leave their homeland to find new life and hope for the family. Against poor odds, he made to the shore of Malaysia as a refugee along with the two children he brought with him. Tien stayed behind with two other children in case her husband got captured or died at sea as the fate of many other "boat people" before him. After 8 years apart, she finally reunited with her husband and all her children in San Jose, California, and had lived there ever since. She loved and took care of everyone in the family. She enjoyed the many family trips and get together with her children, their spouses, and the grandchildren where she would make and eat the traditional Vietnamese food. She is caring, but strong and private, and she is fiercely protective of her family. She is dearly missed by all those that she's left behind. She is forever loved, forever missed and forever in our hearts.

Tien is survived by her children, sisters, brother, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, grandnieces, and grandnephews.

A Buddhist ceremony for Tien and for her family will be held Saturday, October 1, 2022, from 9:00 AM to 10:30 AM and 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM.

Visitation will be from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM and 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM at Willow Glen Funeral Home, 1039 Lincoln Ave, San Jose, CA 95125.

A funeral service will occur Sunday, October 2, 2022, from 8:00 AM to 8:45 AM at Willow Glen Funeral Home, 1039 Lincoln Ave, San Jose, CA 95125. A graveside service will occur Sunday, October 2, 2022, from 9:00 AM to 10:00 AM at Oak Hill Memorial Park & Mortuary, 300 Curtner Ave, San Jose, CA 95125.

A remembrance video tribute to Tien can be viewed here, https://youtu.be/Ebr9v_NQr3w

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.willowglenfuneralhome.com for the Nguyen and Le families.