Tai Van Tu

Tai Tu passed away on Aug. 28, 2024. He lived with his wife of 63 years, Nga, his seven children, Thu (Amir), Trang (Chris), Thao, Dung (Diem-Trang), Diep (Tam), Tien (Hao-Nhien), and Tuyen (Toan) – as well as his sister in Vietnam, Thu, and their families. He has 15 grandchildren, Alan, Ai-Vy (Kyle), Natalie, Alex, Tristan, Trinavy, Nikki, Thai, Megan, Hunter, Logan, Lana, Kylie, and Lucas.

Although he was a quiet man, he commanded the room when there was something that needed to be said. He was born in Cai Be, Vietnam. His father passed away when he was 10 years old. The eldest of 5, he learned to make a living and help his mother and siblings at an early age. He had strong family values. He taught his children the importance of dedication, hard work and loyalty. But above all else, the most important was family!

His most memorable achievement (along with his wife), was the decision to escape communist Vietnam in the hope for a better future for his children. It wasn’t like saving enough money to purchase airplane tickets for 9 people. It was a decision to risk all their lives and leave everything behind, without any guarantee, and committing an illegal act on top of it all. All the planning, coordination, construction of a wooden vessel, every detail was done in secret. But he was able to successfully escape!

After living 9 months as refugees on an island in Indonesia, his family was allowed to enter the United States on Dec. 2, 1979 through the sponsorship of Hyde Park Presbyterian Church. He was taught to drive. He attended Erwin Technical College to obtain his drafting license and worked for the Hillsborough County Road Division for over 20 years before retiring and traveling with Nga. He traveled to Vietnam, Russia, China, Japan, Germany, and many more places.

A visitation hours and funeral service will be held at Blount & Curry (605 S. MacDill Ave., Tampa, FL 33609) from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM. Funeral Service will be held at 1:00 PM.

In-lieu of flowers, the family requests all donations go to either:

-Quan Am Nam Hai Monastery – 1309 N. Star Ave., Panama City, FL 32404 (Zelle to [email protected] or Venmo @QuanAmNamHai-Monastery)

- Immaculate Heart of Mary Shrine – 1900 Grand Ave. – P.O. Box 836, Carthage, MO 64836, 417-358-8580