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Honoring the life of Xe Xiong and proclaiming Saturday, March 11, 2023, as Xe Xiong Day in the City of Saint Paul.
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WHEREAS, Xe Xiong, formally known as Mrs. Tong Kai Yang, was born on August 20, 1942, and Xe’s father, Zateng Xiong, and stepmother, Kia Moua, raised her and her siblings from a young age after their birthmother’s unexpected death; and
WHEREAS, Xe Xiong married Tong Kai Yang in 1965, who became a Major in the Special Guerrilla Unit in the United States’ Secret War in Laos during the Vietnam War then assisted thousands of Hmong refugees in escaping communist Laos before he was assassinated by the regime; and
WHEREAS, Xe Xiong and Major Tong Kai Yang not only had many children together but also took in and adopted children who were orphaned as a result of the war; and
WHEREAS, Xe Xiong was committed to the family she had built with Major Tong Kai Yang and later immigrated as a single mother with many of her children to the United States in 1993 to escape communist persecution, settling first in Sacramento, California before moving permanently to Saint Paul, Minnesota with most of her family in 1996; and
WHEREAS, Xe Xiong was a hardworking, loving, and selfless single mother who devoted the rest of her life to her eleven sons, fourteen daughters, ninety grandchildren, and more than thirty great-grandchildren, and
WHEREAS, Xe Xiong also served as a member of the Lao Veteran organization, not only to honor her husband but also continue his legacy as an advocate for Lao and Hmong American veteran benefits and human rights in Laos and Thailand; and
WHEREAS, Xe Xiong further advocated for voting rights, racial equity, fair housing for seniors, and more as an active community elder, leader, and organizer, and
WHEREAS, Xe Xiong was 80 years old when she passed away surrounded by her loving family at home on the North End of Saint Paul on January 29, 2023 at 4:29pm; and
WHEREAS, Xe Xiong’s celebration of life will take place at the Legacy F...
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