Tim (Phoc) Vong Passed Away on 12-26-2023

UPDATE: On 12/26/2023, my brother passed peacefully with a smile on his face letting us know he was ready. We thank everyone for their kind words, generosity, and prayers. Please allow time for the family to grieve. 

12/18/2023: Thank you for the overwhelmingly generous response to the request for help! The funds raised will help pay for yesterday’s emergency IABP and hospital stay and care until Tim can return home. The family kindly ask you to continue praying for Tim and consider making donations to other worthy causes or the American Heart Association. Please see the latest posts.

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Many of you know that my brother, Timothy (Phoc), had his first stroke in his 30s, suffered from heart failure, then was extremely lucky enough to find a heart donor for a heart transplant in October 2017. After 6 years of good health, he and his wife, Vilivan, as well as his doctors, thought he was healthy enough to travel to Thailand to see her aging mother one last time. Unfortunately, after a few days in Thailand, his heart was not strong enough and Tim had to have an emergency surgery on December 11, 2023. He was fine for the first few days, but then suddenly had trouble breathing, speaking, and staying awake. He may need another surgery and more days in a private hospital in Thailand until he can return to Pittsburgh and be assessed by his wonderful doctors at Allegheny General Hospital.

As he is in Thailand and in a private hospital without medical coverage abroad, he and his family are paying for surgery, medical care, and his hospital stay out of pocket. The family has spent more than $10,000 so far. We estimate it could be at least another $10,000 and an additional $5,000 or more in travel expense to get him back to the US safely after another major heart surgery.

If my brother knew we set up this fundraising site and were asking for help on his behalf, he would not be happy. As the big brother, he has always wanted to care for and help us younger siblings, which carried into how he treated others. Tim (Phoc) has never asked for anything for himself and been very proud to work hard to earn everything he has. Even with his health issues, Tim always remained positive and continued to work, even when we pleaded with him to retire. He's a loving husband, dedicated & caring father to his 2 sons as well as 3 step children and grandchildren. Tim has run the Thai Gourmet Food Truck on the University of Pittsburgh campus (and previously at Carnegie Mellon University) for years because he enjoys talking to the students and knows how much some of them relied on having quality affordable home cooked food while away from home. Tim takes pride in being a good community member and helping others less fortunate than him. During the COVID pandemic, he spent a lot of his time voluntarily helping immigrants and other small business owners, who were non-native English speakers, navigate new government benefits and loan programs to help them get through those tough times.

Please help Tim and his family with any monetary donation you can spare. Every dollar will help them through this difficult and uncertain time. All contributions will go towards paying his medical bills and travel expenses to return to Pittsburgh from Thailand.

Please also send him positive thoughts and prayers.

Sincerely,

Lacy