’94 alumnus remembered by friends as role model
UCLA, Vietnamese community suffers loss
By Mai Pham
Tears streamed down my face upon hearing my English professor
quote from Boethius: "The desire to do evil may be due to human
weakness; but for the wicked to overcome the innocent in the sight
of God – that is monstrous … If there is a God, why is there
evil? And if there is no God, how can there be good?"
These questions still ring in my head when I think about Thien
Minh Ly, a 1994 UCLA graduate and a very dear friend of mine who
was mercilessly stabbed more than a dozen times before he died this
past weekend in Tustin. His body was found immersed in a pool of
blood on a Tustin High School tennis court by a janitor earlier
this week.
All who were close to him are bereft with sorrow; struggling
with the mystery of the heinous crime that cut short a life so full
of promise. No one knows why Thien was killed so brutally, but
friends and family know why he should have lived.
I can still hear the distinctive quality of Thien’s voice
encouraging me, joking with me, philosophizing about life, giving
me advice or asking my opinion. In many ways, I aspired to be what
he embodied: a confident, determined, intelligent, and outgoing
Vietnamese American whose unquestioned integrity and leadership
abilities made him an outstanding role model.
In high school, Thien was a junior varsity tennis player as well
as an honors student graduating with a 4.53 GPA. At UCLA, he
completed his double major in English and biology in four years.
(He later went to Georgetown University where he earned a master’s
degree in physiology and biophysics in one year.) Amid this
rigorous coursework, Thien involved himself in extracurricular
passions.
While at UCLA, he immersed himself in the Vietnamese Students’
Association, was truly proud of his ancestral heritage and wished
to inspire such pride in his Vietnamese peers.
Since he loved to read and write, Thien took the first
initiative in 1992 to start a Vietnamese Students’ Association
newsletter – Lien Lac – and became its chief editor. Without his
commitment to its production, the newsletter has ceased to exist.
In addition, Thien also served as director of the annual Vietnamese
Students’ Association Culture Night.
In 1993, he became the UCLA Vietnamese Students’ Association
president. As president, he took special care to make the
acquaintance of every member, made a point to reach out to incoming
freshmen, frequently offering himself as advisor, mentor and
friend.
For the past three nights, all of Thien’s friends and I have
gotten together, mutually grieving his loss, reminiscing about the
wonderful times spent with him, racking our brains for answers
about his death.
We don’t know why you had to die, Thien, but we love you and
miss you. We remember those many happy midnight excursions to Santa
Monica beach when we sang love songs in Vietnamese. We remember
that you were the one we could go to whenever we had problems,
especially when we needed guidance and support about what to do
with our lives.
We remember campfire stories and hiking and swimming across that
freezing cold river in Yosemite. We even remember that year you
decided to shave your head and how it looked kind of funny while
you waited for your hair to grow back. There are so many good
times, so many memories.
We especially remember that you promised to be our friend
forever. What will happen to that 10-year reunion we planned on
having, Thien, when we pull out those Lien Lac letters that you put
together?
Thien wanted to publish an anthology of poetry one day, and
loved to read and write. I would like to dedicate these lines from
Yeat’s "Easter 1916" to him:
This other his helper and friend
Was coming into his force;
He might have won fame in the end,
So sensitive his nature seemed,
So daring and sweet his thought …
He … has been changed in his turn,
Transformed utterly:
A terrible beauty was born.
Thien, too, was on the verge of "coming into his force" when he
died, having completed his studies and about to embark into the
working world. "He might have won fame in the end," as his
potential for becoming a future leader of Vietnamese Americans was
evident. All who know him attest to the fact that he was "so
sensitive," and "so daring and sweet." But this violent act has
prematurely ended his life, Thien "has been changed … transformed
utterly." In the tragedy that is his death, "A terrible beauty was
born," the beauty of spirit and soul.
In his memory, the friends and family of Thien Minh Ly will hold
a candlelight vigil in his memory at the site of his death tonight,
Feb. 2, at 6:00 p.m. at the Tustin High School tennis courts. All
who wish to share in his memory are invited to attend.
We are also offering a $5,000 reward for any information leading
to the arrest/conviction of Thien’s assailant(s). Donations for
this fund can be made out to The Friends of Thien Minh Ly, and sent
to 308 Westwood Plaza, Box 313, Los Angeles, CA 90024. For more
information, contact Amy at (310) 208-3757.
Pham is a fifth-year English and biology student.
Thien Minh Ly
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