Giving back to the community that gave so much to her family, one mask at a time
When Kim Hun Nam was forced to close her tailor shop from the public because of the coronavirus pandemic, she wasn’t sure what was next.
Her store, Kim’s Professional Tailor and Alteration, is a small building in Abilene no bigger than 300 square feet. It has been open for 10 years, and she sees four or five customers a day.
However, it was deemed non-essential by the state.
But Hun Nam, mother of Arlington Lamar head boys soccer coach Sunny Soeun, had a skill useful for others as a seamstress for more than 30 years.
For the past three weeks, Hun Nam has been sewing masks for first responders in Abilene to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
“It was very hard because there wasn’t enough money to pay the bills before the virus, but I’m glad I can lend a helping hand,” Hun Nam said.
With the help from longtime friend Carolyn White and Evelyn Stewart, wife of a local pastor, the three have made more than 250 masks for first responders who work at local police departments, fire stations and hospitals.
Hun Nam has donated all her fabric and assembles the masks using the sewing machines in her shop.
“Kim’s a wonderful person. Now she’s helping and it makes everyone feel good through this pandemic,” White said.
The virus has claimed nearly 400 lives within Texas, as of Thursday evening, including 50 in Dallas County and another 34 in Tarrant County.
While the disease is scary, it’s not the most frightening thing Hun Nam has ever experienced.
Khmer Rouge
Living in Cambodia, Hun Nam and her husband, now divorced, gave birth to their first of four sons, Sarom in 1975. Sunny was born in 1978.
It was during that time when Cambodia was under the regime of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge.
Deadly purges occurred with many of the dead being among the following; educated, wealthy, police officers, doctors, lawyers and teachers. Family members were often killed as well.
“It was scary because you didn’t know if you’d wake up and it was the day they would take you away and kill you,” Hun Nam said. “There wasn’t much food. Most of it went to the kids.”
Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, was evacuated.
Over 20,000 of its two-million population died walking the countryside at gunpoint. Millions of Cambodians were forced into slavery and many died from overwork, diseases and starvation.
By the time the Vietnamese troops invaded Cambodia in 1979, putting a stop to Pol Pot’s reign, anywhere from 1.5 to 2 million people died.
“I don’t remember much, I was very young. But my mom always carried me and made sure I was okay,” Sunny said. “My parents have told me that it was an ordeal escaping and the paperwork process to get rescued by missionaries.”
New Beginning
Near the end of the Pol Pot government, Cambodians were escaping to refugee camps in Thailand. But people who were caught died. People who were caught by Thailand soldiers entering the country also died.
But the Soeun family, which included Hun Nam’s sister and brother-in-law, made their way to Thailand. The Soeuns stayed in Thailand for two years.
While escaping Cambodia, Sunny stayed on his mother’s hip throughout the journey.
Sunny recalls his mother telling him one story when she fell from exhaustion as he was by her side. “She was ready to die, but my father came back and pushed her to continue.”
Hun Nam’s sister and her family were first rescued by a sponsor, Fred and Carolyn White, from Abilene in 1979. “We fostered Kim’s sister and she asked to help Sunny’s family and we’ve known them ever since,” Carolyn said.
Then after amounts of paperwork and phone calls, the Soeuns arrived to Texas on Feb. 23, 1981.
“I’m happy to be a citizen of the United States and to start a new life and give my kids a chance to prosper,” Hun Nam said.
“We helped find a place for them to live and a place to work,” Carolyn added.
After Sunny’s family came to the United States, his dad’s parents arrived in 1983.
“It all kind of worked out. The White family just happened to sponsor my aunt and uncle and that got the process going,” Sunny said. “I’m a big believer in God and everything happens for a reason. I truly believe God had a lot to do with it.”
After 40 years, Sarom and Sunny are teachers at Lamar. Sarean lives in Austin and Whichere lives in Abilene with Hun Nam.
The Whites enrolled Sunny into soccer when he was 4
“He was more skilled than anyone his age. We watched him grow up,” Carolyn said.
Sunny became a soccer standout at Abilene High under the direction of Hue Menzies, coach of the Jamaican Women’s National team. On his team was Joey Rodriguez, the soccer coach at Arlington Sam Houston.
Soeun had the opportunity to play at the next level, but chose to attend Texas Tech, where he met his wife. He finished school at UT-Arlington, still with a passion for soccer.
His first teaching position came at Irving Nimitz, where he was a soccer coach for a couple years. He’s been at Lamar since 2013. The Vikings have reached the playoffs seven times. He’s also the head boys cross country coach.
“Kim and her family risked everything to come here.,” said Dr. Fred White. “With a strong work effort and perseverance, they have prospered and have taken their place with pride in the fabric of the United States.”
