Loss of Merced County leader, businessman ‘felt up and down the Valley’ by Hmong community
Merced County’s Hmong community lost an influential leader with the recent death of Dang Moua, who died at age of 71 after a battle with stomach cancer, say family members.
A local businessman and community advocate, he was instrumental in helping many Hmong families assimilate to life locally and in the United States. He died Oct. 13.
He was born on April 12, 1949 in Nonghet, XiengKhouang Province of Laos, according to a biography supplied by his family.
Like many Laotians and Lao Hmong, Moua first came to the U.S. and Central Valley in the aftermath of the Vietnam War and the so-called “Secret War” in Southeast Asia. Many came as refugees, and had to start over in a new country, learning a new language, culture and way of life.
Moua and his family were one of the first Hmong families to settle in Merced County, moving from Richmond, Virginia in 1977.
Many Hmong families followed his lead from all over the country and came to Merced County.
“He spoke English when he first arrived in Merced and he was very much needed in the community,” said Merced County Superior Court Judge Paul Lo, the first Hmong-American judge in U.S. history. “He became president of the Lao Organization and did a lot of social work. He helped the new community adjust to this community.”
Moua worked hard to give Hmong people opportunities for employment in agriculture. Using his contacts with government officials and working with farmers, he helped many people get jobs working in Central Valley strawberry fields.
He advocated to gain access through the farmers he knew in Merced to secure farming contracts for many people in the Hmong community.
“Dang knew the farming they could do in Laos in strawberry fields, they could do in the Central Valley,” said Dr. Steve Roussos, who worked with Moua to start the non-profit organization Healthy House in Merced.
The goal of Healthy House is to promote the well being and health of all people through the provision of education, services and advocacy which are founded in respect for language, culture and health equity, according to the organization.
Moua later owned the first Hmong grocery store in Merced, downtown’s “Moua Oriental Market.” Plus he opened the first Hmong farm and slaughter house, “Moua’s Hog Slaughter Farm” and “Moua’s Cattle Farm” in Livingston.
Being multilingual, Moua worked as a translator for the courts. He worked up and down the state, helping many Hmong people in the courts, according to Lo.
“He gave a lot of time and effort to help people adjust to this community,” Lo said. “A lot of young people growing up in this county probably don’t understand how difficult it was to adjust to a new place and what people had to go through. (Moua) was one individual who helped create a bridge for the community. People probably don’t appreciate it now.”
A humble man who worked behind the scenes
His family and friends say Moua never wanted credit for the help he gave others. He preferred to remain in the background.
“He was a behind the scenes force that many of us relied on,” Roussos said. “Too many people today want the recognition. Dang never sought out to be recognized. He just made things happen. He enjoyed the success of watching things work better.”
“Dang had this talent of taking these complicated topics and piecing everything together. He would tell a story that shows how all the pieces came together so it made sense. It didn’t matter if the topic was education, health care, farming or economic development.”
Moua enjoyed playing soccer, riding motorcycles, fishing and hunting with friends and spending time with his wife Paj Lis and his children Hnub, Ly, Gnia, Dua, Tchiengte, Chufeng and Sengcheng, his three son in-laws, five grandchildren or any of his other extended family and friends.
He liked to travel, making trips to Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, China, France, French Guiana and countries in Africa.
“I will miss him, he was a personal friend of mine,” Lo said. “The Hmong community lost a strong leader. His loss will be felt up and down the Valley. He was unselfish with his time and knowledge. He’s definitely going to be missed.”
This story was originally published November 22, 2020 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Loss of Merced County leader, businessman ‘felt up and down the Valley’ by Hmong community ."
