Announcement
Photo (from L-R): Tun Than, David Miliband, Sarah Nagy (Health & Youth Program Manager) and Sawsan Al Sayyab (Senior Resettlement Manager) in Baltimore.
Tun Than served the International Rescue Committee, both as a Caseworker and Senior Caseworker, with great distinction for over 10 years in Baltimore, Maryland. Throughout this time, Tun was the Caseworker the IRC relied on to serve thousands of Burmese refugees who were resettled in the Baltimore area.
Everyone in the Burmese community in Baltimore knew Tun Than because he helped all the adults and their children to get a solid start in establishing a new life in America. Tun had a special affection for children. He enrolled hundreds of children in school and mentored many of them to ensure they went on to college. He touched so many lives that I used to joke with him by calling him the Mayor of the Burmese community in Baltimore. I can honestly say that the Burmese refugee community in Baltimore is successful today due to the efforts Tun Than made to help them over the last 10 years. As someone who had to flee Burma due to his pro-democracy activities, Tun saw himself and his family in every refugee he served and this is why he is such a special IRC staff and humanitarian.
About two years ago, Tun was promoted to the position of Senior Caseworker. As such, he was responsible to help reunite children from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras with their parents who were already in the U.S. Thanks to his supervision of this program, almost 100 children were granted refugee status from these countries and have been reunited with their parents.
Besides his great professional accomplishments, Tun was a great human being. He was always positive in every interaction with people and he brought great joy everywhere he went. No one could escape his beautiful smile. He was a bright light and warm presence in my life and I will always remember him this way!
While Tun had many passions, I will remember him for these:
1. He loved to learn. I remember the first time we met, he had a backpack full of books so he can learn how to invest in the stock market. Over the years he loved to invest in the market and loved to share his successes with others.
2. Tun loved the IRC and serving refugees as I have described before. He had many opportunities to leave the IRC and make more money. But he always refused to go because of his passion to serve those fleeing persecution. He often worked two jobs to support his family rather than leave the IRC.
3. Tun loved his parents and brother and would always share many great stories about them with me. He often shared how his brother saved his life by helping him escape “to the jungle” and evade the military junta that was hunting him down in Burma. Tun was overjoyed when he was reunited with his brother in the U.S. after many years of separation. More recently, Tun felt at peace after his travels to Burma to see his parents. It breaks my heart to know that he spent his last breath trying to see them and his home again.
4. Tun loved his wife Ei and daughter Wendy very deeply. He always told me how privileged he felt to be a husband and a father. He had so many dreams for his wife and daughter. Tun wanted to be a better person for them and he worked day and night to provide them a good life. I am so sorry that his life was taken from them so suddenly.
I want to express on behalf of the International Rescue Committee how very sorry we are to lose such a wonderful colleague, friend and humanitarian! Tun is a gift to the world. All the staff of the IRC offer our deepest condolences to his family and friends. We promise to do everything we can to honor his life, his wife and daughter and the rest of his family.
Ruben Chandrasekar
Executive Director of the IRC in Maryland