Sean Touch, age 97 of Shakopee, died on Monday, April 25, 2022, at her home surrounded by her loving family.
A visitation will be held on Friday, April 29, 2022, from 9-10 am, with a service at 10 am, at Ballard-Sunder Funeral Home, 833 South Marschall Road, Shakopee. Sean will be buried at Lakewood Cemetery in Minneapolis at 1:30PM.
Sean Touch was born in the province of Kampong Thom, Cambodia. She was born around the 4th month of the Lunar calendar in 1927 to Mr. Sean Sun and Mrs. Ji Sun. Sean was adopted and cared for by her aunt after losing her mother at the age of 1 month.
When she was 8 years old, she was one of the few girls of her generation who learned how to read. At 17, she married a gentleman by the name of Seng Mengly. The two newlyweds started their life together as banana farmers in Kampong Cham.
Despite working tirelessly, they barely made ends meet. So, she and her husband decided to move to Phnom Penh in 1958 in hopes of creating a better life for themselves and their young children. In Phnom Penh, she and her husband sold water for a living.
Sean Touch and her husband were extremely hard workers. Their love for their children gave them strength to work tirelessly. Through the hard times, they had each other. And in each other, they found strength and joy. Sadly, this happiness did not last. Sean Touch’s husband passed away in 1970 at the age of 57.
Sean Touch now had to strive alone to raise her children. Her oldest son, Buntha, was a primary school teacher. Her second eldest son, Sokha, joined the Military Police. She had two successful children to help her care for the four younger children from 1970 to 1975.
Things continued to get worse as the Khmer Rouge took over in 1975 after winning the Cambodian Civil War. They pushed people out of the city to empty fields. These fields later on became known as the “Killing Fields.”
During this time, she got separated from her family. Her oldest son, Buntha was taken by the Khmer Rouge, her second oldest son, Sokha, joined the Cambodian Navy with the help of his brother-in-law, Seng Kim Noun. Being separated from her four oldest sons, she was made to walk by foot for 15 days straight from Phnom Penh to Romlong while caring for her two youngest children, Maseak (12) and Toma (6).
Eventually, she did meet up with her second eldest son, Sokha, who left the navy in disguise to find her. She also learned that Sokha’s wife and son made it to America with his brothers-in-law. They decided to journey to the Thai refugee camp in hopes of reuniting with them in America.
It was a big risk to travel to the camps while the country was in the middle of war. However, they made it to the camps and eventually were able to reunite with their family in America in 1980. Despite the tragedies and loss Sean Touch experienced, this day brought her a familiar joy seeing her children happy and safe.
However, she knew she could not be truly happy until her whole family was reunited. She still had her sons, Bunsa and Masy and their families still trapped in Cambodia. Therefore, she tried very hard to learn English so she could pass her citizenship test in hopes of being able to sponsor her remaining children to America. In July of 1987, she succeeded in this effort. She was able to reunite with her remaining children.
Sean Touch was in good health, living in the comfort and care of her children in Minnesota until the age of 90. Her physical health struggled from 90 years old onward. However, her mind was sharp until this very last year. Sean Touch left this earth at 6:35pm on April 25th, 2022. She was 95 years old. Sean is loved and missed by her children, Sokha (Sivhong) Seng, Bunsa (Porthy Soung) Seng, Masy (Porchou) Seng, Masiek Seng, Botuma Seng; 11 many grandchildren; 9 great-grandchildren, other loving relatives, and friends.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Seng Mengly, and their son, Buntha Seng.
