Xang Vang Collection
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Lt. Xang Vang was born on November 1, 1950 in the Village of De Xher (Dej Txhaw) in a suburb village of Nong Het District, Xieng Khouang Province, Laos. Since Laos lacked a school system to teach children, Lt. Vang started his education by learning from his uncle Wa Her Vang at military outposts, who served in the Royal Lao Army and later for the CIA’s Special Guerrilla Units (SGU). Lt. Vang continued his elementary school in Long Cheng and then at General Vang Pao’s College Sam Thong in Sam Thong, Laos.

As the Secret War crisis. escalated with heavy fighting at both Sam Thong and Long Cheng, Lt. Vang was recruited to serve in the Special Guerrilla Units as a Sergeant. Lt. Vang was handpicked by General Vang Pao to serve directly with the CIA officers at the Ammunition Department in Long Cheng. He was promoted to the Lieutenant rank until Laos collapsed into communist control on May 14, 1975.

In America, Lt. Vang was elected to be the director and/or chairman of many non-profit agencies, such as the Lao Family Community of Minnesota, Lao Veterans of America, Hmong American Mutual Assistance Association, Lao/Hmong Washington House, and Hmong Youth Association of Minnesota. After these organizations were properly established and operated, Lt. Vang moved forward to the University of Minnesota to create an agricultural training program called Minnesota Agricultural Enterprise for New Americans (MAENA) to teach the refugees to grow American fresh produce to sell at farmer markets throughout the Twin Cities.

In the early 1990, the Hmong youth gangs flooded the communities, as the president of the Hmong Youth Association, Lt. Vang explored ways to help resolve the Hmong youth gang affairs by working closely with General Vang Pao and the local authorities, such as with the police department, mayor’s office, and concerned citizens. Within few years of these agencies effectively working together to tackle this issue, the Hmong youth gang activities were totally eliminated.

In February 1992, Lt. Vang was sent to Washington, D.C., to advocate the legislators about the dangerous of closing the Ban Vinai Refugee Camp in Thailand for the Hmong refugees. He asked the appropriate lawmakers to sponsor new legislations to bring the remaining Hmong refugees to America. Lt. Vang and his colleagues also advocated Congress to pass the H.R. 371 to ease the path for US citizenships for the Hmong and Lao veterans.

In 2006, General Vang Pao and James W. Lair (founder of the SGU) appointed Lt. Vang to be the Executive Director of the SGU Veterans and Families of USA, Inc. Lt. Vang was authorized to take the initiative leadership to find all related pictures, stories and write testimony language to testify before the MN State Senators and House of Representatives to allocate funding to build the Memorial Statue to honor the servicemen and servicewomen who served in the Secret War at the MN State Capitol Ground.

Throughout Lt. Vang’s community services, he is credited for helping new refugees on their resettlement processes and educating them on being productive American citizens. Lt. Vang began his civic engagements with Congressman Bruce Vento, and then he helped Norm Coleman elected as Mayor of St. Paul as well as elected to be the US Senator from Minnesota. He also donated his personal fund to help the community, including a $20,000 gift to the Concordia University—St. Paul in its mission to establish the Center for Hmong Studies.

Today, Lt. Vang is respected by many young Hmong educators and by the SGU veterans and their families. Lt. Vang held many different positions in both volunteers and paid positions, the Hmong/Lao communities recognized him as the chief translator and secretary for General Vang Pao around the Hmong/Lao American communities in the US. With his selfless commitment to community services, Lt. Vang has met all kinds of people—from janitors to council members, statesmen from different countries, from county commissioners to state and federal legislators, and governors to Presidents of United States of America.

Minnesota
2023