Khamphou Dominico Ngondara

Khamphou Dominico Ngondara, 75, passed away Tuesday, August 16, 2016 in York, PA. He was the husband of Ngoc-Tuyet Anna (Nguyen) Ngondara to whom he was married since November 15, 1969. Born on May 13, 1941 in Vientiane, Laos, Mr. Ngondara was an Army veteran. He led troops during the Vietnam War and Laotian Civil War. He survived and overcame being a Prisoner of War on several occasions. In addition to his military accomplishments, Mr. Ngondara also held degrees in Finance, Accounting, and Linguistics. He was well versed in many languages including Laotian, Vietnamese, Thai, Cambodian, Chinese, English, French, and German. He later applied his many areas of expertise at USAID (The United States Agency for International Development) – which was created by President John F. Kennedy in 1961. Ultimately, Mr. Ngondara brought his young family to the Unites States of America in 1978 and settled in York, PA. He was a member of St. Joseph Catholic Church and the Vietnamese Catholic Association of York. He enjoyed globetrotting, ballroom dancing, tennis, cards games, gourmet foods, cognac, and smoking his pipe. In addition to his wife, Mr. Ngondara is survived by two sons - Professor Kham Kone Francisco Xavier Ngondara of York, PA, and Dr. Antony Phaolo Ngondara of Mission Viejo, CA. He is also survived by daughter Pheth Maria Airel and her husband, Dr. Peter Stephen Airel of Las Vegas, NV. Unfortunately, he would not live to witness the marriage of his son, Antony, and Dorany Iem of Mission Viejo, CA. But, he was quite fond of his future daughter-in-law. Mr. Ngondara is also survived by his older brother and his sister-in-law, Dr. La Ngondara and Dr. Snguouane Vilay of Dijon, France. He enjoyed travels to Europe to visit with them, their children (including Viralphone Dixmier, Dr. Jean Philippe Ngondara, Patrick Ngondara, Dr. Michael Ngondara and Dr. Pierre Ngondara and their grandchildren. He also had in-laws, nieces, nephews, grandnieces, & grandnephews – too numerous to name – all over Pennsylvania, Florida, Oregon, California, Texas, Iowa, Canada, France, Switzerland, Germany, Laos, and Vietnam. A viewing will be held from 9:00-10:00 AM Tuesday, August 23, 2016 at Heffner Funeral Chapel & Crematory, Inc., 1551 Kenneth Road, York. The Funeral Liturgy will take place at 11:00 AM Tuesday, August 23, 2016 at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 2935 Kingston Road,York, with Father Joseph Hoa Van Nguyen officiating. The Rite of Committal (Burial) will follow the Funeral Liturgy at Susquehanna Memorial Gardens, 250 Chestnut Hill Road,York. Full Military Honors will be presented by York County Veterans Honor Guard.