Paw Say, age 59, of Huron, died Monday, February 6, 2017, at the Huron Regional Medical Center. His funeral service was held at 11:00 AM, Saturday, February 11th at the First Baptist Church in Huron, followed by burial in the Riverside Cemetery.
Paw Say was born on October 15, 1957, to Hsa Say and Eh Pa in the City of Love, Burma. Paw Say has three sisters and one brother and they all currently live in Thailand. Paw Say was the oldest in the family he grew up helping his mother farm and raise animals.
On May 25, 1980, Paw Say married Paw Su May in Ka Chaw Wah. The couple has seven children; daughter, Tmwee Paw and her husband, Htoo Ku Wah and their children Eddo Wah Too and Say Mui Htoo, son, Hser Nay Pa and his wife, Snow Sandy and their children, Cecilia Pa, Tyler Pa and Samuel Pa, daughter, Wah Wah Taw and her husband, Moo Taw and their children, Sophia Taw, Sabrina Taw and Savannah Taw, daughter, ThaGerh Paw and her husband, Hsar Nit Lay, son, Dah Dah Po, daughter, Kama Paw and son, Thai Paw Say.
The couple lived in Ka Chaw Wah until 1997, but then the Burmese army came and took over the village. The entire village had fled to Thailand. He joined the Karen Military KNU for seven years. In 1998, Paw Say joined the Karen military known as God's Army. In 2000, God's Army was attacked by the Burmese and Thai military and he was accused for being a terrorist. He could no longer live in Thailand or Burma. Paw Say and 45 other Karen families went into hiding in deep forest.
Paw Say would always say that his family would stay together no matter what. In 2001, he decided it was time for his family to start a different life. He went back to Thailand to apply so he could start fresh in a different country. The Paw Say family immigrated to the United States on January 25, 2005 and ended up in St. Paul, Minnesota. With the language barrier it was hard to find a job in St. Paul, so he decided to move to Huron, South Dakota in 2007. After living in Huron for about one month, he decided to recruit the Karen people to Huron.
Paw Say had a strong love for his people and did everything he could to ensure a better future for them. He moved to Huron in August 14, 2007, and started a new life. On June 27, 2013, Paw Say was granted citizenship of the United States of America in Keystone, South Dakota.
Paw Say would help his people in every way possible. He helped them find jobs and make them feel at home. He recruited many people for Dakota Provisions in Huron and for The Molded Fiber Glass Company in Aberdeen.
Paw Say also wanted his people to embrace their culture and be proud of who they are. He organized the first Karen New Year and also helped in building a new church. He knew that his people loved soccer so he also has an annual July 4th soccer tournament. During his lifetime many people would come to him to seek advice and ask for help and within a heartbeat he would do anything to help them to his best abilities.
Some of his hobbies include gardening and spending time with his family. Almost every day during the summer he would go to the garden to make sure his plants are healthy and beautiful.
He loved being the joker in our family and would always put a smile on our faces. Even though he lived a difficult life he would always be strong for the family. His love for God was very deep and he would use that love to give his friends and family motivation. During hardships he would give us words or encouragement and tell us that we can do whatever we set our minds to if we work hard and believe in ourselves.