Social services agency SUCCESS has set up a trust fund for the family of a Burnaby sushi restaurant owner murdered last month.
Huong "Andy" Tran owned Royal Oak Sushi House where he and employee Chinh (Vivian) Diem Huynh were shot to death on May 27.
The prime suspect in the homicides and the attempted murder of his former landlord is former security guard Angus Mitchell, who had both the restaurant and Huynh on a lengthy hit list before he was killed in a shootout with police in Maple Ridge on May 30.
Tran, who was the sole breadwinner of the family, left behind his wife, Yuzhe Zhong, and two sons, aged two and five.
Thomas Tam, CEO of SUCCESS, said in an interview that Zhong has not told her children what happened to their father.
"She only told her kids their father has gone to work far away and will come back when they get older," he said. "It's very sad."
Tran's family contacted SUCCESS shortly after his death seeking assistance.
Tam said he spoke with Zhong for a half hour and assigned a female settlement services worker to visit with her to assess her needs. The agency has offered counselling and assistance in connecting her with social housing.
In the meantime, "we've received a lot of calls from the public, they want to donate money to support the family," Tam said. After speaking with the family, the decision was made to establish the trust fund account, with the money earmarked for the children's living and education expenses.
"It's a very tragic situation for the family," he said. "It was all over in a few hours, the husband went to work and all of a sudden they never met again."
Donations can be made at any TD Bank branch and other financial institutions to the "SUCCESS Foundation in Trust – Yuzhe Zhong," account number 004-9720-5240599 and transit number 9720.
Donations will also be accepted at SUCCESS offices in in Burnaby (202-5172 Kingsway), Vancouver, Richmond, Coquitlam and Surrey until June 22.
As for the other victim, Chinh "Vivian" Diem Huynh, who was a single mother to a four-year-old daughter, Tam said the agency has made an appeal through the Chinese media for her family to contact SUCCESS if they are in need of assistance.
The agency has no way of contacting Huynh's family and even if it did, its policy is "we don't want to intrude on people's private lives," he said. It would need the family to approach the agency first.
Zhong expressed gratitude to the media and the community for its support, Tam added. "She wants there not to be any other family to suffer again what she's been suffering."
wchow@burnabynewsleader.com