Seung Lovan

In Loving Memory of Seung Lovan 

It is with heavy hearts, but with spirits deeply grateful for the life he gave us, that we announce the passing of the pillar of our family, Seung Lovan, on September 17, 2026, at the age of 63.

He has journeyed to the ancestral heaven of Muang Thaen, where he is reunited with his mother, So Cathi; his father, Eune Lovan; and his beloved grandson, Ezekiel Maxfield.

Seung was born in Vientiane, Laos, on April 9, 1963. In 1980, as a young man, Seung took a brave leap of faith and traveled to America with his brother, Pane Lovan. They settled in Leon, Iowa, where they built a new life and remained forever grateful for the open arms of their sponsor family, Lee and Nancy Elson.

To say Seung was a family man would be an understatement. He was the best husband, father, and grandfather in the whole world.

The love Seung and his wife of 42 years, Kim, shared was truly one in a million. Just like their parents before them, they were lucky enough to find their soulmates young and hold on to each other until the very end. They were, truly, the loves of each other’s lives.

Seung loved the simple things, especially taking long car rides with Kim to Saylorville Lake, simply to be in each other’s company. He loved having a beer and good food with his brother Pane, and he may or may not have enjoyed a game or two of beer pong—and other mischievous adventures—with his lifelong friend, Long.

As a father, Seung created countless memories that his children will carry with them forever. Some of their favorite childhood memories were the long summer days and nights spent camping at Saylorville Lake. Those summers were filled with family, laughter, food, and the simple joy of being together. Years later, those memories would become some of the moments his children treasured most.

Another favorite childhood tradition was going to Prairie Meadows to watch the horse races. Those trips gave Seung and his children another way to spend time together, making memories that have stayed with them long after the races were over.

But more than the big memories, Seung was simply always there for his kids. Shawn remembers how his dad would show up with food—often fried chicken—just because he knew his son could use a good meal. If Shawn’s car broke down, Seung was there to pick him up. It didn’t matter where Shawn was, what he was doing, or even if he was off doing something completely silly. His dad would still show up. Seung taught Shawn how to drive and took him out to the DOT five different times after hours just to practice parallel parking until Shawn got it right. And when the time came, Seung bought Shawn his very first car. These may seem like simple things, but to Shawn, they were some of the clearest examples of how his dad loved him—by showing up, teaching him, helping him, and making sure he was taken care of. When his kids needed him, he was there—no questions asked, no matter what.

For his daughter Amy, Seung was her hero. When she was little, he could do no wrong. She wanted to be just like her dad—tough as nails, fiercely independent, and always willing to go against the grain. She loved wearing his bandanas, proudly borrowing a little piece of her dad wherever she went. One of her favorite memories was pretending to be asleep on the ride home from Des Moines to Maxwell, just so Dad would carry her inside. He knew exactly what she was doing. He would call it “playing raccoon,” but he carried her inside anyway. As Amy became a mom herself at a young age, she and her dad grew even closer, finding a new kind of bond through spending time together and doing things with her own children. She got to watch her hero become the kind of Papa to her kids that he had always been to her—a man who showed up, loved hard, and made every moment count.

As a grandfather, Seung was the absolute epitome of what a Papa should and could be. He lived to spoil his grandchildren. He took them fishing, played with them at the park, took them to doctor’s appointments, and showed up for anything and everything. Being present for them was one of the greatest joys of his life.

He had his own special traditions with each of them: bringing his granddaughter a fresh glazed donut for breakfast, teaching his grandsons exactly how to make Mama noodles, and making sure everyone knew that if it wasn’t Golden Mountain soy sauce, it wasn’t soy sauce.

And then there was his youngest grandson, Anthony Jr., lovingly known as Bub. Bub would always cry when Papa had to leave because he simply didn’t want his Papa to go. Seung thought it was the cutest thing in the world. He secretly loved knowing just how much his little Bub wanted him to stay.

Seung was the undisputed man of the grill, fiercely proud of his Asian heritage, and a true lover of food—especially a fresh batch of sticky rice and beef lop raw. And, of course, there was pho, which was his son Shawn’s favorite.

He worked hard every single day of his life, but he always made sure there was room for fun, mischief, and laughter.

If you knew Seung, you knew his unique brand of love.

He made it his daily mission to spike his wife Kim’s anxiety by horseplaying with the grandkids. He drove his daughter Amy absolutely crazy by frying smelly fish indoors. And he may or may not have once tried to light his son Shawn on fire while shooting fireworks directly above his head.

And then there was his son-in-law, Anthony, Amy’s husband, who remains convinced to this day that Seung was secretly a ninja. Given Seung’s ability to break into spontaneous flying kicks and flips, we can’t say he was entirely wrong.

That was Seung.

He loved fiercely. He played hard. He teased relentlessly. And he left his family with stories that will make them smile through their tears for generations to come.

His incredible legacy lives on through his beloved wife, Kim; his daughter, Amy (Anthony); his son, Shawn; and his five cherished grandchildren, Zachariah, Ethyn, Nathaniel, Araina, and Anthony Jr. He also leaves behind his brothers, Pane and Deng, his sister, Tie Lothi, and many nieces and nephews who loved him dearly.

He was our rock, our joy, our protector, our teacher, and our favorite troublemaker.

We love you.

Beloved Husband. Dad. Papa. Brother. Uncle.

Hold that grandbaby of yours tight. And someday, we will meet you both again