“All of Us Have Learned More”
The earliest Cambodians to join the Church were refugees from the civil war who immigrated to the United States. Beginning with the Jordan River Branch in Utah in 1980 and spreading to Long Beach, California; Tacoma and Spokane, Washington; Jacksonville, Florida; and 17 other United States cities, Cambodian-language branches were established as these communities set down new roots.
Vichit Ith’s family left Cambodia during the Khmer Rouge era, while he was in the Philippines training to become a pilot. He was subsequently educated in France, Singapore, and the United States. In Singapore, he and Tina Khoo, a Church member, met and fell in love. Tina told him she would only marry a member of her Church, so Vichit joined the Church eight days before their wedding. Vichit’s education led him into a career as an international economic advisor. He and Tina moved to Bangkok and faithfully served in the Church there. In April 1993, he accompanied North American Church leaders in a visit with government officials to discuss the possibility of establishing the Church in Cambodia. Subsequent to Vichit’s return to Cambodia, he became an economic advisor to Prince Norodom Ranarridh, who was then the first prime minister.
The Kingdom of Cambodia officially recognized the Church on February 26, 1994. Senior missionary couples arrived in March, and young missionaries arrived in August. The first local member, Phal Mao, accepted baptism on May 9, 1994. On September 19, the Phnom Penh Branch was organized, with Oya Shigeyuki, a Japanese expatriate, as branch president. In June 1995, the branch began meeting in two separate groups: one for Khmer speakers and the other for Vietnamese speakers. Vichit and Tina later became pillars of the English-speaking branch in Phnom Penh.
Near the end of 1995, So Soriya, the mother of five children, was having a hard time with her family. “I had problems with my family members, but when I joined the Church, it made me feel good,” she remembered. She was baptized along with her five children. Over the course of many years serving in the Church, including as Relief Society president in a local branch, So felt her life has improved. “The blessing that I observed is the happiness in my family,” she said.
So has also observed changes in the Church over time. “In 1995, there was only one branch in Cambodia. But right now, we have so many branches,” she said. “And also, the leaders of the Church, like all of us, have learned more.”