Mrs. Lay Inh Phoun, 92, of Rochester was surrounded by her loving family when she passed away at 7:12 AM on Saturday, August 24 , 2019 at her residence.

On February 12 , 1927, Lay was born in Cantone, China. She grew up with four sisters and a brother.  At age 10 Lay moved to Laos with her uncle.

Lay Inh and Tan Huan Phoun were married on February 29 , 1944 in Laos. They shared 72 years of life's adventures. From their union came 11 wonderful children with eight sons and three daughters.  The family tree continued to grow with the added blessings of twenty-seven grandchildren and thirteen great-grandchildren.  .

With a strong work ethic, Lay worked in the early years alongside Tan. During World War II and the Korean War they worked as bartenders serving drinks and food in a tavern to soldiers. Lay fluently spoke multiple languages including Mandrin, Laotian  and Vietnamese.  The Phoun family spent about 4 decades living in Laos owning and operating their hardware.  They moved  to Taiwan in 1974 after the Vietnam War.  About nine years later, the Phoun family moved to the United States settling in Plymouth in 1983.  Tan and Lay along with sons Cho and Leing introduced Rochester to Chinese cuisine opening our original Chinese restaurant, Chi-Am Garden in 1990.  Tan and Lay retired in about 2010.

With a great love and appreciation for the United States traditions and values, in 2000, Lay was very proud to become a naturalized American citizen.  Prior to this she and Tan enjoyed many travels worldwide.  Their extensive travels included trips of business and pleasure to destinations of China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Australia and many countries in Europe.

To relax Grandma Lay enjoyed challenging the grandchildren to the Chinese domino game Mahjong.  An accomplished chef, Lay enjoyed preparing special dishes for New Years,  the holidays and special family celebrations.  She greatly loved her family and  treasured the time they spent together.

Left to cherish Lay's memory are her children, Yong K. Phoun (Ky) of North Webster, Hung K. Phoun (Su Huiy) of Taiwan, Chieu N. Chang (Tsung) of Seattle, WA,  Lo K. Phoun (Weng) of Tampa, FL, Siem N. Yu (Jung) of Rochester, Kent K. Phoun (Huey Ling) of Los Angeles, Calif., Cho K. Phoun (Sue Ling) of Rochester, Lieng K. Phoun (Sophie) of Rochester, Mett N. Arone (Tao) of Rochester, Ting K. Phoun (Lu) of Fort Wayne and Moun K. Phoun of Rochester; 27 grandchildren; 13  great-grandchildren; four sisters and one brother.

Preceding Lay in death are her parents and beloved husband Tan H. Phoun on December 13 , 2016.

A celebration of the life of  Mrs. Lay Inh Phoun will be at 11:00 AM on Saturday, September 7 , 2019 in the Good Family Funeral Home, 1200 West 18 ^th St., Rochester. Pastor Jerry Pitman will officiate. Friends may visit with the family from   4-7 PM on Friday, September 6 , 2019 and one hour prior to the service in the funeral home.