‘It breaks me.’ Family of Fresno mass shooting victim shares ‘unbearable’ grief
Kou Xiong enjoyed hosting loved ones at his Fresno home, where the sushi chef was known for helping others with the cooking.
Two days after one of these joyful gatherings, his family sat in Xiong’s backyard and mourned his death.
“This is the house I grew up in,” cousin Chris Xiong said through tears at the house located just south of Fresno Yosemite International Airport. “To see it turn into a crime scene – it’s unbearable.”
Kou was one of four people killed in a mass shooting that also wounded six others at his house Sunday night.
Unknown gunmen entered the backyard through an unlocked gate then opened fire on people watching a football game.
“All of us miss our brother,” Chris continued. “He was a big part of our lives and he took care of every one of us. The only thing we can do now is mourn for him and mourn for the others.”
Kou, 38, worked as a sushi chef at Japanese Kitchen restaurant. He and his wife, Mai Shoua Yang, have a 3-year-old daughter.
Kou moved to Fresno from Thailand with his family when he was 12 years old. He attended McLane High School and Fresno City College.
His father, Cha Lee Xiong, cried as he called him “the son that loved me the most.”
“I’m very hurt, very distressed,” the father said through interpreter Paula Yang. “I don’t know what to do.”
A GoFundMe donation page was set up by a family member to help with funeral expenses.
Candlelight vigils are being held at 6 p.m. each night in front of Kou’s home.
A traditional Hmong service for Kou will be held all day Dec. 6, 7, 8 and 9 at Shant Bhavan Punjabi Funeral Home near Highway 99 and Clovis Avenue in Fowler.
Inside, a small altar against one wall holds incense and small bowls of rice, a Hmong tradition to honor the dead and ask ancestors for help, Chris explained.
“I try not to linger on it,” Chris said of the mass shooting. “It breaks me.”
Kou’s family, including two brothers and another cousin who didn’t want to be named for safety reasons, described him as a loving, hard-working person who put his “heart and soul” into everything he did. They said it will be “hard to exist” without him.
“I don’t know why he had to go like this,” one of Kou’s brothers said through an interpreter. “He’s a good person. He helps every one of our family.”
The family thanked everyone who shared condolences and worked to help them. They also called for peace.
“It’s not the first shooting to happen in my community, that’s what I know,” Chris said. “And as Hmong New Year comes up, I just hope this violence doesn’t continue. And I just hope and wish that no one else has to experience this.”
Of everyone killed in the mass shooting, Kou’s brother said: “We will miss them dearly.”
This story was originally published November 19, 2019 at 9:16 PM with the headline "‘It breaks me.’ Family of Fresno mass shooting victim shares ‘unbearable’ grief."
