Ho Lam

Ho Lam, age 86, of Barrington IL, passed away peacefully on November 15, 2021. He was a beloved husband to Thanh Thuong "Theresa" Duong for almost 53 years. Ho was a devoted father to Thong (Emelie) Lam, Thai (Sherry) Lam, and Phuong (Tony) Pastore and adored by his grandchildren: Faith, Jordan, Matthew, Danielle, Alyssa, Kaelie, Nicholas, and Isabella. Ho was a dear brother to Thanh V. Lam and Thang Q. Le and loving uncle and cousin to many.
Ho was born in South Vietnam on May 16, 1935 and spent the majority of his primary and secondary education in Catholic schools run by the Christian Brothers. After successfully completing his high school education at Taberd, Ho enrolled at the Faculty of Letters at the University of Saigon (Bachelor of Arts). While at the University, he took a nationwide examination for one of the six Fulbright Scholarships to study abroad in the United States. Ho was selected for this prestigious grant from a large pool of qualified candidates and left Vietnam in July 1959 to study at Georgetown University. After graduating from Georgetown University in September 1961, because it did not offer a graduate program at that time, Ho enrolled at The George Washington University and obtained his Master's Degree in Business in 1964. Ho returned to South Vietnam in December 1964 and started working as a financial analyst at the Industrial Development Center, which, with the concurrence of the government, became the Industrial Development Bank of Vietnam (IDB) in 1971. In 1969, Ho met and married his beloved wife Thanh Thuong and started his family of five. Ho continued his banking career with the IDB, serving most recently as Deputy Director General of the Bank of Vietnam, until April 1975 when Ho fled Vietnam with his wife and three young children due to the fall of Saigon. With the sponsorship of the United Methodist Church in Barrington, Ho and his family relocated to Barrington, Illinois in May 1975. Shortly after arriving, Ho started working at The First National Bank of Chicago in the international department. Because of his strong Catholic faith, Ho and his family joined the Saint Anne Catholic Community where Ho remained a parishioner for over 40 years. After 27 years at the First National Bank of Chicago, which through multiple mergers became JP Morgan Chase, he retired from his position as Vice President in the Managed Assets Department in July 2002, coinciding with the birth of his first grandchild. Ho spent his retirement years caring for his eight grandchildren, gardening, reading, enjoying music and spending time with his family and friends.
A visitation will be held Wednesday, November 24, 2021 at St. Anne's Church, 120 Ela St, Barrington, IL 60010 from 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. with mass at 11:00 a.m. Interment to follow at Evergreen Cemetery in Barrington. For more information, please call the funeral home 847-359-8020.