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Annie Le's Family Bids Farewell

By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff

Posted Sep 27, 2009 7:27 AM CDT

(Newser) – Annie Le's family tried to reconcile the zest with which she embraced life with the senseless brutality of her death yesterday in a private funeral service held in California. "We could ask a thousand whys for the rest of our life," said her pastor, while Vivian Van Le wished her slain daughter "an eternal, blessed sleep" in a poem written in Vietnamese and reached out to her would-be son-in-law: "Jon, even now, Annie is gone, but I still have you."

Annie Le's fiance Jonathan Widawsky is comforted after the funeral service as his sister Lauren Widawsky, left, looks on,  Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.
Annie Le's fiance Jonathan Widawsky is comforted after the funeral service as his sister Lauren Widawsky, left, looks on, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.   (AP Photo/Renee C. Byer, Pool)
Monsignor James Kidder comforts Tuyet Bui, aunt-guardian of Annie Le, as her grandmother Thang Thi Vu looks on during a funeral at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in El Dorado Hills, Calif., Saturday Sept. 26, 2009.
Monsignor James Kidder comforts Tuyet Bui, aunt-guardian of Annie Le, as her grandmother Thang Thi Vu looks on during a funeral at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in El Dorado Hills, Calif., Saturday Sept....   (AP Photo/Renee C. Byer, Pool)
Annie Le's brother Dan Nguyen, left, carries her casket with family members after her funeral, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.
Annie Le's brother Dan Nguyen, left, carries her casket with family members after her funeral, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.   (AP Photo/Renee C. Byer, Pool)
Annie Le's great aunt Vuong Vu, left, her grandmother Thang Thi Vu, center, and her aunt Tuyet Bui, right, attend her funeral service, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.
Annie Le's great aunt Vuong Vu, left, her grandmother Thang Thi Vu, center, and her aunt Tuyet Bui, right, attend her funeral service, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.   (AP Photo/Renee C. Byer, Pool)
Annie Le's fiance Jonathan Widawsky comforts her mother Vivian Le, center, after the funeral service, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.
Annie Le's fiance Jonathan Widawsky comforts her mother Vivian Le, center, after the funeral service, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.   (AP Photo/Renee C. Byer, Pool)
Jonathan Widawsky, fianc? of Annie Marie Le, leaves the funeral mass at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church today in El Dorado Hills, Calif., Saturday, September 26, 2009.
Jonathan Widawsky, fianc? of Annie Marie Le, leaves the funeral mass at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church today in El Dorado Hills, Calif., Saturday, September 26, 2009.   (AP Photo/Russel A. Daniels)
Monsignor James Kidder of Holy Trinity Catholic Church hold a program at the funeral of Yale University doctoral student Annie Marie Le, 24, in El Dorado Hills, Calif., Saturday, September 26, 2009.
Monsignor James Kidder of Holy Trinity Catholic Church hold a program at the funeral of Yale University doctoral student Annie Marie Le, 24, in El Dorado Hills, Calif., Saturday, September 26, 2009.   (AP Photo / Russel A. Daniels)
Mother of Annie Marie Le, Vivian Le, leaves the funeral mass at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in El Dorado Hills, Calif., Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009.
Mother of Annie Marie Le, Vivian Le, leaves the funeral mass at the Holy Trinity Catholic Church in El Dorado Hills, Calif., Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009.   (AP Photo/Russel A. Daniels)
Pall bearers remove the casket of Yale University doctoral student Annie Marie Le, 24, at the funeral mass in Holy Trinity Catholic Church Saturday, September 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.
Pall bearers remove the casket of Yale University doctoral student Annie Marie Le, 24, at the funeral mass in Holy Trinity Catholic Church Saturday, September 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.   (AP Photo / Russel A. Daniels)
Annie Le's mother, Vivian Van Le, right, is comforted after her daughter's funeral, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.
Annie Le's mother, Vivian Van Le, right, is comforted after her daughter's funeral, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2009 in El Dorado Hills, Calif.   (AP Photo/Renee C. Byer, Pool)
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Our beloved Annie continues to live deep in our hearts as we remember her graceful smile and the fullness of life with which she lived. - Uncle and surrogate father Robert Nguyen

You are lying in the cold coffin, leaving behind the wailing of loved ones. I sing you lullabies, like I did when you were a baby, wishing you a peaceful sleep. They are now sung through my sobs to wish you an eternal, blessed sleep. - Vivian Van Le, Annie's Le's mother

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COMMENTS
Showing 1 of 1 comment
cnguyen
Sep 27, 2009 5:41 AM CDT
So sad. RIP

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