2008 Elected Officers

President

Cookie Daravanh Morey
president@lasga.org

An active member of LAS since 2003, Cookie has served as a Board Advisor for LAS in 2005, Marketing Director for 2006 and she is currently the LAS Vice President for 2007.  Cookie ‘s goal for 2008 is to be more involved with elders in Lao community.  She would like to develop a program to help the community with their naturalization test and also understand their civil rights.  Cookie has been a contract interpreter for the Department of Homeland Security for over 10 years.  Through her experience she has been exposed to many Laotians who do not understand their civil rights, which is why Cookie wants to be more involved in helping the Laotian community to better understand their rights as lawful residents of the United States.  Cookie hopes that through LAS and other resources she can reach out to the community especially the elders and new immigrants with limited English proficiency.

Vice President

Neo Praseut
vp@lasga.org

Since 2003 Neo Praseut has been an active volunteer and also served on the LAS board.  He held various positions from Director of Education, Scholarship Committee, and Treasurer. Aside from nonprofit volunteer work Neo participated in the Host Family Program at the University of Mississippi and the University of Southern Mississippi where he hosted international exchange students from Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, and Brazil.  He was also the Treasurer for the both the Arizona State’s Asian Students Association and the ASU Fencing club.

Neo attended Arizona State University and the University of Mississippi and he received his B.A. in finance with an emphasis on Southeast Asian studies.  Neo enjoys volunteering and is inspired by other Laotians.  Currently Neo is working with a nonprofit organization called One Laptop Per Child, which markets low cost and efficient laptops to developing countries.

Secretary

Ting Kim Pathammavong
secretary@lasga.org

Kim recently served the 2nd half of the year as Secretary for the LAS 2007 board.  She has also enjoyed teaching the LAS dance team traditional Laotian Folk dances.  This year alone the LAS dance team has performed in more than 10 events for over 12,000 people.

Kim graduated from the University of Milwaukee in Wisconsin with a Bachelor’s Degree in Health Allied.  She relocated to Georgia in 2002 with her husband Keck Pathammavong and two beautiful daughters Arianna age 9 and Mollie who is 6 years old.  Teaching and coaching the dance team has brought Kim a lot of joy and she hopes to continue her efforts with LAS for many more years to come.

Treasurer

Noy Lounnarath
treasurer@lasga.org

Noy Lounnarath has worked for United Parcel Service (UPS) for 14 years and held various positions and is currently a Project Manager.  She played a big role in the Women Leadership Development program at UPS in 2008, which helps female employees to develop and retain their skills set.  Noy is proud to be Lao and works towards encouraging the younger generation to reach high for their goals.  She has been a volunteer for the Meals on Wheels program for two years in Clayton County, Georgia, providing assistance for the elderly living alone in their homes. She continues to be involved with the community through the United Way and LAS.  Noy is married to John and enjoys being a mom to Greg, Emily, and Lance, and also enjoys cooking and experimenting with new Lao dishes.

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Supporters, Advisors, LAS Family

Dao Malaythong has been with LAS since 2003. She is a firm believer in the mission statement of LAS, and first started out as a sponsor, supporting member and eventually became a board member. As Marketing Director last year, she helped raise funds by getting support from local  businesses and sponsors. She also assisted in grant writing, and with her help, the LAS dance school was awarded a grant from Chopstix for Charity.  This year she serves as Cultural Director. This marks the second year that Dao has co-chaired the fundraising ball. Professionally, she is an Associate Broker with Solid Source Realty, and is also a very active member in the Asian community. She will continue to help LAS with its mission and hopes to be a role model for the next generation.

Fawn Boutviseth Nguyen
Kinna Sayanam
Kassie Vongsitthy
Amphone Sengchanh
Singh Lo
John Morey
Sarah Phongsavath
Ann Rithmyxay
Kaithong Rithmyxay
Sean Sakprasit
Voranath Chanthavong

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LAS Presidents

2007-2009 Cookie Morey
2006-2007 Amy Yang
2005-2006 Sean Sakprasit
2004-2005 Ann Rithmyxay
2003-2004 Malay Surivong Wu
2002-2003 Kasy Khaikham

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Mission Statement:The Laotian American Society (LAS) is a non-profit organization ( 501c(3) ) committed to being a resource to all people of ethnic origins native to Laos or have ties to Lao culture and heritage in order to improve their quality of life, education, health, and welfare by organizing and sponsoring educational, cultural, social, and other related activities as well as promoting communication and education about issues related to the Laotian community.