Oukham Boutvonnoan

Oukham Cook Boutvonnoan, 61, was a beloved Father, Husband, Son, Uncle, Cousin, Coworker and Friend. He passed away on Saturday, April 4, 2020 in the ICU at Our Lady of the Lake in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Oukham was born on February 4, 1959 in Champasak, Laos. His father was Oudom Boutvongnouane and mother, Khamta Boutvongnouane. Oukham is survived by his spouse Khounmy Boutvonnoan and their three children, Marie, Ken and March Boutvonnoan.

Oukham spent 19 years of his life in Laos and graduated from high school in Pakse, Laos in 1979. He escaped to a refugee camp in Thailand where he was reunited with his parents. He was then able to immigrate to the United States of America in 1980. He settled his roots with his parents in Baton Rouge. He met the incredible Dr. Helen Marie Cookston, who became his mentor and subsequently his adopted American Mother. He graduated from Robert E Lee High School in 1983 where he did his best to learn English. The summer before he started at Louisiana State University, he reunited with a childhood friend, soon to be wife, Khounmy. They got married in July 1984 and had their first-born child, Marie two years later. After an immense amount of hard work and working multiple part-time jobs, Oukham graduated from Louisiana State University with Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering in 1992. Later that year, his second child was born, his one and only son, Ken. After working in the electrical engineering field for a couple of years in New Orleans, Oukham felt that being close to family was most important. He started working at the new river boat casino (Casino Rouge, now Hollywood Casino) in Baton Rouge in December 1994. A few months later, his youngest daughter was born, March. Oukham was the most selfless, kind, hardworking and giving person. He always put his family first no matter what. He always took amazing care of his family and worked so hard to support his parents, wife and three children. He devoted his life to give them the opportunity for a better future.

Two years ago, Oukham became an avid member of Lao People Power and advocated for the peace and democracy for the people in his homeland. He was very passionate about wanting to encourage free speech and education amongst his people. His future plans were comprised of traveling the world with his wife after retirement. Although he will not have the opportunity to do so, he had the opportunity to visit numerous states in the US and neighboring countries with his family. May we remember how amazing Oukham was and how he touched many lives with his genuine nature and kindness.