Ted Ngoy
Encyclopedia
Ted Ngoy is a Cambodian American
enterpreneur and former owner of a chain of doughnut
shops in California
. He was nicknamed the "Doughnut King."
in a village near the Thailand
border. In 1967, Ngoy was sent to study in the capital, Phnom Penh
, where he fell in love with Suganthini Khoeun, the daughter of a high-ranking government official. Khoeun's parents denied Ngoy's suitability as a mate for their daughter due to his lower social class, but relented when their distraught daughter attempted suicide. The couple was wed and had three children.
Ngoy worked at various jobs, including as a travel agent and tour guide, before joining the military in 1970.
Through the maneuvering of his brother-in-law, Sak Sutsakhan
, Ngoy was promoted to the rank of major and appointed military attache at Cambodia's embassy in Thailand.
In the mid-1970s, Ngoy fled the Khmer Rouge
with his wife and three children to Camp Pendleton.
. While working a second job at a gas station, Ngoy took notice of a busy local doughnut shop and inquired of its operators about learning the business. He subsequently received training through an affirmative action
program to increase minority
hiring within the Winchell's chain of doughnut shops, and managed a store in Newport
where he employed his family.
By 1977 he was able to purchase his first doughnut shop, Christy's Doughnuts, in La Habra
.
Ngoy bought additional doughnut shops in Orange County
and began to lease these to Cambodian refugees, seeing an opportunity to expand his business and help the large number of poor, unassimilated Cambodians who had fled the Khmer Rouge to the United States. By 1987, Ngoy owned 32 Christy's Doughnuts locations in California.
Ngoy's fortunes improved dramatically, such that by the mid-1980s Ngoy had amassed millions of dollars through his expanding doughnut shop empire, reported as 50 locations throughout California. In 1985, Ngoy and his wife became American citizens and were enjoying a lavish lifestyle including a million dollar home at Lake Mission Viejo
, a vacation home, expensive cars, and vacations to Europe
. Ngoy also involved himself in American politics, joining the Republican Party
and hosting fundraisers for George H.W. Bush.
Despite the wealth he had built and his importance within his community, Ngoy felt dissatisfied, remarking: "No political life, no religious life, just work, work."
By 2005, Ngoy was penniless and living on the porch of a fellow Parkcrest Christian Church parishioner's mobile home.
Cambodian American
A Cambodian American is an American who is born, raised, or from Cambodia usually of Khmer descent but also including Chinese Cambodians, Vietnamese Cambodians, Cham people and other ethnicities of Cambodia...
enterpreneur and former owner of a chain of doughnut
Doughnut
A doughnut or donut is a fried dough food and is popular in many countries and prepared in various forms as a sweet snack that can be homemade or purchased in bakeries, supermarkets, food stalls, and franchised specialty outlets...
shops in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. He was nicknamed the "Doughnut King."
Biography
Ted Ngoy was born in CambodiaCambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
in a village near the Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
border. In 1967, Ngoy was sent to study in the capital, Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh is the capital and largest city of Cambodia. Located on the banks of the Mekong River, Phnom Penh has been the national capital since the French colonized Cambodia, and has grown to become the nation's center of economic and industrial activities, as well as the center of security,...
, where he fell in love with Suganthini Khoeun, the daughter of a high-ranking government official. Khoeun's parents denied Ngoy's suitability as a mate for their daughter due to his lower social class, but relented when their distraught daughter attempted suicide. The couple was wed and had three children.
Ngoy worked at various jobs, including as a travel agent and tour guide, before joining the military in 1970.
Through the maneuvering of his brother-in-law, Sak Sutsakhan
Sak Sutsakhan
General Sak Sutsakhan was a Cambodian politician and soldier who had a long career in the country's politics. He was the last Head of State of the Khmer Republic, the regime overthrown by the Khmer Rouge in 1975. Sak Sutsakhan formed a pro-US force known as the "Khmer Sâ" .-Early life:Sutsakhan...
, Ngoy was promoted to the rank of major and appointed military attache at Cambodia's embassy in Thailand.
In the mid-1970s, Ngoy fled the Khmer Rouge
Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge literally translated as Red Cambodians was the name given to the followers of the Communist Party of Kampuchea, who were the ruling party in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979, led by Pol Pot, Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary, Son Sen and Khieu Samphan...
with his wife and three children to Camp Pendleton.
Career
Ngoy secured work as a janitor with Peace Lutheran Church in Tustin, CaliforniaTustin, California
-Top employers:According to the City's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:-2010:The 2010 United States Census reported that Tustin had a population of 75,540. The population density was 6,816.7 people per square mile...
. While working a second job at a gas station, Ngoy took notice of a busy local doughnut shop and inquired of its operators about learning the business. He subsequently received training through an affirmative action
Affirmative action
Affirmative action refers to policies that take factors including "race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation or national origin" into consideration in order to benefit an underrepresented group, usually as a means to counter the effects of a history of discrimination.-Origins:The term...
program to increase minority
Minority group
A minority is a sociological group within a demographic. The demographic could be based on many factors from ethnicity, gender, wealth, power, etc. The term extends to numerous situations, and civilizations within history, despite the misnomer of minorities associated with a numerical statistic...
hiring within the Winchell's chain of doughnut shops, and managed a store in Newport
Newport, California
Newport is an unincorporated community in Mendocino County, California. It is located on the Pacific Ocean south of Westport, at an elevation of 135 feet .Newport shipped lumber in prior times....
where he employed his family.
By 1977 he was able to purchase his first doughnut shop, Christy's Doughnuts, in La Habra
La Habra, California
La Habra is a city in the northwestern corner of Orange County, California. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 60,239. Its related city, La Habra Heights is located to the north of La Habra, and is in Los Angeles County.-Origin of name:...
.
Ngoy bought additional doughnut shops in Orange County
Orange County, California
Orange County is a county in the U.S. state of California. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2010 census, its population was 3,010,232, up from 2,846,293 at the 2000 census, making it the third most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and San Diego County...
and began to lease these to Cambodian refugees, seeing an opportunity to expand his business and help the large number of poor, unassimilated Cambodians who had fled the Khmer Rouge to the United States. By 1987, Ngoy owned 32 Christy's Doughnuts locations in California.
Ngoy's fortunes improved dramatically, such that by the mid-1980s Ngoy had amassed millions of dollars through his expanding doughnut shop empire, reported as 50 locations throughout California. In 1985, Ngoy and his wife became American citizens and were enjoying a lavish lifestyle including a million dollar home at Lake Mission Viejo
Lake Mission Viejo
Lake Mission Viejo is a reservoir entirely within Mission Viejo, in Orange County in the U.S. state of California. About south of Santiago Peak, a peak in the Santa Ana Mountains, the reservoir is formed by an earthfill dam across the canyon of Oso Creek, which is part of the Trabuco Creek and San...
, a vacation home, expensive cars, and vacations to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Ngoy also involved himself in American politics, joining the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
and hosting fundraisers for George H.W. Bush.
Despite the wealth he had built and his importance within his community, Ngoy felt dissatisfied, remarking: "No political life, no religious life, just work, work."
By 2005, Ngoy was penniless and living on the porch of a fellow Parkcrest Christian Church parishioner's mobile home.