Danny and Melanie

The Chan Family originated in Canton, China. When the family migrated to Vietnam, they took Vietnamese names so as to blend in with their neighbors. The family came to the United States in 1981. The eldest brother preceded the family and settled in San Francisco, California. The rest of the family live in the San Gabriel Valley, east of Los Angeles, California. The surname reverted to “Chan” and English given names were adopted by most of the family.

The Chan Family is linked to the Semmels by way of the marriage of Melanie (nee Hao Chan) to Daniel Blustein on December 19, l987 in California. The couple met when Melanie and her sisters were attending an English language class taught by Danny.

Melanie’s mother, Huynh Xuong was born in Vietnam in 1921 and died there in November 1980, one month before the family was able to leave for Thailand in December and then, in January 1981 to the United States. Melanie’s father, Dieu Tran, born in Canton in 1919, emigrated to Vietnam in 1928 where he met and married Huynh Xuong. Together they had eleven children, ten of whom survived; one male, born in 1945,died in infancy.

The Chan Family now consists of Dieu Tran, his seven sons and their wives, three daughters, two of whom are married, and thirteen grandchildren.