Ly, Brendan, 1973-

Born in Da Nang, Vietnam, in 1973, Brendan Ly was one of seven children. Because his father fought with the Americans, the family was in danger daily. They escaped by boat in 1978-79 to a refugee camp in Hong Kong, then to Raleigh, North Carolina, for one year and finally to San Jose, California, where Brendan grew up. From the time he was eight years old, Brendan contributed to the family income picking fruit and vegetables in the summers and doing back-of-the-house labor in catering and retail. After attending San Jose State University, he transferred to and graduated from Xavier University of Louisiana College of Pharmacy in New Orleans. He arrived in Las Vegas after being recruited by Walgreens and worked for Walgreens for two years before buying his own pharmacy with his brother. He and his brother have been in business at the same location for eighteen years. He and his wife have three children.