• U.S. Marine Corps Combat Veteran
• Founder and CEO, Lathian Systems, Inc.
• Author, A Sense of Duty (Random House, 2005)
  (Paperback and Vietnamese language editions coming in April 2010)
• Non-profit Boards of Directors, THINK Together and Marines’ Memorial Association

Republican Quang “Q” Pham, age 45, is a decorated Marine Corps veteran, independent businessowner, community leader,  and author of the memoir, “A Sense of Duty.” A resident of Orange County since 1990, Quang and his wife, Shannon, have a four-year-old daughter named Willow. He is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Lathian Systems, a pharmaceutical marketing company that specializes in delivering promotional messages to physicians via the Internet. He created the vision, raised $14 million of venture capital, and led Lathian’s early rapid growth. Previously Quang worked in sales for Genentech and Astra Merck (leading biotech/pharmaceutical companies), and served as vice president with QTC Medical Services, the largest private provider of disability examinations to the Department of Veterans Affairs. He serves on the boards of THINK Together, a non-profit after-school provider in Santa Ana, and the Marines’ Memorial Association in San Francisco.

Quang was born in Saigon, the former capital of South Vietnam. His mother taught middle school while his late father, one of the first Vietnamese Air Force pilots trained in the U.S. in the late 1950s, served the entire war. Just before the fall of Saigon, Quang’s father arranged for his wife, three daughters and son to be evacuated by American forces. His father survived the next twelve years in Communist labor/prison camps, euphemistically called re-education camps. The Pham family was reunited in 1992.

After arriving in America at the age of ten, Quang completed his education via the California public school system and earned a B.A. in Economics from UCLA. While in college, he became an American citizen and volunteered for the Marines via the Officer Candidate School Program. He flew CH-46 helicopter assault support missions during Operation Desert Storm, supported United Nations efforts in Somalia, and participated in joint training with allied military worldwide. He also flew missions in support of the Drug Enforcement Agency’s counter-narcotics operations.

Quang and his book have been featured on The NBC Nightly News, MSNBC, CNN Business Hour, PBS, NPR, and in Forbes, The New York Times, ethnic media and numerous other outlets. He is an avid marathon runner, golfer, and UCLA sports fan.

Awards and Recognition

• Asian Heritage Award for Literature
• American Heritage Award, American Immigration Law Foundation
• Catholic Charities
• “Award for Professionalism,” Marine Corps Reserve Association
• Role Model Award, Asian Business Association of Orange County
• 30 Vietnamese Americans to Watch, The Orange County Register
• Recipient of the Air Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and other unit and war campaign decorations

Other Involvement

• Orange County Sheriff’s Community Advisory Council
• Board of Advisers, Chapman University George Argyros School of Business & Economics, 2002-2005
• Board of Directors, Orange County Forum, 2002-2005
• Co-Master of Ceremonies, 2005 Vietnamese American National Gala (VANG)
• Dedication Committee, Vietnam War Memorial of Westminster, 2003
• Board of Directors, Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation, 2002-2007
• Co-Master of Ceremonies, 1997 Tet New Year Festival