His family kneeling before his casket with bowed heads, surrounded by swirling wisps of incense and backed by the solemn chants of a Buddhist monk, slain taxi driver Manh Nguyen was remembered yesterday for his jovial nature, love of family and dedication to his profession.

"The guy made me laugh a lot and he always had something nice to say about people," said Douglas Withers, a 49-year-old taxi dispatcher at Honolulu International Airport, who knew Nguyen for the past eight years. "It's strange. It's always the good people that go first."

Nguyen was shot to death along with Jason and Colleen Takamori on July 6 at a Tantalus lookout in one of O'ahu's most violent crimes in recent years. Their accused killer is being held at the O'ahu Community Correctional Center without bail, indicted on first- and second-degree murder charges.

Yesterday, more than 400 friends, co-workers and family members attended an emotional Buddhist memorial service for Nguyen at Borthwick Mortuary. Gov. Linda Lingle was among those who attended the service and sat in the front row to the right of the kneeling family. Before leaving, she embraced the family and offered condolences.

The service was delivered almost entirely in Vietnamese. Buddhist monk Tri Hai lit incense and chanted for more than an hour before a wall-mounted, bronze statue of Buddha, his back to Nguyen's open casket.

As Hai chanted, Nguyen's wife, Cynthia Lai; his 17-year-old son, Victor; and his 13-year-old daughter, Christina, knelt before Nguyen's picture at the foot of the casket with heads bowed and hands clasped together.

Each wore long-sleeved white shirts and a white cloth tied around the forehead. Cynthia Lai and Christina sobbed throughout the prayers, their backs heaving with each sharp intake of breath.

"My dad was a good man, a good husband, and a good father to all of us," said Victor Nguyen, speaking during the service.

The purpose of the chants, Hai said later through a translator, was to show Nguyen's soul which way to go in the afterlife and to let him know that if he wants to come back, he has a choice.

'A REALLY DECENT MAN'

Inside the chapel, smoke spiraled off the tips of incense sticks near Nguyen's casket while row after row of black-clad mourners bowed and nodded reverently. Outside the ceremonial hall, scores of taxi drivers, many Vietnamese and all dressed in the white, short-sleeved shirts favored by cabbies, clustered in small groups occasionally looking in on the proceedings.

Keith Pham, a 47-year-old taxi driver, knew Nguyen for more than 15 years and played tennis with him and his family every Saturday.

The day before his death, the two spoke in the turnaround in front of the Moana Surfrider Hotel. Pham remembered Nguyen as a "very competitive" tennis player who had a great serve.

"This is very shocking. We talked quite often; that's what I miss most (the conversations). He's a really decent man," said Pham, leaning on a railing outside the ceremony. "He was a family man, he took good care of his family. He didn't go out much after work. He was always at home with his wife and kids. He will be missed for a long time."

Can Nguyen, 45, knew Manh Nguyen for more than 25 years and as a bachelor lived with Manh in a house with five others in the Philippines for six months. When Can Nguyen immigrated to the United States, Manh Nguyen, who is not related, caught the bus with him to the airport to say goodbye.

"It is hard, something like this shouldn't happen to good people. Why good people die and leave their family behind?" said Can Nguyen, who works at the Hilton Hawaiian Village. "In the Philippines, we lived in the same house with five guys. We had a good time."

Howard Higa, president and owner of The Cab, lauded Nguyen as one of the "greatest drivers" who had worked for the company, saying he was recognized as one of the most professional cabbies in the industry. Nguyen's jovial nature made him a workplace favorite, and the women who worked in the office always looked forward to seeing him, he said.

"He was known as 'The Manh' — of course that was his name. He was a very serious driver and a happy driver," Higa said during yesterday's service. "This is obviously a sad day for the company, its employees and the drivers, and we send our deepest, heartfelt sympathy to Manh Nguyen's wife, his son and his daughter."

Ngoc Nguyen, president of the Vietnamese Community of Hawai'i, addressed the crowd and the Nguyen family, saying Manh Nguyen was known and respected by his countrymen in Honolulu.

"The Vietnamese community in Hawai'i was very, very shocked when we heard Mr. Nguyen died at work," he said. "We wish Manh Nguyen will soon be with the Buddha. We are sorry for the loss of our good countryman, a good husband and a good father."

FINAL RESPECTS

After the ceremony, well-wishers lined up to offer burning sticks of incense with their final respects.

One by one they embraced Nguyen's wife and two children, who sat to the left of the open casket. Nguyen's family comforted some who broke down in tears as they filed past the casket. Others held the family up as emotion overtook them.

After the service, the family's attorney, Richard T. Pafundi, spoke on behalf of Nguyen's wife and children and thanked all who offered condolences and well wishes. Pafundi said there will be "many more" developments in the civil and criminal case surrounding Nguyen's death but said yesterday was neither the time nor the place to discuss such matters.

"When you are a good man, that's what happens," he said, acknowledging the large crowd. "People come out to express their love. The family is very grateful."

Reach Peter Boylan at pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com.