Southern Jewelry News

From refugee to award winning gem cutter - Ben Kho and Kho International

08:36

May

2008

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Article Autor: Angela Kho Shutt

Many successful gemstone cutters have personal stories that involve a dream, a strong work ethic, and a talent for working with gemstones.

By Angela Kho Shutt

(ATLANTA, Ga.) - Many successful gemstone cutters have personal stories that involve a dream, a strong work ethic, and a talent for working with gemstones. Most do not, however, begin with a young man leaving his home to work in gemstone mines. Nor do they involve life-threatening labor camps or an escape through the jungles of Cambodia with a wife and infant daughter. Most stories do not begin with tragedy and end with hope and inspiration.

Ben Kho’s story does.

Born to Chinese parents living in Cambodia, Ben Kho is the third oldest of eight children. He began working with his father at the age of seven, selling fresh groceries in the local marketplace to help support his family. At age fifteen, he left home traveling alone over 150 miles to earn extra money working at the gemstone mines in the city of Pailin.

Ben started by mining rubies and sapphires and soon began training in the techniques of faceting. He learned to transform a rock into a jewel and to recognize the beauty waiting to be revealed by each piece of rough. Ben began to buy rough stones to cut and sell to local merchants. In his gifted hands, keen eye, and business sense lay natural talents that, years later, would open the door to his future.

But that future would have to wait. In 1975, a despotic Communist regime took over Ben’s native Cambodia, driving much of the population into rural labor camps. Ben and his family were forced out of their homes to the countryside, leaving everything they owned behind.

They were terrorized at gunpoint, enduring endless hours of brutal labor while nearly starving to death. Many of Ben’s closest friends, neighbors, and family were tortured, executed and dumped in mass graves. Hundreds of thousands would ultimately perish in what came to be called the Killing Fields. Ben prayed that his chance at freedom might come soon.

In 1979, during a moment of opportunity, Ben fled with his wife, family, and baby daughter in a perilous escape to the Thailand border. Through mountains and jungles filled with land mines, deadly wildlife, and guerrillas, they endured three days and nights running for their lives, with no clean water and very little food.
When they finally reached the border, they were met with persecution and abuse by armed Thai soldiers. They were forced at gunpoint into covered dump trucks with other refugees, and dropped off in unknown locations along the border. The Kho family suffered many difficult months of scavenging for food, water, and shelter in the nearby jungles until they were, once again, forced aboard another dump truck, certain they were being taken to their death. But this time was different.

Instead of abuse and persecution they were taken to a refugee camp where one month later, a church in Atlanta, Georgia, sponsored their passage to the United States.

Immense gratitude flooded Ben and his family as they arrived in the United States, but starting a new life was not easy. Ben and his family had no money, spoke no English, and knew only each other. After two weeks of language school, Ben began working odd jobs, walking nearly everywhere he went to save money for food.

Ben’s gemstone experience became the cornerstone for his new future. On the sponsorship application filled out at the Thai refugee camp, he noted his gemstone cutting skills. Once in the States, experienced gemstone cutter Mark Songer taught Ben to use the latest American lapidary equipment, while a member of their church congregation passed along information on a gemstone cutting job. For the next eight years, Ben worked diligently under Tim Roark, cutting gemstones, learning the local gem industry, and increasing his knowledge and experience with gemstone materials from around the world. The rare skills learned as a teenager in Cambodia had become the foundation for building Ben’s new life in the States.

Despite financial difficulties and cultural obstacles, Ben dreamed of having his own business. He balanced several hard labor jobs in addition to gemstone cutting to make ends meet. Working twelve to sixteen hours a day, seven days a week, Ben put away what little he could in hopes of starting a business that would help him provide a better life for his family. Meanwhile he continued to learn English on his own.

Ben quickly gained a reputation for honesty and integrity in the business community. In 1987, he started his own company, Kho International, Ltd., in the basement of his house. Though he had only a small amount of merchandise, his quality products, excellent pricing, and great customer service drew in new and repeat customers.

Today, Kho International, Ltd. features fine gemstones and jewelry, exquisite mountings, and rare collectors and award-winning pieces. The company also specializes in custom designs, and carries elegant pearl and gemstone bead jewelry. Ben and his wife, Molly, have been serving the trade for over twenty years now, developing loyal customers from all over the world.
Ben Kho has received much recognition and praise throughout the industry. Over the past ten years, the American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) has bestowed upon Ben eleven prestigious Cutting Edge awards for his lapidary skill, artistry, and exceptional cutting, including two first place awards in 2008. Top industry journals and trade magazines such as JCK Magazine, Modern Jeweler, Colored Stone, Lapidary Journal, and Professional Jeweler have also featured Ben’s innovative work.

Ben is humbled and honored to have achieved the respect and success he has today. “My family and I would not have what we have today without God’s protection, the sponsorship of the Covenant Presbyterian Church, and everyone that helped us along the way,” states Ben.

“I feel very lucky that I could come to America to work hard and to be able to have my own business. It is a dream come true,” Ben says. “I truly believe that with freedom and opportunity, anyone can be successful if they never give up on their dreams and are willing to work hard for it. I thank God for blessing me and my family.”

Today Ben still remembers when he had nothing but hope in the death camps all those years ago. Ben looks at his family and his business and cannot help but feel that every day is a gift.
Kho International, Ltd. is a wholesaler offering top quality gemstones, beautiful jewelry, and outstanding pricing. To contact the company, please call 770-491-7150, send an e-mail to info@benkhogems.com, or visit their website at www.benkhogems.com.