Hermitage doughnut shop owner identified as Percy Priest drowning victim

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - The owner of a popular Hermitage doughnut shop died over the weekend. Yeu Thach was on a boat with his family on Percy Priest Lake when he drowned on Saturday.

While the sign at the Donut Palace says they are closed for a family emergency, customers still come to pay their respects to Somaly Ke, the wife of Thach.

“Kids and family, that’s what I’m telling you that’s all that man really loved,” said Joanna Mean, Thach’s niece.

Thach leaves behind three kids who he loved. He also enjoyed being out on the lake.

“I’m telling you, the man loved the water,” Mean said. “He loved to fish. Every chance there was he was going fishing.”

That’s where he was Saturday afternoon when the entire family went out on Percy Priest.

“We felt like it was fast, everything happened so fast,” Mean said. “And before we knew it, he was under.”

The family took a picture of Thach on the boat that day and say it’s the last photo they have of him before he drowned. They say he was a good swimmer and a member of the Marine Corp.

“He was swimming before this all happened,” Mean said. “So, I was thinking maybe a current from a jet ski nearby did come by and he just never resurfaced.”

Now, the shelves at the Donut Palace are empty and Ye’s secret donut recipe may not be made again.

“Everything was on him,” said Ke. “Now, I don’t know anything about anything. This was on him; he was the one who took care of everything.”

However, with customers loyal to the shop, they plan to continue his legacy one day.

“We’re going to keep it open,” Mean said. “It’s going to stay open because this is what he loves. There’s no way that this is going anywhere.”

Ke says her husband loved the water so much, they plan to scatter his ashes on Percy Priest. They are still waiting on an autopsy to find out his exact cause of death.

The family has set up a GoFundMe to help with expenses.

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