Ronald Walter Chen

Ronald Walter Chen May 12, 1928 - September 28, 2008 Passed away peacefully in San Pablo, California with his family at his side. Ronald Chen was born at home in Glen Ridge, NJ, the youngest of seven children born to Ming Tai Chen and Katherine Moy Chen. He grew up there and in New York City. He graduated from Stuyvesant High School in New York and then studied at Sampson College and the University of California at Berkeley, where he received a BA in Chemistry, an MA in Physiology, and a PhD in Comparative Biochemistry. In 1958 he began his 30 year career with the Veterans Administration in biochemical research and clinical chemistry, first at the VA Hospital in Durham, NC, and then at the VA Medical Center in Cleveland, Ohio. He also held faculty appointments in the medical schools at Duke University and Case Western Reserve University. While at UC Berkeley Ronald met and then married Emily Yee Shune Wong. Their marriage produced three sons. Ronald retired from the VA in 1988 and he and Emily moved back to the San Francisco Bay area to be closer to family. Ronald is survived by his loving wife Emily; sisters Meme and Eugenia (Beah); his sons and their spouses: Ming and Karen of Seattle, Sherman and Kyu of SF, and Alan and Anne of Denver. In addition he will be missed by his seven adoring grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews. He will be remembered by all as a kind and gentle soul with a sometimes impish, sometimes dry sense of humor. He found joy in his family and friends, in flying sailplanes, listening to music, reading mystery and sci-fi novels, playing with electronic gadgets (especially camcorders) and eating great food. At Ronald's request, no services will be held. His ashes will be interred at Rolling Hills Cemetery. A family memorial gathering will be announced in the near future. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made to the American Lung Association, http://www.lungusa.org.