Jia Hwang

Dr. Jia Hsing Hwang passed away in Bronxville, NY on Friday, January 17, 2025, after battling complications of a stroke. Born on September 28, 1942 in Lukang, Taiwan, Dr. Hwang earned his medical degree from National Taiwan University. He was a highly respected general surgeon and businessman in the Chicago area and served as the Chief of Surgery at South Shore Hospital.

Dr. Hwang will be remembered as an energetic man with a dynamic personality and was the life of every gathering. He was not afraid to speak his mind, create controversy, or live his life to the fullest, and this often created a source of entertainment and warmth for those who knew him. The stories of misadventure in his life are often retold, so his wild stories will never be forgotten.



Beneath the larger-than-life personality, Dr. Hwang was a man who cared deeply about his friends. As a surgeon on the south side of Chicago, he socialized with fellow doctors but often found himself befriending hospital security and staff. He stayed close to the community of Taiwanese doctors in both the Chicago area and among his medical school classmates. Many remained lifelong friends.

With a deep love of music and lifelong passion for both Chinese and Italian opera, Dr. Hwang would play operas loudly on both radio and TV and strongly encouraged friends and family to stay and listen. As an avid golfer, he found great joy in golfing with a weekly foursome or eightsome of friends for more than 25 years. His golf buddies could be counted on to spend as much time on the 19th hole as on the course, and this was likely the source of his bar tricks and dirty jokes.

Dr. Hwang's dedication for his family transcends his passing. He was a loving husband, father, and grandfather. The eldest of nine children, he helped raise his three younger brothers and five sisters in a very humble, post-World War 2 region on the west coast of Taiwan. It was this sense of responsibility and this hardship that shaped his character and instilled in him a hard-working mentality and unwavering dedication to family near and far. He was the patriarch of the Hwang family. In 1969, he met his wife Pin and soon after marriage moved to New York City and settled in the Chicago suburbs, where they raised three boys, Paul, Albert and Harris. As a man who grew up independent and self-made, his greatest life lessons to his children were to "do what you want to do," and he always trusted his children's judgment and decisions.

A dedicated and loving father, Dr. Hwang is survived by his wife Pin Nien Hwang, his sons Albert (Ellen) and Harris (Ruby), and his grandchildren Alex, Natalie and Hudson. He is also survived by his three brothers Jia Wang, Rui Bin, and Rui Rong, and five sisters Mei Zhi, Mei Li, Mei Man, Mei Lian, and Mei Zhi. He lived his life in a way that made him memorable to everyone he met, and he leaves behind unbelievable stories that will never be forgotten. He will be deeply missed by his family, friends and those who had the privilege of knowing him, and will remain forever in their hearts.

Visitation and services will be held this Friday, January 24, 8:30 a.m. EST at the Central Funeral Home, 162-14 Sanford Avenue, Flushing, NY.

The Hwang family kindly requests that memorial donations in lieu of flowers be made in Dr. Jia Hwang's memory to either the Tzu-Chi Foundation, Northeast Region HQ (https://donate.tzuchi.us/cause/ny/) or the American Heart Association (https://www.heart.org/en/).