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Wenlong Zang Obituary

Published by Legacy Remembers on Aug. 16, 2014.

ZANG Wenlong
(1956-2014)

At 7:53pm of 13th August 2014 in Melbourne, we lost Wenlong Zang, devoted husband of Xiaowen Sun, loving father of William, dear brother of Wenqiong Zang, Zhu Jun and Wengui Zang, and beloved son in-law of Huan Sun. The world lost an excellent geologist and researcher, true gentleman, and good friend. His premature death is caused by AML leukaemia and fatal fungal infection after induction chemotherapy. In the last nine months, he had an extremely brave fight, enduring so much suffering and pain with unimaginable courage. We are devastated and heartbroken. He will be missed dearly, and live in our hearts forever. If you
appreciate Wenlong Zang's honesty, professionalism,
high academic achievements and friendship, please donate to the Leukaemia Foundation. We sincerely thank you all for supporting us through this very difficult time. Rest in peace.

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Recent Activity

November 28, 2024

Xiaowen Sun posted to the memorial.

April 4, 2024

Xiaowen Sun posted to the memorial.

April 4, 2024

Xiaowen Sun posted to the memorial.

289 Entries

Xiaowen Sun

November 28, 2024

Xiaowen Sun

April 4, 2024

Xiaowen Sun

April 4, 2024

Xiaowen Sun

April 4, 2024

Today is the Qingming Festival. My dad passed away recently. Following the traditional Chinese way to remember the deceased relatives, I cooked a few dishes for both of you, bought two dishes from the restaurant, and cooked two more hot chilly dishes for you only: one is rainbow trout (your hometown style), the other is Gongbao chicken. Hope that you both could enjoy the dishes.

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Xiaowen Sun

April 5, 2023

Your smile, humour, and love will live on forever.

August 13, 2022

Wish you be happy in the other world! God bless.

April 5, 2022

Xiaowen Sun

April 5, 2022

We all miss you!

God bless.

William Zang

August 13, 2021

Dad,

I miss you very much.
Love you forever.

William

Xiaowen Sun

August 13, 2021

Dear Wenlong,

Miss you very much, especially at the anniversary.

Hope that your brilliant academic contributions and legacy of good character and humour live forever.

Three of us!

April 3, 2021

Hope that you are very well and happy in the other world.

Miss you, and always remember you!

Roger Summons

October 19, 2019

I knew Wenlong from his time in Canberra many, many years ago and we shared interests in Neoproterozoic geology and paleontology. We met a couple of times when I visited the survey in Adelaide but then lost contact after I moved to the USA. My recollections of Wenlong were of someone always smiling and always bringing good spirits into a room. Today, I was looking to re-establish contact and found these pages. So sad to learn of his premature passing. I send deepest condolences to Xiaowen Sun.

Xiaowen Sun

August 14, 2019

Exactly five years passed by, hope that you are living happy life in heaven! God bless you. William is doing well at work, wish him all the best.

You are living every day with us!

April 5, 2019

Wenlong's university classmate had reunion after forty years,one page about Wenlong.

Xiaowen Sun

August 14, 2018

After four years

Xiaowen Sun

August 13, 2018

Time flies, four years passed.

I shall remember you forever

Yan Song

May 2, 2018

April 7, 2018

Although these few days are the Qingming Festival period, when Chinese people traditionally visit the tombs to sweep tombstones to remember the lives of the departed (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qingming_Festival), we remember Wenlong all the time.

Our son is still struggling to live a normal life out of deep grief.

Wenlong's influence to us is tremendous in the way of his honesty, kind, generosity, intelligence, diligence, and humour (I actually often think if I should compile his humorous quotations one day for our family).
We miss you so much.

Thank you for spoiling us.

With Peking University classmates during Guilin field trip

Xaowen Sun

September 27, 2017

Jianjun Li

April 6, 2017

Today 4th April, 2017) is the Chinese traditional Qingming Festival. We commemorate our dear classmate-Wenlong Zang. My wife and I went to Nanjing on August 3rd, 1983. Zang and his wife offered their dormitory for us to stay and lent their bicycles for us to travel in Nanjing. I will never forget those days when we stayed in Nanjing. Here I express my grief. Wenlong Zang rests in peace.

Long Ming Wei

April 4, 2017

Xiaowen Sun

April 4, 2017

Dear Wenlong,

We miss you so much.

We are very grateful to you for all you did in your glorious but too short life time.

I found a saying by someone the other day very true for you "the highest realm of a professional is that people are still talking about his work (contribution) after he well and truly left!".

Hope that your soul is happily travelling around the universe.

Yours,

Xiaowen

From Dr XiangYang Chen and HongLi on 17th October 2014

Xiangyang Chen

December 23, 2016

From Danqing Zhang

Danqing Zhang

September 8, 2016

Danqing

September 7, 2016

...

Ren Zhang

September 5, 2016

Looking at cores with Director Zhao

Xiaowen Sun

September 3, 2016

University class taken in 1978

Xiaowen Sun

September 3, 2016

August 7, 2016

Hi Ren,

Thanks for the visit.

Wenlong should be grateful.

Best wishes.

Xiaowen

Ren Zhang

August 6, 2016

ANU

Xiaowen Sun

April 5, 2016

Dearest Wenlong,
We miss you so much. Regret that I didn't thank you much at all. Hope that you can hear now. Wish that you are happy in the other World. Although we have so many difficulties, we shall overcome them!Remember what you said "be tough and strong".All the best.
Thank you!

Field trip to Orbost

December 7, 2015

Wenlong at field, November 2011

October 13, 2015

Wenlong in the field (Orbost, Victoria) on 5 April 2013

Xiaowen Sun

October 12, 2015

Xiaowen Sun

October 12, 2015

Dear Relatives, Friends, Colleagues and Classmates,

I made this website permanent last month.

I wish that you can write here your memories and thoughts about Wenlong at your convenient time.

I will keep posting his photos for loving memories of him.

Many thanks.

Xiaowen

Zhen-Jia Wu

September 2, 2015

I have gone through this website and photo gallery today and I have been deep moved once again. Wenlong was a good scientist, a loving family man and a kind friend to all of us. He will live in our hearts forever.

Qing Xia

August 18, 2015

Dear Xiaowen,

I wish to share the one piece poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow with you, my dear friend, for this special day.

"Silently, one by one,
in the infinite meadows of heaven,

Blossomed the lovely stars,
the forget-me-nots of the angels."

Regards,

Qing

Ming Zhao

August 18, 2015

It has been a year. Time flies so fast! Xiaowen you have coped with the tragedy so bravely and hope you will cope with the life well in the coming years.

All the best!

Yanglong Zhu

August 17, 2015

It is the best tribute to Wenlong for you to continue your quality life. Never forget that Wenlong is watching you. His courageous fight for life should be your courage (and ours) to carry on normal life. Wenlong would like to see your happy and continued success.

Chao Yu

August 16, 2015

Xiaowen,

You have done exactly what you had promised to Wenlong: Srong, Tough. This is the best tribute to the memory of Wenlong. We are proud to have a classmate like you.

Chao Yu

Shannon Wang

August 15, 2015

To us Wenlong has never left. He always stays there, somewhere in our hearts, for ever.

xiaowen Sun

August 13, 2015

Wenlong left us exactly a year ago today.
We have been missing him every day so much since.

The pain missing him and bad feeling of thinking what he had gone through the nasty treatment hurt us so much.

My father and I went back to China for almost 50 days.

I had three classmate reunions (two in Fuzhou with junior and senior high school classmates, one in Nanjing with university classmates). Later I visited university mates in Hangzhou too.

I also visited my colleagues in several different cities, including Hangzhou, Nanjing and Beijing. I gave several talks regarding petroleum geology in Hangzhou Research Institute of PetroChina, Nanjing University, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Academy of Science and Key Laboratory of Oil and Gas Reservoir, CNPC in Beijing.

It was so exciting to see classmates, some of which I didn't see since we graduated 42 years ago in junior high school, and some were not seen since 40 years when we graduated from senior high school.

The colleagues and friends in Nanjing, especially those in Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Academy of Science gave me great mental and moral support, including Director/Prof Qun Yang Wenlong's former supervisor, Prof Ouyang Shu, Prof Shanchi Peng and Prof Jinliang Yuan. I met some new colleagues over there too.

Also I was fortunately to have met and caught up four Wenlong's classmates in Nanjing and Beijing, especially Dr Jianjun Li who gave us a big banquet and lots of support, especially his sincere support moved me to tears. Prof Zhiqiang Bai came to see me at the hotel and gave me very high-quality tea.

My classmates in North American gave me strong support too, which I appreciate very much.

I received so many tributes to Wenlong through the year, people praised a lot for his honesty, sincerity, helpfulness, kindness, and great academic contributions to the early life on the Earth.

Every time when I shed my tears in grieves, I remember Wenlong told me at the very last week that I had to be strong and tough, and then I stopped. Friends' and classmates' support and encouragement gave me strength to live on. The tour in China helped me a lot too.

The cancer took Wenlong away from us brutally, but his kindness and spirit will influence us forever. I still remember that at Wenlong's last breadth, our son, William, said to Wenlong
it has been an honour to be your son. Wenlong, we are honoured to have you, and will remember you forever. Wish that you have no pain and be happy in a nice place.

Tribute to Wenlong by Malgorzata et al at recent conference

August 2, 2015

Malgorzata Moczydlowska-Vidal

August 2, 2015

Dear Xiaowen,

I would like to let you know that we in the palaeobiological-geological community remember very well the late Wenlong and during the recent 2nd International Congress on Stratigraphy, STRATI-2015, 19-23 July 2015, Graz, Austria, in our talk we paid the tribute to Wenlong' memory and scientific achievements. I sent you by the dropbox the ppt presentation of my talk in which you may see our tribute. There very many colleagues and friends of Wenlong in the audience from China and many countries worldwide, and I believe they appreciated the memories.

I hope that you and William are taking care of each other and we keep the memories of Wenlong.

All my best regards,

Malgorzata

In backyard of Adelaide home in 2005

April 18, 2015

PIRSA 2004

April 18, 2015

With Sue and other colleagues in PIRSA 2004

April 18, 2015

Postgraduates at NIGP in 1982

April 16, 2015

Wenlong at the Shark Bay on algal mat in 1986

April 16, 2015

April 11, 2015

Chao Yu

February 15, 2015

Dear Xiaowen, William and family,

In a few days, it will be the Chinese Spring Festival. Your family gatherings will miss the presence of Wenlong - a husband, father, son, and son-in-law. No words can express the sorrow, sadness that your family is feeling now, no words can lessen your and your family's grief at a time like this.
However, you can take comfort from Wenlong's accomplishments. He attended Beijing University-the best University in China, then studied abroad and achieved greatness in his academic career, as well as being beloved, appreciated husband, father, and colleague.
We hope that time will heal your sorrow, and you will cherish the memories of Wenlong. Wenlong will always smile to you, your family, and us.

Chao Yu

Bala Kunjan

January 26, 2015

Dear Xiaowen,

What a wonderful recollection of a wonderful and capable scientist who came from a humble origin. I used to follow China as much as I could in my youth. Those pictures going back to 70's remind me of pictures I saw of Chou En Lai, Lin Piao, Chairman Mao etc. The PLA, my goodness!!

I want to tell you that I shared the Eulogy with my wife, younger daughter and my sister in law just now.

Thanks for this wonderful recollection of a wonderful man and a wonderful family.

Take Care.

Warm Regards,

Bala

Colin Conor

January 21, 2015

Colin Conor
Jan 20 at 10:10 AM

Dear Xiaowen,

Your words about Wenlong were so informative, I wish that I had known all that history when he was in SA. Such a hard, but interesting life.

Truly he was a remarkable person in achieving all that he did.

Apart from his Yorke Peninsula Map, Wenlong will be remembered for the naming of the Cathedral Rock Formation in the Curnamona Province. This thin quartzite unit marks a remarkable unconformity that is visible throughout much of the Olary area.

My best wishes to you and your son,

Colin

from MESA Journal Jan 2015 (Part 2)

January 14, 2015

from MESA Journal Jan 2015 (Part 1)

January 14, 2015

Tribute from Dr Ron Zhu, Geoscience Australia, Canberra.

January 12, 2015

Yanglong Zhu

January 12, 2015

Sent: Thursday, 1 January 2015, 4:37
Subject: Re: Wenlong's eulogy

Xiaowen,

Happy New Year! I am still in the year 2014. There are ~12 hours in the 2014 for me.

I am moved by Wenlong's eulogy and the package. In fact, I did not know very much about him until you told me about his disease. He had a very successful, good life.

Keeping Wenlong in memory, looking forward, you still have a bright life ahead of you. Best luck in the New Year.

Yanglong

Alan and Kathy Purvis

January 11, 2015

Dear Xiaowen and William

We are still saddened thinking about Wenlong. He was a good, kind, warm-hearted man with a sense of humour and a very good geologist. We were friends and we knew his kind and gentle character and we will remember him as a loving husband and father, as a friend and as a geologist.

Malgorzata Moczydlowska-Vidal

January 8, 2015

Dear Xiaowen and William,

My deepest sympathy to you and my best memories of Wenlong whom I knew as a kind colleague and great co-worker. I remember Wenlong as a very honest and modest person that is a natural gift. I valued His work tremendously and I believe we had the last paper by Wenlong published together. We have planned to continue our collaboration but unfortunately...

Condolence message from Dr Luo Ping (PetroChina) on 6-Jan-2015

January 7, 2015

Sarah Rooke

January 7, 2015

Dear Xiaowen, William and family,

Rob, Leslie, Ingrid, Tim, Bob and Sarah from your Lakes Oil family, wish to send you love and strength in 2015.
Wen Long was a great geologist, husband and father and we witnessed this first hand many times when he visited us here at the offices and joined us out on different occasions too.
He was a happy and jovial character and the love in his eyes for you was always evident.
He will be missed forever, and we hope when you look up at the moon at night you will always remember the good times you shared together.

Wen Long will be always in our hearts..

The team at Lakes Oil

Photographying during York Peninsula Mapping

January 5, 2015

Tribute from Dr Ma Liqiao, PetroChina, Hangzhou, China.

January 4, 2015

Dr CM Zhou's condolence message on 19th August 2014

Chuan-Ming Zhou

January 2, 2015

Prof Jinliang Yuan's condonlence message on15 August 2014

Jinliang Yuan

January 2, 2015

Zhiqin's condonlence message on15 August 2014

Zhiqin Wang

January 2, 2015

Shanchi & Shu Peng

January 2, 2015

On 14 August 2014:

Dear Xiaowen,

We are greatly shocked by the bad news you sent.

Please accept our heartfelt condolences on his passed away of Wenlong. We are now in Kunming, Yunnan, and will go to field soon. We will be back Nanjing on August 23.

Shanchi & Shu

Mapping in York Penisula

John Mignone

January 2, 2015

On 15/08/2014, at 1:23 PM, "Mignone, John (DSD)" wrote:

Hello Xiaowen,

I am very sad to hear the news of Wen long's passing away. I remember his laughter and great sense of humour. I feel for your's and William's loss. A very intelligent and capable man without whom to make your way through your future.

I offer my condolences in your time of grief.

John Mignone
DSD, Adelaide.

Anne Power

January 2, 2015

On 18 August 2014

Hi Xiaowen,

Evalina passed on the sad news of
Wenlong's passing.

I am very sorry for your loss & hope you feel supported by friends and family.

I will be in Melbourne on Friday
& then head to the Peninsula mid-afternoon. If you are feeling up to it & have spare time, it would be nice to
say hello to you. Whether it's visiting you or meeting for a coffee.

Anne

From Wenlong eldest sister's granddaughter on New Year Day 2015

January 1, 2015

Zhe-Xi Luo

January 1, 2015

It is hard to fathom that Zang Wenlong has already left, but my memory of him as a decent man will always stay fresh as I still remember the time when we first got to know one another in Nanjing in 1982! Best to Xiaowen and her family! Zhe-Xi Luo

Peng Bo's condolence message on 15 August 2014.

January 1, 2015

Kath Grey

January 1, 2015

Dear Xiaowen

I found a photo of one of the acritarchs which Wenlong discovered, and which I named after him in tribute to his work in my 2005 monograph. I have added it to the photo gallery as evidence that his contribution to science will not be forgotten.

Unfortunately, I don't seem to have any photos of Wenlong in my collection.

I hope you and William will now be able to look forward to a brighter 2015. I can tell your heart is still aching, but I hope you will find some ease for your sorrow.

I passed on your message to Malgosia Moczydlowska and Sebastian Willman in Uppsala - they are probably among the contacts you have lost, and I know Wenlong visited there and they were both very saddened to hear of his passing.

Best wishes

Kath Grey

Kathleen Grey

December 31, 2014

Wenlong's memory is still fresh in my mind whenever I need to refer to any of the species he discovered

Kath Grey

Schizofusa zangwenlongensis discovered by Wenlong and named after him

Kathleen Grey

December 31, 2014

Li Jun (NIGPAS), on 15 August 2014, Nanjing, China.

December 31, 2014

Liz Truswell

December 30, 2014

Dear Xiaowen

I have been greatly saddened to hear of the passing of Wenlong, whom I remember as a most cheerful and couteous man. He made a great contribution to palaeontology and stratigraphy in Australia with his work on the spiny acritarchs.