Ruby Laiwan Chang

1941 - 2020
Ruby Laiwan Chang died Thursday, May 7, 2020, in New York City, after a month-long battle with Covid-19. She was 79 years old.

She was born in Shanghai, China in 1941, one of nine children to Wei Chai Cheng and Tsai Yoh Wah. Her family moved to Hong Kong in 1948 where she later studied to become a teacher. In 1966 she moved to the United States to pursue further education at Texas Woman's University, later moving to New York City to attend Hunter College.

It was in New York that Ruby met her husband Wilson, while on a tour bus traveling to Boston. They married in 1969 and went on to have two sons. Ruby and Wilson opened several Chinese restaurants together in New York, including The Dumpling House, with locations in Chinatown, the East Village, and Soho. At the same time, Ruby also pursued a career in banking in New York's Chinese communities, specializing in SBA loans and commercial lending. She was a fixture in the Chinese business community in New York, having worked in many of the banks in Chinatown and Flushing over the course of a forty year career. In later years she continued to remain active helping with her brother's garment business, as a poll worker, and volunteering with seniors.

Ruby is survived by her husband, two sons, grandson, and an extended family in the United States and Asia.