Dr. Teng-Chin Yang died on September 22, 2020. He was born in 1937 in Taiwan. Growing up in a farming family in the southern Taiwanese town of Meinung, TC learned to love planting, growing, and working in the dirt. He kept these passions his whole life.
TC excelled in school and graduated from National Taiwan University with a botany degree in 1960. He served his two years of mandatory military service on Quemoy, which in the 1960s was a disputed, battle-ready island between China and Taiwan.
Following military service, he was accepted into the graduate program in the Department of Plant Biology at Michigan State University, where he earned his PhD. He enjoyed a 20 year career at the Michigan Department of Public Health where he helped direct the Quality Control unit that ensured the safety of vaccines for anthrax, pertussis, and rabies. In his retirement book, many colleagues wrote of his kindness and friendship.
A man of simple pleasures, in retirement he liked nothing more than puttering around the house, often breaking more things than he actually fixed, and wandering his yard, planting, cutting, and re-planting numerous plants, flowers, and even weeds. He always had a plan, and even if nobody else agreed or even understood it, he knew that it would be an improvement.
He is survived by his wife of 57 years Li-Hwa, and sons Howard (Christine) of San Francisco, CA and Billy (Margie) of Okemos, MI. He worked hard to build a good life for his family, often sacrificing his own needs for theirs. He was blessed with two grandchildren, Amanda and Travis, who always brought joy and smiles to him. He will be deeply, deeply missed by his family.
He was a man of deep determination. Despite having Parkinson’s disease for over two decades, he never stopped hoping and did not let it get the best of him. Li-Hwa tirelessly cared for TC with love and dedication. She was always by his side.
A very special thanks goes to Crosaires, the assisted-living facility that was his home for the last two years. No words can express how thankful and blessed we are that he received so much gentle, loving, and patient care. Once there, he did not waver from his firm belief that he could improve the grounds, and stories of him trying to landscape all 10 acres single-handedly will hopefully bring smiles to everyone who knew him. We will be forever grateful to Crosaires for giving so much life to baba.
A visitation is scheduled on Wednesday, September 30 from 1-3 pm at Gorsline Runciman Funeral Home (East Lansing, MI), with masks and social distancing required. Condolences may be sent to the family at www.dignitymemorial.com. We ask that any memorial contributions be sent to the Crosaires Foundation, www.crosaires.com
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