Special Issue
It is with great sorrow that Jim and I (Angie) announce the recent passing of founder of Invest With Yen, my dad, Chen-yu Yen. I've been working with my dad on IWY's website and newsletters since 2011. It's jarring to think that our previous July issue contained his last words on the IWY platform. Chen originally started publishing in 1996 on ye olde fax machine to friends and family, later graduating to email distribution.
My dad's passion and persistence around investment and personal wealth management on a modest salary eventually made him a self-made millionaire with a true dedication to paying it forward. My brother and I were just starting to learn the ropes in recent years, but didn't expect to lose his wisdom and guidance so soon. We would like to continue Invest With Yen to honor our father's legacy, but may take a break from the regular quarterly publishing schedule while we process this difficult time and plan our next steps.
Chen-yu Yen Obituary
It is with great sadness that the family of Chen-yu Yen, beloved husband of Ray-Whay Chiu Yen and devoted father of May Jim Yen and Angie Sue Yen and her wife Lauren Taylor announces his passing on Tuesday, August 21, 2018, at the age of 66 years.
Chen-yu was born in Taipei, Taiwan on December 1, 1951. On that date, there was an earthquake hit Taiwan so his father named him Chen-yu, meaning "shaking the house" (or the homonym for "universe") in Chinese. He transferred between five different schools for kindergarten through 6th grade, as both his parents were teachers who had to relocate for different jobs. This encouraged Chen-yu to make friends quickly and easily from a young age. Then he attended a co-ed experimental middle school with classmates who were still in touch as good friends until his passing. He went to the number one boys' high school in Taipei.
Chen-yu attained a BS in chemistry from National Taiwan University. He came to the United States in 1975, earning in an MA in chemistry and a PhD in environmental sciences and engineering from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He finished his post-doctoral work at Johns Hopkins University under the leadership of the late Charles O'Melia in the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering in 1985.
Dr. Yen has had an illustrious career. He recently retired from Gannet Flemming, where he was a director and senior vice president of Gannett Fleming Sustainable Ventures Corporation. He was the chairman of the board and the chief executive officer of TerraSure Development, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gannett Fleming specializing in environmental risk transfer solutions. Dr. Yen also worked pro bono as a board member and treasurer for the Chinese Culture and Community Service Center (CCACC), the largest Chinese American non-profit organization in the DC metro area.
Click here for more information on the memorial service on Saturday, September 29th, 2018 at Ruck Funeral Home in Towson, MD.
Click here for Chen-yu's obituary in the Baltimore Sun.
In Chen's Own Words
Chen gave a radio interview hosted on RFA.org on October 7, 2016 (in Chinese).
Slides from Chen's presentation "The Making of a Socially Conscientious Engineer" given in August 2015.
Suggested Charities
In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to one of the following organizations in Chen-yu Yen's memory:
- CCACC: English or Chinese
- UNC School of Public Health - search all funds and choose "Chen-Yu and Ray-Whay C. Yen Expendable Fellowship (444732)" option
- Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering
- Living Classrooms Foundation
Disclaimers and Your Promise
IWY newsletters are provided to our friends as investment suggestions without charge. We usually own many stocks recommended (You need to decide whether that constitutes a conflict of interest or a vote of confidence). We usually have done due diligence studies on the stocks before recommending them. However, there is no guarantee that their prices will go up either on their own or by our recommendation. If you profited from our investment advice, you have promised to use part of the profit for charities or worthy causes of your own choice.
