John L. Chen's Obituary
John L. Chen (aka, Chen Wen-Liang), passed away on July 15, 2024 at age 89. He was an inspirational father, devoted husband, and an award-winning, highly respected banker for 35 years. John emigrated to the United States in 1962, hopeful for opportunities in America.
He earned his MBA from University of San Francisco in 1969, starting his career as a teller and working his way up to become the first Asian American Senior Vice President at Bank of America. He was Senior Vice President-District Manager for Bank of America, from 1993 until 1996 and a consultant to Bank of America from 1996 until December 1997. A notable project was the New United Motors (NUMMI) joint-venture between General Motors and Toyota in Fremont, California 1984-2010 (now Tesla). John was admired by colleagues, employees, and friends as an Asian American pioneer in the banking industry.
Awards include City and County of San Francisco Award of Merit in recognition of Outstanding Public Service 1994, #1 Manager from Employees 1995, Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce SFBA for outstanding leadership and services 1997.
In 1996 John retired from Bank of America and enjoyed golfing and gardening. Not one to stay idle, he continued his career as a consultant to Cathay Bank from October 1997 until December 1997. He became Executive Vice President, Northern California for Cathay Bank from 1998 to 2002. His work ethic was guided by the principles of “loyalty, fairness, dedication.”
John died peacefully at home after a decade-long battle with Parkinson’s Disease. He was born on November 11, 1934 in Taoyuan, Taiwan, to Chen Deng Feng and Wang Zhao Di and was married to Nancy Chen (aka, Lin Show-Jean) until 2017, when she passed away from cancer. John is survived by his children, John Jr. (Chen Wei-Sing) and Christine (Chen Si-Jia).
John’s memorial service is scheduled for Skylawn Memorial park on July 24, 2024 at 11am PDT. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to Taiwanese American Professionals (TAP).
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