Rui Zhang's Obituary
Rui Zhang passed away on July 4, 2024, at the age of 66. An ever supportive and loving father, husband, brother, and son, he will be sorely missed by all who were lucky enough to know him.
Rui was born in 1957 to Zhang Hua and Zhang Shiying in Beijing, China, the youngest of three siblings. Growing up in Shanghai, he developed a love of history, geography, and technology. In 1989, he immigrated to the United States to study and obtain his Masters in Electrical Engineering.
During his studies, he met his wife. Together, they raised their daughter and son in the California Bay Area. Rui was an incredibly hard worker with a keen eye for detail. He spent his weekdays working as an electrical engineer and weekends teaching hundreds of students AP Chinese.
Most of all, he devoted his time to supporting his family in every possible way. He cooked delicious dinners nearly every night for decades, and during those nightly family dinners, engaged in lively discussions about politics, stories of his youth, and the events that shaped his experiences. He accompanied his children to and from school, early morning and late-night swim practices, Chinese school, art classes, and so many other activities. He meticulously checked daily math homework from kindergarten onwards, teaching the importance of accuracy and diligence. He drove his family on multi-week cross-country road trips with carefully planned tours of Costco gas stations nationwide. He was meticulous about record keeping and had a system for logging all projects, timelines, plans in carefully organized spreadsheets and floorplans. He flew to China multiple times a year to visit his family and care for his mother and always provided such thoughtful advice on career and industry.
Rui is survived by his wife of 30 years, children Isabel and Derek, mother, brother, sister, niece, and nephew, who love and miss him dearly.
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