Obituary of Li-Ken Chen

September 9, 1929 - Chinyoung, China

July 30, 2022 - Calgary, Alberta

Li-Ken Chen, beloved husband of Jaw-Yuan Chen (nee Wei) of Calgary, AB, passed away on Saturday, July 30, 2022 at the age of 92 years.

Chen Li-Ken was born in Chinyoung, Hunan, China on September 9, 1929.  He left home at the age of twelve to attend school.  In 1949, due to political instability, he fled to Taipei, Taiwan. There, he obtained a Medicine and Dentistry degree from the National Military University 1955. He then worked as a dental surgeon for the Taiwanese military for many years before meeting and marrying Wei Jaw-Yuan in 1963.  In 1965, Li-Ken and Jaw-Yuan were welcomed with their first daughter, Julie Lan. 

Li-Ken moved to Derna, Libya to set up a dental practice before his family joined him one year later.  For the next two years, the family waited for their immigration papers to be accepted by either the United States or Canada.  Finally, on March 16, 1969, the family moved to Edmonton, AB. It was there he graduated from the Faculty of Dentistry at the University of Alberta in 1973. One year earlier, his second daughter, Josephine Cha, was born

Li-Ken worked as a dentist in the Strathearn community of Edmonton until 1996.  In 2002, he moved to Calgary to be closer to his two daughters.  In Calgary, he witnessed the marriage of his daughter Josephine to Karl and the birth of his four grandchildren: Kiara, Liam, Madeleine, and Connor. 

During his retirement, Li-Ken pursued his passion for Chinese brush painting, an artform in which his father was famous for in China.  He also enjoyed singing in the Calgary Chinese Community Choir, playing the Erhu (a traditional Chinese stringed instrument) and participating in Tai Chi.  Li-Ken delighted in babysitting his four grandchildren whenever he had the chance.    
 

On July 26, 2022, Li-Ken was transferred to Southwood Hospice where he spent the remaining days of his life with his wife and family by his side. Chen Li-Ken passed away on Saturday, July 30, 2022.

Funeral services will be held on Monday, August 22, 2022 at McInnis & Holloway Park Memorial, 5008 Elbow Drive SW, Calgary, AB. Viewing at 12:00 p.m. followed by a Service at 1:00 p.m. The Internment will follow at Eden Brook Memorial Gardens, 24223 Township Road 242, Calgary, AB.  Reception to follow at 58 Signature Heights SW, Calgary, AB. Condolences, memories, and photos can also be shared and viewed here.

In living memory of Li-Ken Chen, a tree will be planted in the Ann & Sandy Cross Conservation Area by McInnis & Holloway Funeral Homes, Park Memorial, 5008 Elbow Drive SW, Calgary, AB T2S 2L5, Telephone: 403-243-8200.