Judy Chang

(February 23, 1953 – March 18, 2022)

Judy Chang, beloved sister, aunt, grandaunt, and friend, passed away suddenly on March 18, 2022. She is dearly loved and deeply missed by her sisters, Irene (Tony) and Angie (Henk Jan), her brother, Howard

(Michele), her nieces, Malina (Brendon), Ocean, and Alex (Jordan), her nephews Haan (Janet), and Erik,

and a wee person who doesn’t know it yet named Ayala, as well as her many devoted, loving friends who

are the best mates one could wish for and whose life stories are forever entwined with Judy’s. Her soul,

according to Buddhist traditions, now begins its migration to rejoin her mom and dad and her Popo in the

realm of known and unknown beings who have gone before.

Judy was born in Taipei, Taiwan, on February 23, 1953, to Florence and Edward Chang, the first of four

children. She had beauty and smarts and was always top of her class at the Jingxin private school. She

studied piano and ballet from the age of five. The family moved to Canada in 1964 when Judy was 11,

and she had to start fresh in a new school, new country, and new language. Soon enough though, she was excelling in school and acquired such a fierce academic reputation that her younger siblings would

introduce themselves as “Judy Chang’s sister” and “Judy Chang’s brother” in class. She quickly made

friends with the studious “nerds” of the school, all of whom are still her friends to this day. She played

violin in a string trio that practiced in her parents’ basement and feasted on her grandmommy’s (Popo’s)

spring rolls. The young musical ensemble travelled to Europe on an exchange program in what was to

become a lifelong passion in Judy to follow her heart to far corners of the world.

In 1970, the family packed up again on another adventure, this time to Osaka, Japan, for the world

exposition Expo70, where her dad, fluent in Japanese, was deputy commissioner in the Ontario Pavilion.

The family lived in the scenic foothills of Ashiya in Hyōgo Prefecture and spent eight glorious months in

a most captivating world, feted by her dad’s Japanese school chums and diplomats. It was almost hard

returning to Canada! Judy graduated from the University of Toronto with a BSc in biochemistry and went on to get her MBA from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. There, she met her ex-husband, Barry Myrvold, who was studying economics at the time and would later get his law degree. Out of almost 120 students in the MBA program in 1978-80, Judy was one of only 19 women, who were in many ways pioneers in their field. Once more, Judy was breaking societal boundaries and paving the way for others to follow. She made lifelong friends on campus, with one friend attesting to their shared love of math and heavenly hash ice cream.

After graduation, she worked in the dynamic world of money market trading. In 1986, she moved to New

York City to join Chase Manhattan Bank in global risk management. Many of her dearest friends today

hail from those early days when they met at All Souls Unitarian Church, which became a central part of

Judy’s social and spiritual life.

The 1990s brought Judy overseas to another exciting destination. London. She worked three years with

ING-Baring in risk management and capital markets. There she was again entrusted with navigating the

complex world of swaps and derivatives. She gave lectures in Vienna and was one of the few women who had achieved such a rarefied position in financial securities. An unrelenting fast-paced, high-pressured work life, however, combined with the breakdown of her marriage, eventually took its toll.

Judy returned to New York and set up her own company “Chang for Change” where she created and

delivered financial market courses and coached executives at such diverse places as Goldman Sachs and the US Court of Appeals (2nd Circuit). Her extensive network and strong friendships in this period led her serendipitously back to the corporate world, this time to the offices of Marsh in New York. In a few short years, she moved progressively as executive assistant first to the Managing Director of Global HumanResources, then to the President and CEO of International Specialty Operations, and lastly to the CEO of Marsh.

Just at the time Judy began work at Marsh, she met and fell in love with Steve Mark, a lawyer with his

own practice. She always joked that she couldn’t escape lawyers! They spent 12 happy years together,

and as adamant New Yorkers even embraced the country life in their mid-century bungalow in Kingston,

NY, which had a large woodland garden that was their perfect sanctuary. Sadly, Steve passed away in

2015, and it is next to him in the legendary Sleepy Hollow cemetery, steeped in early American history,

that Judy will be interred.

Judy was also an ordained minister and took great joy and pride in bringing together young couples in

matrimony. She offered her services in English, Cantonese, and Mandarin, and even dabbled in German

for one ceremony. Her passion, flair, and zest for life must have surely rubbed off on these guileless

newlyweds!

She loved spending time with her dog, Casey, walking for miles, rain or shine, and with her cat Jacoby

(and before Jacoby, there was Nora). Judy was an avid reader and polymath. She crocheted and

embroidered like a fiend, creating many well-loved gifts and keepsakes. She was very much a cuddler of

people, pets, and teddy bears alike. She made friends everywhere, and a stranger was just one “hello”

away from being a pal for life. She loved gardening and welcoming birds to her woodland sanctuary. She

was a guiding light, mentor, and support to many people who could attest to her wisdom and generous

spirit.

Judy enjoyed practicing Tai Chi and Zazen (“sitting Zen” meditation). She was a lay member of the

Zendo in New York. She once described her experience at the O-bon, a festival honoring the spirits of

ancestors, “We each take a lighted paper lantern that we decorated to the lake where the monks, in row

boats, bring them to the far end and release them on the water to float down. Then a huge bonfire to burn

away, send off the spirits. The incredible beauty of the Dai Bosatsu Zendo Kongo-ji in the Catskills, a

stream meandering through the trees, sky filled with stars, and the sounds of chanting, celebrating,

honoring, welcoming and sending off those who had been alive, are just amazing.”

Judy served on the Board of Trustees of All Souls Church, as well as the board of the Heart and Soul

Charitable Fund, which raises money for Monday Night Hospitality where a hot sit-down meal is

provided to over 200 people. Most recently, she volunteered for God’s Love We Deliver (GLWD). She

was a patron of Musica Viva, a professional choral ensemble. She was a volunteer pet handler at the

Animal Care Centres of NYC. She also supported NavigatorsUSA (an alternative boy and girl

scout organization) in its vital work in building youth leadership and strengthening communities.

In lieu of flowers, you may wish to make a donation in Judy’s name to any of the above-mentioned

organizations that were close to her heart, with special mention to God’s Love We Deliver (GLWD)

where Judy had volunteered almost daily in the last month of her life. The Director of Volunteer Services

in GLWD wrote in tribute, “She was such a lovingly amazing lady and volunteer with a heart of gold!

The light she brought into the world will always remain in the hearts of everyone she knew and loved

most.”