Mr. Taik-Kyo Chung

My father was born in Korea on July 27, 1939. His family was not well-off and he grew up poor like many other people during this time. I remember him telling me stories about his childhood. One that sticks out is how he was too poor to afford a bus pass so his friends would give him their pass and he would pass it back to them once he had gotten on. The reason why this story sticks out in my mind is that he wasn't the kind of person to do something that he knew was wrong. It opened a new side to my father I had never seen.

When he was given a chance to leave Korea, he headed out to Germany. I remember looking through the old pictures of my father taken in Germany. He was this smooth, tough looking person. My father was very proud to show off his German speaking skills. Although he forgot a lot of it, he was always happy to speak some German with the people he met.

After his time was up in Germany, my father thought about his next destination. He eventually wound up in Canada. I know he had many jobs after coming to Canada. He worked as a miner somewhere up north. I wish I could remember the stories but I was young when he told me them. It always made me feel proud when I told people he was at one time a miner. They would always have this look of amazement. I cannot remember the other jobs he held.

He eventually went back to Korea to find a wife. After many introductions and dates, he finally proposed to my mother. My father always said he choose my mother because she was the only person who did not want to go to Canada or any other country. They were married in 1974 and soon after my mother left Korea and moved to Canada. In 1974, I was born in Toronto, Ontario.

In 1976, my brother Michael was born.

And finally in 1979, Charles was born.

My parents worked hard throughout their lives. They operated a corner store on Avenue Road. Then they move on to a Family Photo shop on Albion Road. After that, they had Apple Village on Yonge St. And finally, my parents bought 2 buildings at Leslie and Queensville Sideroad in Queensville. It was my father's dream. He wanted to be out of the city and closer to the countryside. Also unlike the other businesses they had, this was something they could call their own.

One day, my father went for a checkup. He felt that he hadn't had his stomach checked in a while so he asked the doctor to check it up. It was just blind luck that my father ahd felt like getting his stomach checked. If he hadn't, he would never had know that he had stomach cancer. The doctor had said he was lucky that they had caught the cancer in the early stages. Three-quarters of his stomach was removed and he began a long process or recovery. But a re-occurrance of the cancer was discovered in 2003. He was quickly operated on and everyone hoped that all the cancer was removed. He started having problems afterwards and in 2004, we learnt that he had Leukemia. It was a very difficult situation for our family. The doctor was giving him only 3 to 6 months with treatments. It was hard for me to know that my father had no chance of making it pass the year. But you know what, he was strong. He didn't give up. I think he knew he didn't have a chance. But he kept going on. He didn't show us any indication that he wanted to give up. He fought till the very end. I am so proud of my father. Mike is proud of him and Charles is proud of him. Mom is proud of him. We miss you very much Dad. We love you Dad.

My father, Taik Kyo Chung, passed away on June 14, 2004. He was a very loving father and husband. He was stronger than anybody I know. He was a leader. Everybody who knew him knows that.

Dad, help us every day. Watch us and make sure we don't go down the wrong path.