Herbert Cheung

It is with great sadness that we share that Dr. Herbert C. Cheung passed away on March 28, 2024 in his home in Birmingham, AL. He is survived by his two daughters, Sharon Cheung and Melissa Cheung (Chris Kern), and his two beloved grandchildren Eli Vielguth and Audrey Vielguth.

Anyone who spent a few days with Herbert Cheung would come to learn a few key things about him:

He loved his work -- his research, his undergraduate and graduate students, his research lab, and his colleagues in the Cellular and Molecular Biology department at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). He dedicated his life to advancing basic science research on understanding the mechanisms of muscle regulation, and supporting the next generation of scientists in biochemistry.

He loved his family -- a proud grandparent, parent, and husband, and happily a member of a very, very large extended family. He enjoyed sharing tales of his mother (one of 28 children) and the extended family that helped him on his journey from China to Hong Kong to the US. He boasted of his children’s success, and delighted in seeing his grandchildren grow.

He loved to tell a story -- whether a tearful reflection about the importance of family, or a recounting of the latest excitement with his recent research grant, or the struggles he faced as an immigrant moving to Birmingham, AL in the 1960’s, or the challenges of getting good service at a restaurant while on vacation in Jackson Hole, WY. He rarely forgot a bad experience and always found joy in the memories of the great experiences. He loved to remind everyone of them all, while having an afternoon drink and a smile on his face.

Herbert was born in 1931 in Canton, China -- though for a good portion of his adult life, he believed he was born in 1933. Much to his delight in the 1980’s, after reconciling official documents found by his family, he aged up two years and declared he was two years older and wiser. During his childhood, his parents and three sisters, Nellie, Mabel, and Dora, moved to Hong Kong trying to avoid the long war between China and Japan.

In 1950, he left his family and began his academic career studying chemistry and physics at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ. Living with his Uncle Bing and Aunt Margaret, he found his way in a new country, working odd jobs including at a local Chinese restaurant, as a DJ on campus, and in the stockroom of the Department of Chemistry at Rutgers. He then went on to receive a Master’s from Cornell University and a Ph.D. from Rutgers in chemistry and physics.

After this time, he lived in Newark, NJ working as a research chemist in the tri-state area. Herbert writes about this time, “It was during this period that I met my future wife, Daisy S. Lee, MD. ... I worked with her brother, Bill, a chemical engineer at Allied Chemical. The occasion was an expedition to attend an outdoor concert at Tanglewood, MA. Bill and I were alternate drivers during this trip. He and I became very good friends. It was through Bill that I met his sister, and eventually became part of the Lee family in 1966.”

Herbert and Daisy moved out to the San Francisco Bay area in 1966. He completed his postdoctoral work at the Cardiovascular Research Institute at the University of California San Francisco. In 1969 he was offered a position as Associate Professor in the Department of Engineering Biophysics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. This began his 37 year tenure at UAB, working in various departments including the Department of Biophysics, Biochemistry, and the School of Medicine. During this time, he received numerous research grants from the National Institute of Health, the National Science Foundation, the American Heart Association, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation to advance the understanding of cardiac muscle mechanisms and biophysical tools to support that research. In 2006 he became a Professor Emeritus, and continued to mentor graduate students for many years.

In his retirement, he and Daisy traveled the world enjoying trips with old friends and family. They ventured to Argentina, Portugal, Italy, Singapore, France and more. He loved to try the wine and food of each region, and usually brought back some wine to share with family.

In his later years, Herbert unfortunately was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. While the disease was challenging for him and his family, he remained himself through it all -- thankful for his family, proud of his accomplishments, happy to enjoy a delicious meal and a good scotch, highly opinionated, and a scientist at heart.

A private celebration of life honoring Herbert and his wife, who passed away in January, will be held in May in Birmingham, AL.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in his name to the Alzheimer's Association.