Tchaw-Ren Chen

Tchaw-ren Chen, husband of Yang Yang Chen, father to Janet Chen Daniel and Alice Chen Kitterman, father-in-law to Stephen Kitterman and grandfather to Hannah and William Daniel, passed away on December 23, 2024.

Born to parents Chuang Cheng and Suh-yeh Chen in Kaoshiung, Taiwan on June 2, 1935, Tchaw-ren was the youngest of four siblings: eldest brother Akitoshi, second eldest brother Chau-chie and elder sister Chau-yi.

After coming to the United States, our dad earned his Doctorate in Ichthyology from Yale University. He was a career cytogeneticist, specializing in karyotype (the characterization of chromosomes). Work done during this time resulted in a publication which was recognized as a “Citation Classic,” a highly cited publication by the Science Citation Index.

After he retired from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC), he and our mom started a business called KaryoVenture. Although he was working 15-hour days to meet deadlines, this allowed them to travel overseas to work at the onsite facility. And it was during this time that he was truly the most engaged with his work.

His sense of humor was evident in the logo selection on his business card, which featured a photograph of a cluster of chromosomes that looked to him like a “Man on the run.”

During this period, our dad also devoted more time gathering research that supported a more accurate historical account of Formosan history. He and our mom journeyed to places to view archives documenting the discovery of Formosa.

In 2009 after suffering two strokes, he once again retired from work. But he and our mom continued to travel to Europe and the U.K. They planned their itineraries and navigated the local public transportation systems on their own. When they discovered a good restaurant, they returned there night after night.

In 2017, our dad fell and fractured several pelvic vertebrae. While this was one of many serious health challenges he faced over the last 15 years, his unwavering self-discipline helped him recover enough to resume most of his daily regimens.

The bulk of his efforts now went to writing up his research into his own accurate account of the history of Formosa. Above all, he was fiercely devoted to “getting it right.” He re-checked resources, incorporated new information, consulted with subject matter experts, and wrote draft after draft in pursuit of the “perfect” wording. Formosa dominated his thoughts and conversations, for he was ever passionate about the accuracy of his narrative.

In January, 2022, our dad suffered a massive heart attack. We were not allowed to visit him in person because of COVID restrictions, and were mainly reliant on video calls whenever the staff could accommodate us. He thus survived and recovered, in great part due to his strong will.

He came home in February, 2022, and eventually re-established a modified routine of cooking, exercising and writing.

Though engrossed in his Formosan history writings, our dad was still a scientist at heart, often asking for research papers from journals like Science and Nature. His curiosity for scientific discoveries and advances was insatiable, and he often fell asleep with an article in one hand and a highlighter in the other.

In January, 2024, he fell and broke both of his legs while climbing up the stairs at home. After surgeries, rehabilitation facility stays and intermittent hospitalizations, remarkably, he returned home at the end of April.

Complications that limited his mobility became part of his life. Still, he believed he would regain some of his independent existence. He walked with the help of CNAs almost every day, cooked his favorite foods on occasion and continued his upper body exercises. Ever the disciplinarian, he “forced himself” to keep up his routines.

Whenever we visited, he was always at his computer. At 89.5 years old, he was still persevering with technology, navigating numerous video call apps, learning new kitchen gadgets to help him cook with more ease, and was even in the process of learning to use a new PC laptop, after working on a Mac for the last 12 years.

His memory for detail was remarkable. He often reminisced, replicated and shared his favorite recipes with us. Many of these were conveyed with memories from his childhood.

Our dad’s wish was to be at home until the end, and though unable to write in his final days, his tireless efforts as both scholar and student was proof that Tchaw-ren was a true and devoted Formosan.