Siggy Yue-Choy Lai

Siggy Yue Choy Lai (1960- 2023, age 63) passed away Oct 20, 2023 surrounded by family.

He was born May 18, 1960 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to Sing Lai and Neo Fong Wong. He married the love of his life Shirley Voo on Dec 17, 1988 in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Together they made the brave journey to immigrate to Canada - first to Edmonton, Alberta and then relocating to Coquitlam, British Columbia. They raised three children together - Shaun, Stephanie and Samuel. They took many family vacations - including trips to London, England and Disneyland, USA.

With his dual major in Mathematics and Physics, Siggy worked in Non-Destructive Testing/Inspection and later instructed and mentored in the same field. He worked very hard to provide for his family, his number one priority. He travelled the world for work and leisure with some of his favorite locations being Hawaii, Florida, and of course his first home Malaysia. He was in and out of hospitals since he was diagnosed with Chronic Kidney Failure in 2004. This included hemodialysis three times a week, numerous surgeries, and a quadruple bypass in 2010. Despite these many health challenges, he was always a bright spirit and fought to the very end.

Siggy was a kind soul and always wanted to help others, including his family, friends, and students. He was a very sociable man who could brighten up a room with his jokes, a hardy chuckle and a smile. He had a passion for storytelling which grew during the pandemic when he started illustrating his life experiences. His many drawings were captioned and published in a book fundraiser for family and friends, with proceeds donated to the Kidney Foundation of Canada. He was also an avid oil painter and dabbled in the art of copper tooling.

Siggy is survived by his wife (Shirley) his children (Shaun, Stephanie and Samuel), his mother (Neo Fong Wong), and his siblings (Linda , Victor, William , Patrick, Karen, Phyllis, Emy, Manny and Mee Mee).