AUGUSTUS CHANG BIDS YOU ALL FAREWELL
This note is to let all of you know that Augustus passed away about 11:25AM Dec. 2, 2006 in Seoul, Korea. He was 25 years old and died of heart failure due to endocarditis (inflammation of the heart due to bacterial infection). His father died in his early 40’s of heart problems. Maybe it was hereditary.
In September, Augustus came to visit his extended family in Michigan before going to visit his mother in Korea. It was an unexpected visit. When I asked him why, he said he just wanted to see everyone one more time and say goodbye. He had sadness in his eyes, almost like he knew what was coming.
Augustus lived in California the past 6 years and graduated from Cal Poly Tech just this summer. After graduation, he was not sure of his direction in life. Based on the talks we had while he was here, he had been soul searching for quite some time. I think before pursuing his career ambitions, he wanted to go to Korea and make peace with his mother.
For those of you that knew Augustus, his life was never very stable. He had trouble in school and with the authorities, and was somewhat rebellious. That’s not hard to understand given that his natural father died early, his mother left us in 1997 to go back to Korea and I was a just remote stepfather. But his mother told me that he found that peace with Jesus and with her before he died and for that I am truly grateful. He told his mother that he loved me and was sorry for all the trouble he had been to me over the years. And I’m sorry for not being there more for him over the last couple of years.
I’ll try to briefly recap Augustus’ short life. Most of you knew him somewhere in this span of time and the others at least heard some of my stories about his trials and tribulations.
March 1981 – Augustus was born on March 19, 1981 in Hong Kong to Young-Hee Kim (Korean Notional) and William Chang where he grew up and learned Mandarin.
Korea 1989 – Augustus came to live with Young-Hee and me in Seoul in 1989 when he was 8 years old. He was a lovable and spirited child. It was a unique environment with a least 3 languages being spoken at all times, but Augustus picked up English very quickly.
Michigan 1990 -- We moved to Michigan in the summer of 1990 after my assignment in Korea was completed. Neither Augustus, nor his mother, had ever lived in the United States before. Augustus liked it right away and took on another new country with exuberance. We spent almost 5 years in Michigan where Augustus attended middle school and made a lot of friends. I think the best time he had in the U.S. is when we went down to Disney World in Florida in 1991. During his time in Michigan, he formed a close friendship with my nephew, Joe Marini.
Taiwan 1995
I was offered an assignment with Ford in Taiwan in 1995, but almost had to turn it down because we were having trouble getting Augustus into the Taipei American School (TAS). Bob Shanks and Larry Wong came to the rescue, which allowed the family to move to Taipei. This was Augustus’ third move in 6 years, but I think he looked forward to it. He said he wanted to get back in touch with his Chinese roots.
Augustus struggled in school at first, but then settled down through the guidance of Assistant Principal Cabby Tennis. Most importantly, he made some very good life-long friends at Taipei American School – Colin Dean, Stewart Dean, Craig Luck, Jon Chang, Chris Milla, Peter Ruecker. I know that you guys stuck with him until the very end, giving him guidance and trying to keep him upbeat. Augustus always told me that his 4 years in Taipei were the best years of his life and he would have liked to be frozen in that period of time. And that was because of the six of you. Thanks for always being there for him, especially when I wasn’t. I am truly grateful.
With his mother gone, Augustus spent the summers in Michigan with his aunt, Pam Marini (Joe’s mom). Pam and Joe welcomed Augustus every summer for a couple of months and treated him like one of the family. And his bond with Joe always grew stronger after every summer visit.
Japan 1998 – Augustus and I moved to Hiroshima, Japan in November 1998 when I went to work at Mazda. He attended two more schools there and ended up graduating from the U.S. Marine American School in Iwakuni in June 2000 with honors in his senior year.
California 2000 – Augustus moved to Pomona, CA in August 2000 to attend Cal Poly Tech. After dropping out of school for awhile, he went back and graduated in June 2006 with a BS in Business Management. Although at times it was questionable and he struggled, he kept his promise to me that he would complete his degree. I was very proud of him.
While in California, Augustus became somewhat of an entrepreneur. Instead of the typical part-time job at a store or restaurant while going to school, he started his own vending business with candy machines. His cousin Joe lovingly gave him the nickname “Willy Wonka”. Augustus worked very hard running his side business and going to school because he was determined to succeed.
As fate would have it, Joe Marini hired in with Ford Customer Service Div. in April 2005 and was assigned as a zone representative in California, not far from Augustus. I think having someone around that Augustus considered family reassured him. Thanks Joe for being there for him. He always felt like you were a brother to him and he loved you very much.
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This is the last picture I have of Augustus taken not long ago in Korea. I’m glad to see he was smiling and that’s how I will remember him. His mother told me that before he died, he asked her to say goodbye to me, my mom and dad, Pam, Joe, Tommy, and Danny and the rest of the family here in Michigan, as well as all his other friends. Thanks to all of you for caring about him and making his life a bit better than it would have been otherwise.
I have one very special cherished keepsake from Augustus. While living in Taiwan in 1996, he gave me a Tag Heuer watch. He was never very clear on where the watch came from and I wasn’t sure if it was even real at the time, but came to find out that it was. I’ve worn it for the past 10 years and will continue wearing it until it is my time to meet up with him again. But until then, every time I look at the watch I will think of him and pray for him.
Even though I probably didn’t tell him often enough, I loved Augustus and I will miss him. I wish I had spent more time with him and had done more for him when he was out in California by himself. So remember to show that act of kindness, friendship and love when you have the chance because you never know if it will be your last chance.
To all of you that played a part in Augustus’ life or even said a few kind words to him, thank you. Please remember him in your prayers. If there is anyone that I have missed in the distribution list, please forward on the message.
Thanks and God Bless.
Tony Marini
