- Date Of Birth: April 20, 1934
- Date Of Death: July 23, 2019
- State: Maryland
Sanghak (Sam) Choi was born in a rural farming village in S. Korea on July 23, 1934, and became a loving father and husband, successful businessman, and longtime community leader in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. He passed away on July 23, 2019, surrounded by family and friends, 15 years after a successful lung transplant that saved his life in 2004. He is survived by his wife Kilcha of 56 years, daughters Julie and Jane, son John, and grandchildren Sofia and Sebastian.
He was raised primarily by his oldest sister after losing both parents and grandparents early in his childhood, and he was eternally grateful to her for taking care of him and putting him through university. In 1958, he was the first graduate of the English language department from Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. He also received a master’s degree in public administration at Seoul National University.
It was in 1963 when he married his magnificent wife of 56 years, Kilcha, and started his family. With work assignments in different countries every three years, he and Kilcha had three children – Julie, Jane and John – and raised them in Korea, Japan, Canada, and the U.S.
After two decades working as a diplomat, political changes in the Korean government led to his starting a new life in the U.S. with his family to support, first as a partner in the import-export business, then as the owner of several dry cleaning establishments.
In his sixties, Sanghak began to have difficulties with his breathing and was found to be suffering from pulmonary fibrosis. He had been breathing with the aid of oxygen tanks when, at the age of 71, a brave lung surgeon believed Sanghak was otherwise in excellent health and could undergo a lung transplant operation, although other major hospitals in the U.S. had determined he was too old and too high a risk. Within a month, a lung donor was found and he underwent a successful transplant operation, which allowed he and his family and friends to enjoy another 15 years together.
