Shirley Shu-Mei Tang

Shirley Shu-mei Tang passed away peacefully in her home in Bristow, Virginia on June 21st at the age of 77. She is survived by her beloved husband, Ting-wei; son Steven and wife Joanne of Haymarket, VA; daughter Patricia and husband Lamine of Watertown, MA; and four grandchildren, Rachael, Heather, Nathan and Marie.
Shirley was born in Yangmei, Taiwan on September 19th, 1939. She was the sixth child of the late Dr. Ah-yeh Huang and Yuanmei Chang. Shirley attended the First Girl’s High School in Taipei and graduated from National Taiwan University with a B. S. in Chemistry. After migrating to the United States she married her husband Ting-wei Tang in 1963 obtaining a Masters in Organic Chemistry in 1966 and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Connecticut in 1971. A longtime resident of Amherst, Massachusetts, Shirley taught at Mount Holyoke College, and later worked as a Research Associate at UMass Amherst. She then served as an Academic Advisor at the United Asia Learning Resource Center, where she took great pleasure in working with and providing support for minority students.
Shirley was an accomplished pianist, and loved to listen to classical music. She appreciated art and gardening, and enjoyed cooking and entertaining guests.
Shirley fought a challenging battle with Parkinson’s disease during her 16-year diagnosis and made the most of every opportunity to be with her family. She will be dearly missed by her loving husband, children, grandchildren, extended family and friends.
Private memorial service to follow in July, in lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: National Parkinson Foundation: 200 SE 1st Street Suite 800 Miami, Florida, 33131 www.parkinson.org in loving memory of Shirley Shu-mei Tang.