Catherine Teh-lin
(Cathy) Chang
Sept. 16, 1937 – Feb. 5, 2022
Catherine T. Chang was the second child of Tse-shan Chang and Chow-wen Liang. She was born on September 16, 1937, in Wan-hsien, Sichuan, Republic of China, while fleeing the Japanese invasion.
She began her schooling at 5 in Chungking during the war time. When the family moved to Taiwan in 1949, she studied and graduated from the Kaohsiung Girl's Middle School (1954) and later from the National Taiwan University with a BS in chemical engineering (1958). In all her school years, she was always at the top of her class. After serving a year as teaching assistant at her alma mater, she went to Washington Universary in St. Louis on a full scholarship and graduated in 1964 with a Ph.D. in chemistry. She even learned to read French and German during this time.
After graduation in 1964, she joined E. I. DuPont to investigate non-silver-based photochemistry using organic materials. After a couple of years she was transferred to the Experimental Station in Wilmington, Delaware for more basic research. For her contribution in photographic chemistry research, she was promoted to Senior Research Associate. She holds 9 U.S. patents in photochemistry and retired in 1998.
Catherine was active in church works. She taught Sunday school from her teenage years through graduate school. She sang alto in the church choirs and interpreted for Sunday Sermons. She also served in finance and foreign missions in the Chinese Gospel Church in Philadelphia for many years. She generously supported Christian ministries.
Catherine was generous, pragmatic, soft-spoken, and rarely complained. She supported her family financially, even with her scholarship stipend. Her mother lived with her since 1974 and they travelled around the world, even to Eastern Europe before the Soviet Union dissolved.
She had a series of strokes and went to be with the Lord on February 5, 2022. She is survived by three brothers, Christopher, Clement, Clarence, and their families.
Funeral services will be Sat., Feb. 19, 2022 at 12 noon at the First Baptist Church, 301 Walker Road, Dover, Del. Friends may call at the Church one hour before time of the service. Burial will be at Sharon Hill Memorial Park, Dover, Del.
Letters of condolences can be sent to www.tradefh.com