Chang Woon Huh Choo

Chang Woon (Jane) Huh Choo (formerly of Rye Brook, NY and recently Franklin Lakes, NJ) passed peacefully on May 15, 2024, surrounded by family, after 94 years of a full and blessed life.

Chang Woon was born in Korea on May 19, 1929, to father Bong Nak Huh and mother Beng Nin Cho, the second of six children. After graduating from Ewha Womans University college and Medical School in Seoul, she, and her husband Young Bin Choo, immigrated to the US where they completed their internship and residency training programs before beginning their careers in medicine.

Chang Woon worked for more than 30 years at the Phelps Memorial Hospital as a clinical pathologist in Tarrytown, NY as well as serving part time on staff at the VA Hospital in Montrose. She managed a rigorous professional career while raising 3 children with her husband in Rye Brook, NY.

Chang Woon was a formidable, tireless, loving, and dedicated mother, friend and physician who gave her best in all endeavors, be it work, school, family life, or hobbies. She excelled in sports, enjoying golf and tennis and was even a junior Olympic speed skating champion in Korea. She was known to be an excellent cook, hosting countless social and church gatherings, often serving Thanksgiving dinner for up to 100 people. She traveled the world and enjoyed caring for her grandchildren in her later years. She was one of the first graduates of the Ewha Womans University Medical school. Remarkably, after completing her first residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology and practicing for a few years, she completed a second residency in Pathology, so that she could maintain a more manageable work/lifestyle that would allow her to raise her children.

Chang Woon’s life was also dedicated to her husband Young Bin, who predeceased her in 2017. They had been married for over 60 years and felt blessed by their long union of mutual respect, devotion, and love. When they firsr arrived in NYC from Korea in the early 1950s, the first place they asked their cab driver to take them was to a Korean Church. The first people they met in the U.S. and their lifelong friends and real home became the Korean Methodist Church and Institute on the Upper Westside in Manhattan. Chang Woon was able to attend Easter Service there this year, shortly before her passing. Our parents’ steadfast devotion to the KMCI was lifelong and contributed to the Church’s decades long achievement of finally building and renovating a permanent church building for the congregation. 

Chang Woon’s personal relationship with Christ was a daily and intimate relation that unfailingly began each day with Bible study and prayer. Her unceasing faithfulness, gratefulness, and reliance on Him sustained her throughout her life. With complete faith, all of her family and friends know that she will be lovingly welcomed Home with, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” 

Chang Woon is survived by her children Lisa (Kelly), Daniel (Kimberly) and Nancy (Edward). She is also survived by her grandchildren David (Perri), Alayna, Natalie, Elizabeth, Amanda, and Andrew and by her siblings Jeanne Lim, Stewart Huh and Sung Pil Huh. She was predeceased by her husband Young Bin Choo and siblings Cathy Han and Sung Yun Huh. 

In Lieu of flowers, please consider donations to the Korean Methodist Church and Institute, 633 W. 115th Street, New York, NY 10025. info.kmci@gmail.com