Li Zhao 趙力先生

“Just as you feel when you look on the river and sky, so I felt;

Just as any of you is one of a living crowd, I was one of a crowd;

Just as you are refreshed by the gladness of the river and the bright flow, I was refreshed;

Just as you stand and lean on the rail, yet hurry with the swift current, I stood, yet was hurried;

Just as you look on the numberless masts of ships, and the thick-stemmed pipes of steamboats, I look’d.”

– Walt Whitman, Crossing Brooklyn Ferry

Mr. Li “Chuck” Zhao passed away peacefully at the age of 63 on Thursday, May 22, in Queens, New York after a long and difficult battle with cancer. Li sought treatment for as long as he could and continued to give it his all until his last breath.

Li, known to his colleagues by his chosen American name, Chuck, was born in Shanghai, where he attended East China Normal University and studied English. He and his wife moved to the United States in their early twenties for the same reason many of their generation did—to pursue the American dream. He and his wife embraced their new country and built a beautiful life together over nearly four decades of marriage, made richer by their many shared experiences. They didn’t start out with much, but Li never stopped believing in the dream.

To know Li was to know how much he enjoyed the finer things in life, especially when it came to food. He loved a medium-rare ribeye steak, Shanghainese street eats like shen jian bao and roasted chestnuts, usually paired with a pint of beer or a velvety glass of Pomerol. He spent many weekend mornings perfecting the preparation of shen jian bao at home, experimenting with different types of pans to provide the perfect crispy bottoms.

Li enjoyed consuming culture as much as he enjoyed consuming food. He was an avid reader whose favorite poet was Walt Whitman, and he also counted many Chinese classics among his favorite works. While he preferred high-brow literature, Li was not above enjoying the lower-brow humor of the annual Lunar New Year comedy specials that air on Chinese Central Television or reruns of South Park. He was an enthusiastic traveler and immersed himself in each new place he visited (and was even adventurous enough to do a Segway tour once). Li’s journeys are documented through books of photographs he took over the years—the world seen through Li’s eyes, behind the lens of a fussy Canon camera that often required a lot of patience to get the right exposure.

In addition to his family and food, Li was also passionate about his work. He was lucky enough to love what he did and found colleagues throughout his career who shared his vision of modernizing the aviation industry. At the end of his life, he was the Director of Product Performance at CargoSprint, a job that he often said gave him purpose and hope—first through the uncertainties brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, and then through many rounds of chemotherapy after he got sick. He was a visionary in the field of aviation software solutions and tirelessly fought to bring ePic, the first online air cargo payment portal, to cargo companies across North America.

Li is survived by his wife, Xiaowen, to whom he was a devoted husband, and by his daughters, Christine and Emily, to whom he was a dedicated father. He is also survived by his brother, mother, mother-in law, nephews and one fur grandchild. Li was predeceased by his father and father-in-law.

The ash burial will take place at Maple Grove Cemetery in Queens, NY. The estimated time of arrival to the cemetery is 11:30 AM.