MICHAEL JENG:
My brother, Mr. William Jeng (name in the Dharma, Guo Ren), was born in Jia-Yi, Taiwan, in 1954. Our father ran a drugstore and our mother was a full-time housewife. We have a younger sister. William was very intelligent and gifted since childhood. He always excelled in everything he did. After graduating from Soochow University in Taiwan, William first worked for a marine logistics company. Later he worked for Wan-Yo Paper Company whose president thought very highly of him and appointed him to expand the company's overseas business. Because of this, William came to the United States.  

In 1984, William worked for Wellex as a salesperson. In 1988, in order to fulfill his business vision and ambition, he took the first step to starting his own business. Using his living room as the office and depending on his sharp logical thinking, William began his computer component distribution business. That was when Wintec's foundation was formed. With the increased business and the pursuit of Wintec's long-term mission, the company started manufacturing computer memory modules. Over the years, the manufacturing process evolved from manual assembly to fully automated assembly.

All these developments boosted the company to be one of the most renowned computer parts suppliers in the San Francisco Bay Area and also one of the major computer memory module manufacturers in the United States. Wintec started with only two employees thirteen years ago and has expanded into a company with seven branch offices internationally and nearly 300 employees. This progression reflects William's exceptional leadership and perseverance.

William met the Venerable Master Hua in 1989 and started practicing Buddhism. This was a big turning point in his life. After taking refuge, he became a complete vegetarian and led a life of strict self-discipline. He was wholeheartedly compassionate to everyone and always applied the Venerable Master's teachings.

William lived a very simple life. When his clothes were torn, he always mended them and wore them again. When employees didn't finish their lunch completely, he would advise them not to waste. No matter where and how busy he was, he never skipped his morning and evening recitations. On the way home, he would move dead animals to the roadside and recite a Sutra for them. To prevent deer from getting killed while attempting to leap over the sharp fence surrounding his yard, he replaced the entire fence with a flat design. Whenever he found out that any employee or employee's family member was sick, he would take the chance to tell them how to improve their health through a vegetarian diet and how to eradicate bad karma through Sutra recitation. On special occasions like New Year's Day or other festivals, he would make thirty to forty phone calls to every member of the entire family. If any family member were ill, he would call many times to wish them well. William was also the president of the San Francisco Bay Area Buddhist Association and was very dedicated to protecting the Dharma. He advised friends to become vegetarian and to do good deeds. We will always remember his sincere and endless care for employees, friends, families and all living beings.  

Although his time in the world came to an end on April 9th in a car accident in Brazil, his exemplary kindness and compassion will always stay in our minds. We believe that under the guidance of Amitabha Buddha, William is going to the next stage of his journey-to be reborn in the Western Pure Land, to reach the ultimate enlightenment and to come back to this world with a mission to save all living beings. Amitabha!

DAVID JENG:
Venerable Master, all Dharma Masters, all good knowing advisors, family members, relatives, and friends. I stand before you today, the representative of a family in grief, to thank the Venerable Master, the Dharma Masters, the community and all those who came together to help us out in time of need. We are united today to pay respects to my father, William Jeng.

To me he was the essence of a perfect father. He took my mother and me from the ghettos of San Jose and moved us into an exquisite home atop Fremont. Never did he have time for himself; he gave all his spare time to his family and religion. As I recollect my life growing up, I remember him always being there to play with me and to help me in school even though his English was never up to par. Even when we lived in the ghettos, he managed to save enough money to take the family out to McDonalds once a month.

As the years progressed and we moved to better neighborhoods, he still kept his humble ways. You might have seen him driving his fancy cars, wearing his nice clothes, and eating the best foods, but once he got home, he put on clothes that were a decade old. I would always make fun of him because of the holes in his pants and shirts, but he did not care. He was a simple man who led a simple life, but through thick and thin he was always a devout Buddhist.  

His religious devotion ran deep and every morning and every night, he sacrificed an hour to daily recitation. He conserved as much as possible so that he could donate more towards religious causes and other charities.  

Every Sunday he would go to the temple for weekly prayers, and whenever he could, he would help the Buddhist community spread the Dharma's teaching.  

Abraham Lincoln once said, "And in the end, it is not the years in your life that count. It is the life in the years." It is true: even though my father was only granted but half a life, I am truly grateful that he was my father because every moment that he was here he was able to brighten my life . He was my mentor, my spiritual teacher, my best friend, my father, and my hero.

As we leave this sacred place today, remember:
What we call the beginning is often the end.
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
The end is where we start, because our greatest glory is
Not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

Note: Right before his passing away, Upasaka William Jeng remembered to recite the Buddha's name. The following is excerpted from talks given by his wife, Mrs. Sue Jeng, and his son, at Gold Sage Monastery in San Jose at noon on Sunday, April 14. See the May issue of Pure Sounds from Silicon Valley, the newsletter of Gold Sage Monastery, for the complete talks.

Sue (Mrs. William Jeng):
... Later Teresa, my coworker, called me from the hospital. She was sitting between two other passengers in the car at the time of the accident. She said that when the car crashed, it might have turned over (I'm still not too clear about this.) When she woke up, she saw William and called, "William, William!" She saw that he was pale in the face, sweating profusely, and had lost consciousness. He didn't respond at all but his mouth was moving and continually reciting. (Later Teresa confirmed that he was reciting Amitabha's name). For a long time she kept calling him. Finally he opened his eyes and glanced at her, then continued to recite the Buddha's name. He probably was passing a message to me:

"Sue, you see!" He was still reciting when he was about to go, letting me know, "See, I didn't lie to you!" This was very strange.  

David Jeng:
... The last time that I saw Dad was during spring break. Because Mom was on a business trip, he took me to the airport. That was the last time I hugged him and said "Amiabha Buddha" to him.

The night before he left for Brazil, Monday, he called me from Miami. The last words he said to me were, "Nama Guanshiyin Bodhisattva, Nama Guanshiyin Bodhisattva, Nama Guanshiyin Bodhisattva," and "Om mani padme hum, om mani padme hum, om mani padme hum"  

Dad actually knew what was going to happen and he was preparing me. He was preparing me with these last words. I am so grateful to him. So we shouldn't be too sad; we should think that he has gone to a good place. Thank you.