Thompson Funeral ChapelKent Hsien-Chen Chou
Kent Hsien-Chen Chou passed away peacefully and surrounded by family on September 9, 2018.
Kent was born on July 25, 1970, to Valerie Chen and I-Hsin Chou. He grew up in New Jersey, then studied English at BYU and medicine at Yale University. Following residency and a hand fellowship through the University of Pittsburgh, Kent joined Ortho Arizona (formerly Canyon Orthopedic Surgeons) in 2004, and never unexpectedly missed a day of working at his dream job until he was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer in April of this year.
Kent’s great love of medicine and surgery was dwarfed by his love for his family. Kent was lucky to find Anne Michelle (“Shelly”) early in life, and had the good fortune to marry someone who complimented him, supported him, and softened him. Kent and Shelly’s strong marriage produced four exceptional children–Jordan, Emily, Ryan, and Natalie–all of whose achievements in academics, music, and athletics have made their parents proud.
To his survivors–Shelly, Jordan, Emily, Ryan, Natalie, his two parents, and three siblings Christina, Franklin, and Catherine and their families–Kent leaves behind a legacy of steadfast church service, exceptional hard work, an irrational dedication to the Phoenix Suns, and a consistent voice of sound advice and reason, which will continue to guide the lives of those who were blessed to know him in his too-short time on earth.
Services will be held at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 425 S Estrella Pkwy, Goodyear, AZ 85338.
Viewings will be held on Friday, September 14, from 6-8pm and Saturday, September 15, from 11-12:45.
A funeral service will be held on Saturday, September 15, at 1 pm.
Flowers may be sent to Thompson Funeral Chapel, 926 S Litchfield Rd, Goodyear, AZ 85338.
In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to lung cancer research.
i had the honor of working with Dr Chou from 9/2008 to 10/2015 and loved working for and with him. i often was his left hand when he was using his right hand and vice versa. i can honestly say that i have more funny and good memories than i have bad! just thinking of them now make me smile and laugh.
he was an exceptional hand surgeon, and even more so an exceptional friend, father, husband, son/brother, and worthy church member.
because of our friendship, i am thankful that he made it important to come to me in my time of need (after i no longer worked with him) and administered to my mother her final blessing before she passed in 2016.
my family and his family often would go to dinner, a couple of college volleyball games, as well as a couple of musicals and such.
we will forever be grateful for knowing this family, and will do whatever may be needed to help them heal as they go through this trying and emotional time.
WE LOVE YOU KC and are here for your family!
Rest in peace my friend… until we meet …
(and yes, i know that he would be picking apart my verbiage and punctuation – that was another of his pet peeves that makes me smile as i type this up right now!)
Shelly, Jordan, Emily, Ryan and Natalie, please know that the Hughes family loves you. We are all praying for you. Kent was such a huge part of our family and we love him very much, he will be greatly missed by so many. We have so many stories of how he touched our lives. Love you guys much and again, we are always here for you.
Love, Bill, Renee, TJ (BigOaf – Kent’s nickname for TJ) and Travis
RIP Dr. Chou. You are already missed by so many.
Elder Chou!! I am so saddened by this news. I have the fondest of memories of serving with him in ChangHwa. A spiritual giant as well as a comedian and friend. My memories often return to our experiences in Taiwan. May Peace find you at this time! I’m so grateful for the gospel and the comfort it gives to us. Until we meet again! 保重!
Words cannot describe the sense of loss I have at this time for you and your family. Word of Kent’s (President Chou’s) passing has brought back a flood of memories and feelings. I knew there was something special about Kent from the first day I met him in the MTC back in August 1989. He was a great man who I admired and a great example to me and everyone who came in contact with him. My heart goes out to you and your family. Please accept my deepest condolences, Kent will sorely be missed.
Chou family,
“Elder” Chou was my district leader for a month in the MTC and then again for several months in Taiwan. He was a unique blend of hard work, deep spirituality, humor, and teasing. Even at 19 he was able to identify needs and respond to them in kind ways; I was a recipient of his kindness and service on multiple occasions. The mission was a long time ago, but remembering him always brings a smile. I just wanted to express my deepest sympathy to your family at this time.
Kent Chou was one of my most memorable students. He was brilliant and effortless in all of his endeavors. When he would come into my class some days, he would do a caricature of me (usually complimentary) in a matter of seconds. I used to tell him that I would have to labor for an hour to come close to what had created. A violinist and pianist, his day began with an early morning service at the Mormon temple where he and his family worshipped. Then, his school day would commence, where he was singularly outstanding. As proof of his ability, he was the valedictorian for the class of 1988. My heart goes out to Kent’s siblings, all of whom I taught. One of the highlights of my teaching career was accompanying his sister Christina to Washington, D.C. in 1992, when she was selected as a Presidential Scholar.
May Kent rest in peace, while his wife, children, and family come to grips with life without him.
Rip Dr Chou.
You were taken way too soon from this life.
I am so saddened by your passing.
You were just a doctor who operated on my hand but very saddened.
My condolences to your wife children parents and siblings.
Rip.
Dear Chou family,
I am of patient of Dr. Chou’s. He treated me with much kindness.
Our family is keeping your family in our thoughts and prayers.
Blessings,
Mrs. Diane Stoklosa
To all of the Chous but especially to Shelly, Jordan, Emily, Ryan and Natalie, while I knew of President Chou’s illness, I was none-the-less saddened to learn of his passing. If there was anyone in church that truly understood service to Our Father and to all of His children it was Brother Chou. Kirsten and I were blessed to have him as our home teacher and that meant we got the rest of the family as our home family. Jordon was often by his side as he came to visit and each Christmas, we looked forward to the caroling and the Christmas crossword puzzle that told of the children’s accomplishments and the service projects that would take them throughout the world. While he was the age of my middle child, I, we, learned a lot from brother Chou. He was a friend and my doctor but most of all he set an example for all my family. We will miss him.
Kent and I were classmates growing up in Montville NJ. Although I haven’t seen him since graduation, he had left a lasting impression on me. I remember him being kind and friendly to everyone. He was very talented, and all around nice guy. I along with my fellow classmates, were so very saddened to hear of his passing. To the entire Chou family, please accept my deepest sympathies.
Kimberly Bauer
I had the pleasure of knowing kent through coaching Basketball for the city of Litchfield park, I coached against him as well as coaching his kids, the short time I knew him left a lasting impression on me for the love and kindness he always showed on and off the court, his children were a joy to coach and I had a lot of fun coaching them, the world lost a good man and I’m so saddened by the news of his death.
My condolences to his family and may God give you the strength to go on.
Dr Chou reoaied my trigger finger and furing injections then eventially surgery, he NEVER ONCE mentioned anything about lung cancer. He was always up beat, right to the point of my visit
and was always professional!
The news of his passing was shocking and prayers will be going up daily🙏
He will be missed greatly and prayers daily for his family❤️🙏
Very saddened
Karen Reiman
patient
I am a patient of Dr. Chou. To his family I extend my deepest sympathy. To be absent of life is to be with the Lord. May God keep you in his tender loving care.
I had been a classmate of Kent’s since 1976. He was always gifted with his hands, sharp with his mind, and conducted himself with grace and dignity. He was a step above the rest, always continuing on his own path. It is not enough to say his untimely passing is a loss. The world has lost a true angel. Rest In Peace old friend.
I was a patient of Doctor Chou, one of the kindest men I had the pleasure of knowing. my sympathy to the family. Rest In Peace Dr. Chou
I just found out about this and am so devastated 🙁 he was my doc since 2004. Amazing doc that I will truly miss :’(
I just heard about you’re passing, I’m sorry to see this, you were a good Doctor, I worked with you 2 yrs ago as a Ortho tech.
I was just thinking about Kent for some reason after he did both of my r wrist repairs back in 05 and 06 after I was injured on the fire department. I am very sad to read of his passing and hope his family can find peace. He had a great attitude and was always in good spirits. A great hand surgeon and family man is now gone. God bless the family and his children.
Peter Tang
Kent was my chief at UPMC when we were both residents. He would claim that I would be “killing him” multiple times a day and it was not even noon. He taught me a lot and always gave me a hard time. He was always direct and I appreciated it. He was hard on the outside but one of the kindest persons I will ever know. For some reason I was thinking about him this evening and found this site. Kent we miss you. You should still be with us. I turn 50 this July 2023 – I wish you were here. See you soon. — Peter