It is not how long a man lives, but how deep that life is. In your pain and sorrow, remember that he was a great man and have accomplished many good things in life.  We cherish and treasure the memories we made while working with him. He was an upright leader, for they will give us the strength to carry on. May care and love of those around you provide comfort and peace to get you through the days ahead. My most sincere condolences.

Tim was my best friend. I have never counted the years of our friendship until now. 50 years!

We met in the first year of junior college at the age of 15 when we were randomly selected to live in the same dormitory room. We used to run to the snack bar outside of the campus to get potstickers and then run back to the class during the 15-minute class break. We would hang out the whole weekend and take the first train at 4AM on Monday morning to get back to school for morning assembly instead of getting back to the dormitory the day before. We played on the same team for interschool basketball tournaments, and he also played on our handball school team.

A year and a half later, I immigrated to America with my family. We thought that would be the end of our friendship. However, 2 years later, I went back to Taiwan for 2 years military service due to a special reason. We met again and stayed together for another 3 years. We did some crazy things together. We got drunk together at an outdoor snack bar, throwing up at the side of the street. My favorite memory was one night when he stayed with me at my grandmother’s condo. He put his contact lenses in a glass of water before we went to sleep. When we woke up the next morning, he could not find the glass, so I asked my grandma about it. Tim and I were both wide-eyed when she told us that she drank the glass of water, not knowing there were contact lenses in there, to not waste the water. Tim panicked, so we rushed to the glasses store to get a replacement, which took a full day. That day, I spent the whole day with him because he cannot see well without his contacts, and every time Tim and I reflect on this story we laugh just as hard as we did the day it happened. 

I stayed in Sacramento after I came back to the US, and he came to the US a few years later staying with his family in the East Bay Area. A year later we became classmates again at Sacramento State University.
Ever since we met, it seemed that fate would always bring us together, even after a few years apart. Our friendship was just like an invisible wire always tying us together.

I remember he took a class called “Computer programming language Fortran”, a common language used by engineers. He had a tough time in the beginning but as soon as he realized that it was an important prerequisite for the engineering program, he spent lots of effort and finally got an A for the class. We all were so happy and had a big celebration for him. That was Tim, once he decided to do something, he went all the way to make it happen.

After he moved to LA, we met less often. I remember there was one time I went to LA, we had coffee together at the hotel and he asked me, “What do you think about Katie?”. That was a short conversation because I only met her a few times, but I told him, “If you think she is the one then you should go all the way with her”. Years later, I went to LA again to attend their wedding. As the years passed, I had many chances to get to know Katie more and I think that was the smartest decision Tim's ever made. Katie, a wonderful wife, mother, and business partner, joined Tim as partners to create such an amazing family and bring 3 wonderful children into this world. My wife and I always say that Tim was so lucky to marry Katie and Tim’s mother always said the same thing to us many times.

Life is like riding a train, people get on and off at each station. The time you stay on the train does not matter. We all will get off at a station eventually. The most important thing is the people with you during the ride. Tim transferred to another train with his mom and Dad now, and we will all transfer to that train eventually too. This is not the end but the new beginning. I believe I will meet Tim again in the future to continue the journey together just like the past 50 years. So, Tim, my roommate, my teammate, my classmate, my best friend, my brother, I really miss you.

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OBITUARY

Tim Tien Shiang Pan

July 18, 1959 – August 22, 2024

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Tim Tien Shiang Pan

WestPoint Est. Semi Privates