Obituary of Joan Ma

Joan Ma, or as some know her, Yang Hui-Chun, 72, passed away on Saturday, July 27, 2024, at JFK Hospital in Edison, NJ.

Raised in Taiwan to the late Li Hsiang-Yi and Zhang Shi-Yu, Joan attended Bei-Yi-Nu High School, then National Cheng Ku University, where she studied accounting. In 1979, she immigrated to the United States, residing in New Jersey while her husband attended college. The two later relocated to Rhode Island, then back to New Jersey, living in North Jersey, before settling in Piscataway, where Joan spent the better part of the last forty years.

While in Taiwan, Joan worked in Accounting, but then in the United States, she began working in Computer Programming after picking up programming from helping her husband read his textbooks. She later made the decision to leave work and raise her family, which she spent the last 30 years doing.

Joan was an avid gardener and enjoyed cooking. She traveled frequently with her children, and, while it took some convincing, developed an affinity for hiking.

Predeceased by her husband, Herng Ma, Joan leaves behind her two children, Petrina Ma and Matthew Ma, both of Piscataway, as well as a host of extended relatives and friends.

A visitation will be held at Piscataway Funeral Home, 18 Stelton Road, Piscataway, NJ, on Wednesday, July 31, 2024, from 11 AM to 1 PM.

Cremation services will be held privately.

In lieu of flowers, the Ma family has asked that donations be made to the American Cancer Society and/or Susan G. Komen for the Cure, in Joan’s name.