Shu-Mang Feng

Chapel Hill – Shu-Mang Feng, age 62, died in UNC Hospital on March 25, 2024. He was born on March 20, 1962, to the late Jungang Feng and Lanjie Jin. Shu-Mang is survived by his wife, Yinghua Liang, and two sons, Liang Feng and Tony Feng. 

Born the third of four children, Shu-Mang grew up on a poor rural farm in Xinji, Hebei. He was the first of his family to attend college, graduating from Shandong University in 1982, and became a university instructor in Jinan, China. There, he met the love of his life, Yinghua Liang, married in 1988, and remained happily together for the rest of his life.

Through hard work and the assistance of friends, Shu-Mang moved to the US with just a few hundred dollars of savings. He initially moved alone to attend graduate school at NC State University, earning a Ph.D with a major in Physiology and Biotechnology in 1997. Though he earned little then, Shu-Mang embraced the opportunity and worked hard to help bring his wife and first-born son, Liang, over from China. Soon after, he joined UNC’s Lineberger Cancer Center in 1999 where he researched cancer biology, with a focus on cancer cell signal transduction. Shu-Mang enjoyed both his research and the colleagues he worked with, and remained at Lineberger until his passing. Throughout his journey, Shu-Mang never forgot the people who aided him and enjoyed helping others, always looking to connect friends with opportunities.

Shu-Mang always put family first, and worked tirelessly to make sure his loved ones had every opportunity. When Yinghua needed to leave the state for her medical residency, Shu-Mang stepped up to care for Tony, who was just a little toddler at the time. Behind the scenes, Shu-Mang quietly shouldered many household responsibilities. Even after the family could comfortably afford to pay for outside services, Shu-Mang found great satisfaction in watching DIY YouTube videos and taking care of many tasks himself.

Shu-Mang always looked forward to family trips, where he avidly documented every journey. He loved exploring the mountains for hours, camera in hand, and showed boundless energy even after his sons grew tired. He took great pride in documenting key events for his family, and recorded many hours of performances, practices, and other events. Above all else, we'll miss the lighthearted moments we shared with Shu-Mang. He enjoyed discussing biology with Tony and economics with Liang, always listening and chatting eagerly. He had a way of making every talk feel important, even the silly ones. It is the conversations we will not have that we will miss the most.

The Feng family is under the care of Hall-Wynne Funeral Service.

Online condolences: www.hallwynne.com – select obituaries.