Mizhou Yan

Mizhou Yan, age 91, passed away on Friday, April 15, 2023 at her family’s home in Yardley, PA.

Born in a rural part of China’s Sichuan Province, Pengxi County, during a period of social upheaval, Yan loved learning and culture, despite never receiving a formal education herself.

She took great personal risks to ensure that her loved ones received the educational opportunities that she did not, moving to the industrial city of Chongqing by herself at age 21 after she married two years, working first as a nanny, later as a factory worker, and even resorting to selling blood to put her husband through middle school, high school, and then college, as well as to support their children and her parents. As a further sign of her fortitude, because economic and social conditions forced her to live separately from her husband for most of their marriage, she taught herself how to read and write in order to correspond with him.

Yan is the daughter of the late Bosui Yan and Xiangyun Nong and wife of the late Keyu Yang. She is remembered by her surviving two daughters, Rona (Rongbo) and Li Yang of Yardley, two grandchildren Eileen Guo and Dongsheng Yang, and several nieces and nephews, for her courage, resilience, and successes in the face of incredibly challenging life conditions. A very social person, especially in her later years, Yan charmed everyone that she met.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend her service at 10:30 AM on Thursday, April 20, 2023 at Ewing Cemetery Chapel.  Friends may gather after 10 AM.  Her interment will follow in Ewing Cemetery.