Obituary of Voon Loong Chan
Dr. Voon Loong (Ricky) Chan, born on September 8, 1942, in Temoh, Malaysia, has passed away suddenly, leaving a legacy of sportsmanship, science, and love and commitment to friends and family.
The seventh of twelve children of Chan Swee Yoon and Phang Kin, Voon Loong’s early life was shaped by guerilla warfare in rural Malaysia, which led the family to relocate hastily to the city of Ipoh. Despite the violence, at age seven, Voon Loong remained with an uncle and aunt to continue at the village school for a year. In Ipoh, he started schooling in English at St. Michael’s, where he played basketball for the state and swam for his school.
In 1961, Voon Loong travelled as a visa student to Melbourne, Australia, where he attended Heidelberg High School and met Penny. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from the University of Melbourne, Voon Loong and Penny were married (1966), and Voon Loong completed a Master’s of Science degree at Monash University.
Continuing their studies, Voon Loong and Penny travelled to the University of Western Ontario (now ‘Western’) to complete their Ph.D.s. The couple took up Lecturer positions at the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur before Voon Loong began a position as an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto. The couple’s two sons Chee and Kai were born in Malaysia, and their daughter Soo was born in Mississauga, Canada. The new family became proud Canadians. Although Voon Loong gave up his Malaysian citizenship to become a Canadian citizen he continued to treasure his Malaysian Chinese heritage within his growing Canadian identity. He learned about his adopted country by reading books by authors from Piere Burton to Lester B Pearson and Dennis Lee. He celebrated Canada's natural beauty and spectacle by embracing skiing, canoeing, kayaking, camping and hiking. As a family they visited every province in Canada.
In the Microbiology Department at U of T (and then Molecular Genetics), Professor Chan received tenure and was promoted to full professor, maintaining an active lab until his early retirement in 1993. He collaborated with many other eminent scientists including two sabbaticals with Nobel Laureate Dr. Michael Smith (UBC). For his groundbreaking work in bacterial genetics, specifically Campylobacter, Voon Loong was named a recipient of the Chinese Canadian Legend Award in 2007.
Throughout his life, Voon Loong served as an inspiration for others in balancing scientific endeavours, family, and fitness. At the age of 40, he took up squash, and ascended in that sport, receiving medals at the World Squash Masters Championships. Retirement from professional work only deepened his dedicationmade him more dedicated to sports. His love of cycling and cycle-touring led to him and Penny completing many cycling trips all over the world, including across Canada in 2008. In his seventies, Voon Loong fell in love with pickleball, and won many medals at the US Open Pickleball Championships, including a gold and two silver medals in the 80+ age category in 2026, shortly before his death.
A model of camaraderie, Voon Loong left a trail of friends wherever he went. He ambled orand was invited onto pickleball courts and clubs in cities all over the world, and brought the game to his home town, Ipoh, where the sport now thrives.
He was a fierce and dedicated friend. He kept up with classmates in Malaysia, friends and classmates in Australia, fellow graduate students from Western now all over the world, students from his time as a professor in both Malaysia and Toronto, and newly befriended fellow travelers. For instance, people they met biking in Cuba became more people they loved to visit in Australia and to host in Canada. When he and Penny travelled, they had people to stay with, whether it was throughout Canada and the US, in England, Switzerland, New Zealand, Australia, Spain, and more.
Family vacations saw Dr. Chan as the proud head coach of ‘Team Chan’, a travelling every-sport team that struck fear in the hearts of opponents and other buffet-eaters in Saint Lucia and Cozumel, after his three children and their spouses brought seven sporting and studious grandchildren into this world.
Voon Loong treasured his family, and would speak with each of his surviving siblings often twice a week., Hhe was predeceased by his brothers Man King, Man Keong and Man Wan. He is survived by his brothers Alfred and Voon Choong, his sisters Sau Ying, Anna, Irene, Sau Lin, Sau Ching, and Sau Mei, his wife Penny, his sons Chee (Noreen) and Kai (Ljuba), his daughter Soo (Tony) Chan Carusone, and seven grandchildren (Keegan and Amaera; Taya and Tiva; Brayden, Teague, and Senna). We are all devastated at the loss of such a beloved central figure in our lives.
Dr. Chan in his will chose to support The University of Toronto in two capacities through donations to the Faculty of Physical Education and to the Faculty of Medicine for medical research. In lieu of flowers, donations are welcome but not expected for these causes at the University:
Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education Annual Fund (Area of Greatest Need)
Temerty Faculty of Medicine Dean's Priority Fund
A Celebration of Life event is planned for:
1:30 to 4:30 pm Saturday, June 27th. Words of Remembrance at 3:00 pm.
The Faculty Club, The University of Toronto,
41 Willcocks Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 1C7.
Please take a moment to share a memory, photo or sentiment of Voon Loong's life here at his memorial legacy page.
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