Never in my life did I ever think that the first funeral I would attend of someone close to me would be my own brother. It's not like I wasn't aware of his propensity for risk taking, I just always believed that he was invincible. His motorcycle was not his only risk factor, but also surfing, snowboarding, sky diving, white water rafting, amongst other extreme sports. No matter how battered and bruised he constantly seemed to be from various brawls or accidents, he always seemed to bounce back in a matter of weeks always insisting that it wasn’t a big deal. I remember how our mom would always plead with him to be safe and warn him of the dangers of the things he was doing and he was simply catch my eye and smirk like it was all a big joke to him. And I would always smile back, glad to be in on his secret invincibility.

Jerry and I were born seven years apart and I have never known a day in my life without him. My brother influenced me in so many ways that I don't think he was even aware of. For the first ten years of my life, he was my tormentor. He was immature and somewhat threatened that I had invaded his only child status, and I was a brat who was used to getting what I wanted out of my parents through whining and tantrums. Despite our constant bickering and even on some occasions, fist fighting, he was still my big brother and I respected him immensely. When I was growing up, he was the one who introduced me to MTV, gangster movies, video games, and a lot of other things my parents disapproved of. My great love and appreciation for music came from my brother, but unfortunately, I didn't have the talent for musical instruments like he did. I never understood how he was able to practice only twenty minutes before a lesson and still play beautifully without any flaws, yet I always seemed to be off somehow, whether it was being off rhythm or off key or simply just hitting the wrong notes.

When he moved away to college, I always looked forward to the weekends, not just because they weren't school days, but also because there was a possibility that my brother would be coming home. I was accustomed to his routine of arriving home two to three hours later than he told us always with the same excuse that "traffic was bad." He would always come home with a huge basket of laundry for our mom to do for him, which she still did for him at the age of 24, and then take off to spend time with his valley friends after eating lunch with us. Before he left on Sunday night, he usually stayed the extra hour to watch The Simpsons and Family Guy with me, showing me those stupid YouTube videos he liked so much during the commercials.

The past few years have been the closest I have ever been with my brother. As I matured during my years in high school, I found we had more and more to talk about. Jerry would always listen to all my pointless stories about anything and everything and he would genuinely be interested in what I had to say about things. He always got me the best birthday gifts like the iPOD mini I had been obsessed with for months and a digital camera when I turned 15, tickets to see one of my favorite bands, Hoobastank, when I turned 16, and then a portable DVD player when I turned 17 because he knew how bored I got on the thirteen hour flights that I took to China with my parents every year. For the past two months, every time I spoke with him he would always inquire about what I was doing for my 18th birthday, always encouraging me to do something crazy and exciting. A few weeks ago when I visited his new house in Fountain Valley, he insisted on throwing a party for me and my friends when I told him that I still didn't know what I wanted to do for my birthday.

My brother has always been the first to support me in all of my endeavors as well as the first to come to my defense when my parents would tell him about my faults. When I crashed the new car my parents had bought me not only once, but twice all within the first two months of having it, he calmed them down by telling them that the most important thing is that I wasn't hurt. Then he laughed in my face for crashing into a couch on the 118. For my high school graduation, he came all the way back to the valley from Diamond Bar, braving the rush hour traffic on a Thursday night just so he could be there on the event that basically signified my entry into the real world.

The age difference between us always made it a little difficult for us to be close or really relate to each other on a personal level, but I always admired everything he did. He always had the best stories, the best friends, and the best adventures. Whenever he told me about what he was up to it always seemed like he was having so much fun and had a genuine love for his life. He always had that streak of independence, always wanting to go out and explore the world and do things on his own terms which were exactly what I also wanted out of my life. The past week has been the hardest I have ever faced in my life. I have tried to stay strong for my parents and also to do everything I could possibly do to give my brother the best sendoff I can. My brother has affected so many different people in his life at such a young age and I am just so proud of all his accomplishments in life. My brother made an impression on every single person he met in his life and he became friends with anyone and everyone, from homeless people on the street to the people stuck in rush hour traffic next to his old apartment on Sepulveda. He always aimed high and had all these goals and aspirations for the future and it just breaks my heart that he didn’t have a chance to do everything he wanted to do. The biggest regret I will ever have is not having the chance to get to know my brother better as a friend.

Eulogies

Appreciation Remarks from Jerry's Sister......................................................................................................Ms. Andrea Chen

From Jerry's Cousin...............................................................................................................................Ms. Claudia Chen

From Jerry's Girlfriend.................................................................................................................................Ms. Vicki Chin

From Jerry's Friend at Trammell Crow...........................................................................................................Ms. Patti Maude

From Jerry's Friend at Trammell Crow..........................................................................................................Ms. Diana Wyant

From Jerry's Brother of Lambda Phi Epsilon.......................................................................................................Dr. Jack Chen

From Jerry's Brother of Lambda Phi Epsilon.......................................................................................................Mr. Frank Ngo

From Jerry's High School Friend......................................................................................................................Mr. Peter Kim

From Jerry's High School Friend....................................................................................................................Mr. Samuel Lin

From Jerry's Friend at Trammell Crow...............................................................................................................Mr. Ron Heim

Concluding Remarks From Jerry's Father.........................................................................................................Dr. Chao Chen

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