Dr. Chung Shik Kim

Dr. Chung Shik Kim, of West Orange, NJ and Chattanooga, TN passed away peacefully on December 30, 2022, at 96 years old.

Dr. Kim was the first-born of 8 children in 1926 to devout Christian parents.  During the Korean War, his father was martyred for being a (Presbyterian) minister and his widowed mother bravely escaped North Korea with 6 of his living siblings. The family reunited in Seoul where Chung was studying Literature & History at Seoul National University.

As the eldest son with financial responsibilities, Chung changed his focus from the arts to science and attended Severance Medical School, Yonsei University.  After medical school, he served as a Battalion Army Surgeon on the front lines tending the wounded. After the Korean War, he immigrated to the United States and continued his education with a pulmonary and cardiology fellowship at Albert Einstein & Montefiore Hospitals in NYC.

He married his wife, Agnes in 1959 and together they raised 3 daughters in West Orange, NJ. They attended the Korean Methodist Church & Institute in Manhattan, NY, where he served as an elder.

Chung was passionate about classical music and started a Music Appreciation group that met regularly for 30+ years to listen to and share knowledge about classical music and its composers.

Though medicine wasn’t his first intended career, he loved being a physician. Dr. Kim was Chief of Cardiology for more than 25 years at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in East Orange, NJ and taught residents and fellows at UMDNJ-NJ Medical School and overseas at Konyang University Hospital in Daejeon, South Korea until the age of 86.

After nearly 50 years of marriage, Agnes passed away and he became reconnected with and married Suni Choi.  They had a loving marriage for more than 13 years before his passing. He was blessed, loved, and well cared for throughout his life.

Chung was a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, brother, friend, and teacher. He was an amazing role model with a tremendous amount of empathy and gratitude. He was truly a blessing to others and will be deeply missed by all.

He is survived by his wife, Suni; his three daughters and sons-in-law, Mary & Rob Prokop, Pearl & Brian Williams, and Kathy & Glenn Moyer, his beloved grandsons, Daniel and Paul Moyer, and his siblings, Chung Kwon Kim (Jae Shin), Chung Shim Kim (Yoon Bae), and Chung Sil Hong (Se Pyo Steve).

A memorial service will be held on Friday, February 3 at 11:00 am at Antioch Presbyterian Church in West Orange, NJ.  Another service will be held in Chattanooga, TN on Tuesday, February 7, with visitation beginning at 11:00 am, followed by a memorial service at 11:30 am at the Heritage Funeral Home in Chattanooga, TN.  He will be laid to rest at the Chattanooga National Cemetery.

Visit the online obituary www.heritagechattanooga.com to post tributes and share memories.

Arrangements by Heritage Funeral Home, East Brainerd Chapel.

Click HERE to view the livestream

To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.