SOOK JA KAHNG

Sook Ja Kahng – a beloved wife, stepmother, aunt and grandmother figure to countless members of her family – died Aug. 30, 2025 peacefully in her sleep at Edenton Retirement Community in Frederick, Md. She was 92 years old.

The former Sook Ja Yeon was born March 5, 1933 in Pyongyang, North Korea, as the fourth of five children. A graduate of the prestigious Sookmyung Women's University in Seoul with a major in Korean literature, Sook Ja used a combination of quantitative skills, intellect and work ethic to eventually become a manager at Bank of Tokyo. After retiring from the banking world, she was working at an antique shop when she met Seun Woo Kahng, who would become her cherished husband until his death in 2020.

She moved to the United States in the early 1990s and settled in Maryland, initially at a cozy home in Rockville with a spacious yard, and then in Chevy Chase, where their condo was always filled with books, newspapers and dozens of her paintings. Sook Ja’s true passion – aside from her family and her Christian faith – was in her art, actively engaging in the craft both in Korea and in the United States, where she continued to participate in exhibitions. Her paintings of nature, flowers and other imagery still decorate the homes of her relatives, serving as a reminder of her talents and her pursuit of it.

In 2019, Sook Ja transitioned into assisted living facilities in Virginia and Maryland, where she was adored by her caregivers, who universally described her as sweet and kind.

Sook Ja was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, and her siblings, which included two brothers and two sisters. She is survived by her stepson, Arden Kahng; several nieces and nephews, a step-grandson, numerous grandnieces and grandnephews, and friends for whom Sook Ja was another member of the family.