David Chuan C. Feng

Chuan (David) C. Feng passed away at the age of 96, in his sleep, early Wednesday morning on May 29, 2019. He resided in Irvine, California at the time of his passing. Things transpired very quickly, but he was able to recognize and say good-bye to his loved ones. We are grateful that he was lucid and communicative until the end and did not suffer much.

David was born in 1922 in Wuxi, China, the third child of the late Rui-Tsu and Zhong-Yi Feng. David attended Saint John's University and Jiao Tung University (both in Shanghai), graduating with a bachelors degree in civil engineering. Upon graduating David worked designing and building commercial and residential buildings in China until 1949. In 1954 David immigrated to the United States to enroll at the University of Missouri, where he earned a doctorate in Civil Engineering in 1959. In 1963 David joined the faculty at the University of Colorado as a full professor in the department of Civil Engineering. Over the course of three and a half decades at CU he taught countless courses, mentored many graduate students, and performed research on a wide range of topics including on earthquake resistant building design and space craft structural design. While at CU, David and his graduates worked with/at Martin Marietta (now Lockeed Martin) on many of Americas early space exploration successes, including Sky Lab, the Mars Viking lander, and the Space Shuttle. In the mid 1970's Professor Feng took an interest in sustainable energy sources, and together with other CU faculty helped found SERI (Solar Energy Research Institute).

In 1999 David and his wife, Ching-Hwa Feng, picked up their roots, fled the snowy Colorado winters, and retired to sunny Irvine, California. In addition to his wife Ching-Hwa, he is survived by his four children (Lynda, John, Mary, Edith), and seven grand children, (Evangeline, Rhiannon, Vivienne, Caitlynn, Kevin, Alyssa, and Clara).

Our father had a rich life, enjoyed the friendships along his path, tried to help others where he could and was always full of many interesting stories. Boulder and Irvine were very special places to him and provided him with many connections and experiences.

Our father requested a small private service with only the immediate family in attendance. We appreciate your kindness and desire to pay your respects.

In lieu of flowers, traveling to Irvine, or other gifts, our father expressed a wish to have donations made to Lakeview Senior Center in Irvine, CA in his memory. He was very fond of this place, where he spent many hours among friends socializing and giving advice. He felt they give a lot to the community and
would like to give them something back in return.


Our father was very loved and will be greatly missed - The Feng Family


Please follow all donation instructions Exactly for your donation to get to the correct location.

To Donate by Check, please make your check:
Payable to: City of Irvine
Memo Line (REQUIRED): Lakeview Sr. Ctr, in memory of C. Feng


Please Mail To: Lakeview Senior Center 20 Lake Road Irvine, CA 92604


For On-line Donations, please go to: https://cityofirvine.thankyou4caring.org/pages/online-seniors
Donation Information section: select the 7th bubble down which is blank and has a $ text box to input your amount of donation.
Designation: Select "recreations programs" from the pull down menu
Additional Information (REQUIRED): Comment box - please type "Lakeview Senior Center Recreational Programs, in Memory of C. Feng"