Eun Ja Yang

Eun Ja Yang, age 84, of Portland, OR, died May 22nd, 2026, the same day of St. Rita of Cascia’s feast day and incidentally her saint name in Portland, OR, from stage IV cancer.

She was born in April, 16th, 1942 in Mukden, Manchuria, then part of the Empire of Japan. She graduated from Pusan National University in 1963 from their 3 year RN licensing program. She married my father Sung Mo Yang in Pusan then emigrated to Chicago, Illinois. I, David Yang, her son, was born in 1985 in Chicago. We then settled in Portland, OR in 1990.

My mother was a Special Olympics donor. Also, a woman of great integrity as she once returned an air conditioning unit that was mistakenly delivered to us after I cancelled and got a refund. She refused to lie or steal and like the Navy did not tolerate lying and stealing from others. She battled cancer since breast cancer since 2021 which since metastisized to her liver and brain. Her father was a Presbyterian pastor and her oldest brother was a retired colonel in the Republic of Korea Army branched intelligence both also deceased. She was a former Baptist who converted and was confirmed Catholic by Fr. Niles a few weeks before her passing taking the name St. Rita of Cascia.

Graveside service will be conducted on June, 10th 2026 at Gethsemani Catholic Cemetery and Funeral Home in Happy Valley, OR at 12:30pm