Justin Xiong, a beloved son, caring brother, and firecracker friend, passed away on the morning of August 10th at age 15 in Baystate Medical Center with his loving mother and brother holding him.  Although his death was unexpected to happen so quickly, the family of Justin would like to celebrate his life, not mourn his death.

Justin, his friends often called him “Justy” or “Justoon”, was a very happy child.  He felt so privileged to have a family that took him traveling to many places.  From an overseas trip to Taiwan and The Caribbean, to a road trip to Florida, to San Francisco, to the glaciers in Alaska, to Las Vegas/the National Parks in Utah and Arizona, to the closer National Park Acadia, to  Fermilab in Chicago and to Niagara falls, traveling was the highlight of his life.

Despite Justin’s physical limitations, there was nothing that could contain his other abilities.  He accomplished so many achievements during his 15 years.  He not only skipped 7th grade, but was also 30 points short from a perfect SAT score while he attended 10th grade.  Although with almost a month of absences from his classes due to his health, he again aced his report card and had a perfect score on his Chemistry SAT.

In the last few weeks, Justin developed a passion for cooking.  He found countless recipes for his mom to try.  Justin even took into consideration of his health and didn’t pick recipes that had high sugar, despite his love for sweets.

Two weeks ago, Justin was hospitalized for 8 days.  When he returned home on August 6th, he spent the remainder of his life doing all the things he always loved.  Justin went shopping with his mom at Whole Foods and ate Mexican food and sushi.  He also watched his favorite show, Chopped, played Wii and a newly bought online game, with his brother.

Please join us to celebrate Justin’s life on Sunday, the 20th from 1 to 2 PM at the Douglass Funeral Service at 87 N. Pleasant St. Amherst, MA 01002.  Please wear your casual clothing as Justin has seen/known you.  Please don’t be a stranger to Justin!