Fuzhi (Jason) Zhang was born in Beijing, China, on the 15 October 1968. Now although Jason was pretty consistent with the date of 15 October he was a little careless with the actual year. His very sharp eyed friends noticed that this became the 15 October 1970 on his social media sites and ranged from 15 October 1980 to 15 October 1986 on his various dating sites during his single years.
Jason was one of three children, with an older brother Fulu and a sister both of whom survive Jason and live in Beijing. We are very grateful that Fulu was able to join us today to celebrate Jason’s life and represent the family.
After Jason’s studies he moved from Beijing to Shenzhen to, as Jason would say, “explore the world and to be free from the constraints of tradition”. He found employment at the Bank of China in Shenzhen. This work frequently took Jason to Hong Kong where he met Eckard. We’re very grateful to Eckard for travelling from Oman to be with us today.
It was at this time that Jason left the bank and he and Eckard went into business together, selling gadgets, including lights. Jason used to come over to London for trade shows around 1999 and he would often stay with his friends Biao and Gareth. Initially the business promoted gadgets yo the UK market, cigarette lighters and Chairman Mao badges. Unfortunately, Chairman Mao wasn’t as popular as expected here in the UK, so the business switched to concentrating on lights and has remained that way ever since. The sale of lights boomed and Jason began looking for bigger and better business opportunities. He decided to move to the UK after the business had some very successful orders from a large retail store in the UK.
Jason arrived in London renting a room in Wimbledon from friends, Biao and Gareth. He then bought a flat in Wimbledon, then another flat in the Burgess Park area and then finally a flat in Camberwell. It was here that Jason finally found love and decided to settle down.
In 2015 Jason met Vinnie and after living together in Camberwell they eventually bought a house in Streatham. In 2018 they decided to start a family and along came Charlie.
Jason’s hard work and expertise ensured that the company Lightstyle London grew into the very successful business it is today and we are grateful to be joined by Jason’s work colleagues, Peter, Larissa, Rob, Adrian, Jacob and Caroline.
Jason lived his life to the full, took it by the horns and wrestled it. He was involved in everything and was always an active participant, leading from the front. The many different groups of friends sitting here today can all agree to that. Being active was a big part of Jason’s life and he took to many sports.
The first of his team sports that bears mentioning is Table Tennis where Jason was part of a self-named group called the Five Sisters. Peter was the oldest and therefore Sister number 1, then Jason was Sister number 2, Wei number 3, Ling number 4 and Toby Number 5. This group of friends has stood by Jason and Vinnie through the years and particularly at this very difficult time.
The group then moved onto Volleyball where Jason was part of a team which played socially. Simon was the one who introduced Jason to the sport and Jason really enjoyed himself to the amusement of his team mates. He often complained that he was too heavy and muscular for the game and in particular when he was trying to spike the ball. He vowed many times that he’d lose weight but as we all know, Jason loved good food and eventually Jason decided Volleyball was not going to be one of his strengths.
After Jason hurt his knee he then turned to playing tennis. He belonged to many tennis clubs through the years, starting with Burgess Park, Westfield and most recently Old College in Dulwich where he made many friends including Ryan, Joshua, David and Gun.
Jason was a popular member at Old College Tennis Club, where he enjoyed playing social club play and organised games. Whilst his line calls were sometimes questionable (Jason often claimed "It was out, I swear"), his heart was always in the right place. Jason was fiercely competitive, and demanded the highest performance of his doubles partner. His strengths included a strong first serve, a good forehand, and he's probably (and should be) working on his backhand in the afterlife.
Jason was a doting father and it was this quality that led to him being a very important part of the dog walking group in Norwood Grove. Charlie demanded a walk every morning and evening and he, Vinnie and Charlie would meet up with the rest of the gang most evenings and throughout the weekends. It was here that he met Wayne and Robert, Pauline and Ali, Virgil and Michaela. Sadly, there was always a lot more sitting, gossiping and laughing than actual walking of dogs. (This was reported to the RSPCA.) Jason and Charlie became very well known and much loved on Streatham Common and Norwood Grove which is evident by the large number of people here who’ve all had to leave their princes and princesses at home this afternoon.
Jason adored children and I’m not sure how many people are aware of this but he and Vinnie were in the final stages of having another addition to their family. Jason wanted a son and had made plans to fly to Georgia where they would finalise the paperwork and plans. Unfortunately, the world went into lockdown and they were unable to fly.
Jason’s death was sudden and completely unexpected. He was on a skiing holiday with his tennis club in the French Alps. Although Jason felt short of breath, he was having the time of his life as everyone who received a video from him of his holiday will testify. He was looking forward to returning to Vinnie and Charlie in London and was only hours away from leaving when tragedy struck. He was medevacked to Chambéry and special mention must be made of Edmund and Phillipe who accompanied Jason and stood by him until Vinnie and Wayne could get to the hospital.
Unfortunately, and despite everyone’s hopes, it was not good news in France and the doctors explained that Jason had died at the ski resort from lack of oxygen to the brain. He was kept breathing by the machines but there was no hope of him recovering.
Although Jason had a relatively short life (even shorter if you went by his social media dates) he had a huge impact on everyone he met. He was very popular, much loved and a very happy man. We were all fortunate to know Jason, we are the lucky ones. He will live on in our memories and our stories. Jason is now a part of us. He will live on every time we all meet.