Angela Chao, shipping company CEO, sister of former Cabinet member, killed in crash

Angela Chao, the chief executive of a shipping company and the sister of former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, was killed in a car crash Sunday in Texas. She was 50.

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Angela Chao’s family confirmed her death, but details about the accident were not immediately available, The New York Times reported.

James S.C. Chao, her father, said the family was “heartbroken” over Angela Chao’s death, NBC News reported.

“Angela’s name in Chinese sounds like the characters for peace and prosperity. She certainly gave more than her share of both to this world,” the elder Chao said in a statement. “Her absence leaves a void not only in our hearts, but in the Asian-American community.”

Since 2018, Angela Chao has been the CEO of Foremost Group, owned by her family, according to the newspaper. The company operates a global fleet of bulk carrier ships that are used to transport items like soybeans and iron ore, the Times reported.

Her sister, Elaine Chao, served as secretary of transportation under former President Donald Trump and was also secretary of labor under President George W. Bush, according to the newspaper. Elaine Chao is married to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

Chao was born in 1973 in Syosset, New York, the Times reported. She graduated from Harvard College and attended Harvard Business School, NBC News reported. She worked in the mergers and acquisitions department of Smith Barney before joining the Foremost Group in 1996, according to the news organization.

Her father fled from mainland China to Taiwan in the late 1940s after Mao Zedong’s communists wrested power from the Nationalists, the Times reported. He moved to the United States in 1958 and helped found the Foremost Group in 1964.

Angela Chao was a former board member of the Bank of China and a former vice chair of the Council of China’s Foreign Trade, according to the newspaper.

“Although born in America, she never forgot her roots and throughout her life helped build bridges of understanding between East and West,” James S.C. Chao said in a statement. “Losing her at such a young age is something we never imagined, and our entire family is devastated with grief.”

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