A small plane headed to Memphis crashed in a northwest Atlanta park Thursday afternoon, killing everyone on board, including Memphis entrepreneur Wei Chen.
» RELATED: 4 dead after small plane crash in NW Atlanta; Memphis CEO among victims
The executive was one of four of the victims aboard the aircraft when it went down just northeast of Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway between Bolton Road and Fulton Industrial Boulevard.
News of Chen’s death sent shockwaves through Memphis’s business community, where the had been a fixture for decades. Here’s what you should know about him.
He moved to Memphis from China in the 1990s.
He came to Memphis in the late 1990s, from Changsa City, in China’s Hunan Province, where he was born in 1971. He relocated to Tennessee to attend the University of Memphis on a scholarship, graduating with a business degree in 1998.
He was the founder and CEO of Sunshine Enterprise.
In 1998, he founded Sunshine Enterprises, which focuses on the wholesale distribution of Chinese construction and industrial equipment.
According to its website, it began as a one-man shop, founded and operated by Chen in Memphis. Over time, the company expanded to a 400-person enterprise with locations in New York, Los Angeles, Houston and Atlanta.
The three other victims of the fatal plane crash, Danielle Mitchell, John Chen and Bruce Pelynio, were affiliated with Sunshine Enterprise.
» RELATED: No survivors after small plane crashes in northwest Atlanta
Chen, also a pilot, flew around the world to raise money for St. Jude’s Children’s Research.
His fascination with planes propelled him to pursue a pilot’s license in 2007. With just 250 hours of flying time under his belt he announced he wanted to fly a single engine plane around the world.
He did it to raise $250,000 for St. Jude's Children's Research and became the first Chinese pilot to circumnavigate the globe in a single-engine plane, The Commercial Appeal reported.
The journey took 69 days in 2011, and Chen later wrote a book about the experience titled “Around the World in 69 Days: What Would You Attempt To Do If You Knew You Could Not Fail?”
He served on the board of several Memphis organizations.
Chen was a member of the Young President's Organization and a board member at Metropolitan Bank, according to the Sunshine Enterprise website. He also served as a board member for the Greater Memphis Chamber, Memphis In May International Festival, the University of Memphis Alumni Board and the Greater Memphis United Chinese Association.
He is survived by his three children and wife, who he met in college.
"When I came to Memphis I didn't speak much English, I didn't have any money and I didn't know anyone," Chen told The Commercial Appeal in 2011. "In the first week, I met my best friend and my future wife-to-be. Then I started my business. Memphis can offer opportunity, if you work hard."
» RELATED: 3 North Georgia residents killed in small plane crash
About the Author
