Arifin Setiadi
November 12, 1946 — November 10, 2021
On Wednesday, November 10, 2021, Arifin Setiadi entered into eternal rest at his youngest daughter, Henny Vallee's home in Colorado Springs, after three months of being under Colorado Palliative & Hospice Care for his pneumonia recovery journey. The Lord loved him so much that two days before his 75th birthday, He relieved Arifin from his suffering, while surrounded by the warmth of his loving family, to celebrate his birthday and the Lord's Thanksgiving feast in heaven, where Arifin could find peace, soul food, and eternal joy.
Arifin was born in D.I. Aceh, Indonesia on November 12, 1946, to Lie Yun Xien (father) and Wong Mien Kiaw (mother). As the third of four siblings (an older sister, an older brother, and a younger stepbrother), he’s always loved reading books, exploring nature, and creating new inventions ever since he was little.
As a young man, Arifin was actively involved in his university organization as well as his Catholic church group. While working on his mechanical engineering degree, his mom introduced him to his beloved wife-to-be, Natalia Liong. It took only a few dates for Arifin to realize that Natalia was the one. Six months later, they were united in marriage on May 13th, 1973, in Jakarta, Indonesia. On March 3, 1975, they were blessed with twin girls, named Erna and Erni, followed by their only son, Hadi, who was born on April 30, 1976. On August 31, 1979, their youngest daughter, Henny, was born.
Arifin was a visionary entrepreneur with strong family values. With the support of his wife, he built three new businesses, starting from T-shirt silkscreening and plastic tray manufacturing to seafood exporting. In business, he was a respected leader who treated his colleagues and workers as family and often went out of his way to help them and their families. At home, he was a kind, humble and loving husband and father, providing a family culture that is grounded in faith, trust, and service. Even though Arifin was a busy and hardworking man, he always remembered to worship the Lord and prioritized family time, taking his family out to dinners and fun weekend outings.
He celebrated his traditional Chinese and Indonesian cultures, but also embraced western culture. Arifin and Natalia believed in giving their children the best education and sent their children abroad to study in Singapore and the U.S.A. In 1998, they decided to make their permanent home in Costa Mesa, California, to be with their children. Since then, they have enjoyed watching their children becoming parents and spending time with their 8 grandchildren during birthdays, holidays, and Chinese New Year celebrations.
On their anniversary weekend in May 2021, Arifin and Natalia enjoyed their memorable trip together in an R.V. along with their son-in-law, Patrick Vallee, daughter, Erna Blooms, and friend, Hanam Vuong from Southern California to Colorado Springs to live with their youngest daughter, Henny, and her family. Arifin was blessed to see his youngest granddaughter, Faith, who was born in June 2021.
Arifin suffered from severe pneumonia in July 2021 and was hospitalized. His three other children were able to make a trip out to Colorado to visit with him during his hospital stay. Through God's gracious will and faithful prayers from friends and family, he was released to go home, but shortly after placed under hospice care at Henny's home. For the next three months, Natalia, Henny, Patrick, doctors, and nurses dedicated their loving care to make Arifin feel comfortable. Through it all, he always gave his care team his friendly smile and warm presence.
Although he had previously survived six other life and death events, he was finally called home on November 10, 2021. Arifin had his last memorable moments with his family (some through FaceTime) as they shared his life tribute, gratitude, songs, and smiles the night before he surrendered to God's will. We took comfort that he is now no longer in pain and can rejoice in heaven alongside our late loved ones.
Arifin was not only an amazing and loving husband, father, uncle, brother, and grandfather, but also a respectful mentor, humble hero, generous investor, and inspiring leader to many. He had been his family's inspiration, strength, and legacy builder. We miss him and the light of his spirit deeply. We will always cherish his unconditional love, an abundance of wisdom, sense of humor, honorable character, well-lived life, and countless memories he created with all of us. We are holding him dearly in our hearts forever.
Arifin is survived by his beloved wife of 48 years Natalia Liong and:
Daughter Erna Blooms
Daughter Erni Setiadi-Wang and son-in-law John Wang
Son Hadi Setiadi
Daughter Henny Vallee and son-in-law Patrick Vallee
Step Father Liauw She Chen
Auntie Wong Man Kiaw
Sister Susanti Lesmana
Brother Francis Borgia Soedijanto
Step Brother Firdaus Kusuma and wife Lily Arsjad
Cousin Tjong Sui Tjen and husband Li Shen Khin
Cousin Djan Chandra and wife Jill Peng
Cousin Tjong Lin Tjen and husband Gou Kim Yung
Nieces Prisca Jantily Soedijanto, Tecia Fenty Soedijanto, Francisca Tity Soedijanto
Nephew Eddy Ng and wife Mariati Lim with their children: Alphonsus, Jacinta, and Anga
And numerous other family members
He was also the proud and adoring grandfather ("Yeye" or "Kung Kung") of:
Ilona B. Hohertz
Kalie B. Hohertz
Leilani K. Wang
Lucas K. Wang
Hannah M. Vallee
Gabriel E. Vallee
Caleb R. Vallee
Sara E. Vallee
Faith A. Vallee
A mass funeral honoring Arifin will be held at St. Irenaeus Catholic Church in Cypress on Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 10:30 am, followed by burial services at Forest Lawn Cypress at 1:30 pm. An invite-only visitation with eulogies (celebration of his life) and rosary will be conducted the evening before on December 1, 2021, from 7:00 to 9:00 pm at the Luyben Dilday Mortuary 's intimate chapel in Long Beach.
For anyone who cannot attend the Visitation, Funeral Mass, or burial services, links to the live-stream are provided below.
December 1, 2021
(https://youtu.be/IUZN57s9b8E)
December 2, 2021
(https://youtu.be/loIy3aD8X0A)
Funeral arrangements are entrusted to Luyben Dilday Mortuary in Long Beach, (562) 425-6401.
The Setiadi family kindly requests that instead of sending gifts or cards, please make a monetary donation to the Arifin Setiadi Memorial Fund by clicking here:
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