Our beloved Monica Hsiao (蕭宇潔) – amazing wife, mother, daughter, sister, and friend – sadly and suddenly left us on March 22, with childbirth-related complications, following on the heels of her and James' beautiful newborn son Elgin Jih (紀朗朗)

Monica loved so many people, so very well, with her kindness, generosity, brilliance, loyalty, song, and laughter.

Elgin, the tiniest 哥哥, will definitely be missed by his roommate of 8.5 months, Evelyn 妹妹 !  Monica will be most dearly and daily missed in the lives of her loving widower James and newborn daughter Evelyn.


Many have asked how they can support James and Evelyn during this difficult time. This gift campaign is one opportunity to return the love and generosity that always poured out from Monica's heart, by providing financial relief for her husband James in the raising of their newborn baby daughter Evelyn.

For just a few examples on what practical support will be enabled by your generosity:
 USD $3 provides 10 diapers for Evelyn 
 USD $10 provides 1 children's book for James to read to Evelyn
 USD $15 provides 1 pack of guitar strings for James to sing to Evelyn
 USD $50 provides 1 week's supply of infant formula
 USD $60 provides dinner for James, Evelyn and 3 friends at his and Monica's favorite pizza joint
 USD $75 provides 2 weeks' supply of diapers
 USD $200 provides 1 month of  future classes for Evelyn (playgroups, music lessons, baby gyms, etc.)
 USD $500 provides 1 year of routine wellbaby doctors' visits for Evelyn
 USD $1500 provides 1 roundtrip airfare for James & Evelyn to visit their stateside fans
 USD $3000 offsets most of the surcharge for the GoFundMe campaign goal*
 USD $3500 provides for 1 month of 24-hour postpartum or live-in nanny with English language proficiency


There are also so many non-monetary ways to express your love and support for Evelyn and James. In particular, your experiences with Monica are precious to Evelyn, who will learn a lot about her mother through all of you who loved and knew her. James invites you to share those memories here: (Share stories of Monica to help Evelyn get to know her mom), and any recordings you might happen to have of Monica singing here: (Share recordings of Monica singing). Over the past week, James has felt consolation and even glimmers of joy through the songs and through reading your heartfelt entries. Also please feel free contact the organizers if you would like to help out with a growing list of coordinated efforts that contribute to immediate relief (such as funeral preparations) as well as longer-term stability.


Please feel zero pressure to contribute financially. James and Evelyn are grateful for your generosity and care in all forms. Any support is deeply appreciated, and James and Evelyn, along with the extended Hsiao and Jih families, express their heartfelt gratitude for your support, prayers, and messages. 



Thank you sincerely,


Teena, Kevin, Esther, Bebe, and Jerry
in loving memory of Monica Hsiao and Elgin Jih
and support of baby Evelyn and James Jih






*The GoFundMe platform incurs a 3% fee, however it works for Taiwan & US supporters alike. If you need to arrange other means of monetary contributions (e.g. PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, wire transfer, etc.) please contact the organizing team. Offline donations are added to this page (but do not incur the service charge) for transparency on progress toward the gift campaign goal.