Charles Yu-di Yang, age 86, passed away on Monday, March 5, 2018 at his home in Silver Spring, Maryland, USA. In 1972, Dr. Yang accepted an offer from the Rockefeller Foundation to be the Senior Pathologist at the Asian Vegetable Research & Development Center (AVRDC). In 1980, he moved to Thailand to lead the AVRDC outreach program there. During his 17 years in Thailand, Charles developed the outreach program literally from the ground up.  He got the funding to build the research center and training facilities; hired and managed the staff; oversaw the construction of the buildings; and developed, implemented and directed the training program for nearly 400 scholars from 18 countries around the world.