Sung Wol Slater

Sung Wol Slater passed away peacefully at her home in Dana Point, California, on October 22, 2025, at the age of 96.

Born in a small village in what is now North Korea, Sung’s remarkable life was one of courage, resilience, and unbreakable spirit. As a young girl, she endured harsh winters and long walks to school, determined to learn despite her family’s poverty. In her late teens she made a dangerous journey across the border to South Korea, sleeping outdoors and crossing icy rivers to reach Seoul, where she began a new life on her own.

True to her name, Sung Wol—Sung meaning “to accomplish, to succeed, to become complete,” and Wol meaning “moon,” symbol of calm light, constancy, and renewal, she built her life with steady shine and quiet strength, completing every hard chapter with dignity and grace.

Through hard work and resourcefulness, she became an entrepreneur - renting rooms, trading goods, and finding opportunity wherever she could. While working as a waitress at the U.S. Army Officer’s Club in Seoul, she met Charles Eugene “Gene” Slater, the love of her life. They married and built a life together filled with laughter and purpose.

After Gene’s sudden passing in 1968, Sung courageously raised their two young children, Grace and Charles, on her own. In 1972, she emigrated to the United States, determined to give them a better life. She worked as a nursing assistant in San Francisco, later purchasing her first home and eventually owning and operating two motels in South Lake Tahoe. Her relentless work ethic and sharp business sense laid the foundation for her family’s success.

Sung valued education deeply and took pride in helping her son through college and law school, and her granddaughters through their university studies. Her legacy of generosity continues through the Sung Wol Slater Scholarship Foundation, which will provide annual scholarships to students pursuing higher education.

Sung was known for her sense of humor, honesty, and fearless independence. She could light up a room with her laughter and charm, and she was famous for reading palms at dinners and gatherings, leaving people smiling and in wonder.

In her later years, she found peace in her Dana Point home with her longtime partner Doug McKeand by her side. When she was not at yoga, jazzercise, or strengthening sessions, she loved to sit and admire her garden, often calling Dana Point “heaven on earth.” With the help of devoted caregivers Maria, Marichu, and Delia, she spent her final days with comfort and dignity, surrounded by loved ones.

Sung was preceded in death by her husband, Gene, and her daughter, Grace. She is survived by her son, Charles Cho Slater, and daughter-in-law, Tracey Slater; granddaughters Lauren “Ren” Navarette (husband, Garrett) and Marisa “Risa” Sung Slater; grandson Christopher Charles Dickinson; great-granddaughter Eden Ray Navarette; and her longtime partner, Douglas McKeand.

Her strength, humor, and love will continue to inspire all who knew her. Her email username said it best - “behappy925.” She lived by that, and she leaves this world at peace and still smiling.