Thomas L. Chao
March 26, 1947 – March 19, 2023
The Northeast Florida Association of REALTORS was very sorry to learn that Thomas Chao, a longtime REALTOR® with Watson Realty Corp, passed away on March 19.
A memorial service will be held for Mr. Chao at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 25, in the chapel of Quinn-Shalz Funeral Home at 3600 3rd Street South, Jacksonville Beach, Florida, 32250. It is requested that mourners wear their best “beach” attire.
In lieu of flowers, Mr. Chao’s family requests donations be sent to Ancient City Game Fish Association/Youth Fishing, P.O. Box 2001, St. Augustine, Florida or to the Alzheimer’s Foundation, 225 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60601.
A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Mr. Chao, 75, was a 65-year resident of the Beaches community and graduate of Fletcher High School, Class of 1965. He joined NEFAR in January 2003 when he began his real estate career in the Ponte Vedra office of Watson Realty Corp. He retired from real estate in 2016 and officially left the real estate association in January of 2019.
A “people person,” Mr. Chao was the owner of Chao Travel before venturing into the real estate community as an agent. He loved spending time with his family and friends and often could be found admiring the sunset on his dock in the evening. He was an avid outdoorsman who loved camping, fishing, cornhole, horseshoes, and boating on Florida’s waterways. The last few years of his life were challenging due to a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s.
