In this Issue:
The
World
Yee
Family Association 4th International Convention
Yee
Chung-sheung
Ancestor Hall Rehabilitation Ceremony
23rd
National
Yee Fung Toy Family Association Convention
Reports
from
Yee Fung Toy Chapters
Next Issue
Welcome to
the 20th issue of the Yee Fung Toy Global Village
Voice, an electronic newsletter for the World Yee
community. In this issue we are featuring summer
activities from associations of the Yee Fung Toy
around the world.
The recent
23rd US Yee Fung Toy Association Convention held in at
the Sheraton LaGuardia East Hotel in Flushing, New
York on August 8 thru August 11, 2009, was a
tremendous success, for more details, please click here.
Seattle YFT
Family Association will be the next host in 2012.
Congratulations
to the newly elected Grand Presidents and Vice Grand
Presidents for both East and West coasts.
We thank all
those who have made contributions to this issue,
including:
- David M.
Yee, Krystin Yee, Edward Yue and Rudy Yee of Phoenix
- Edward
Yee, Dick Yee, Ron Yee, Ray Yee and Allan Yee of
Detroit
- Frank Yee,
Gong Sum Yee and Elaine Yee of New York
- Frank Yu
of Houston
- Fred Yee,
Danny Yu of Seattle
- Henry Yu
and Melinda Yee of Sacramento
- Ho Lee Yee
and Winston Yee of Boston
- Kai Yon
Yee of Malaysia
- Martin
Yee, Shui Chi Yu, James Yu and Wing Yee of Vancouver
- Richard
Yue, Johnson Yee of Hong Kong
- Ying Hua
Yu and Jerome Yu of Edmonton, Canada
We look
forward to our sixth year of publication, and many
more years to come!
Jim Yee, Vancouver
Dragon Boat Festival
and Senior Citizens Day Celebrations
Over 220 members gathered at the
Association office, paid homage to our ancestors and
had a buffet lunch on May 24, 2009.
Dragon Boat Festival was
celebrated with about 20 tables at the Rice Bowl
Restaurant in Sacramento. There were 85 senior
citizens over 75 years old who received a lucky money
envelope.
Melinda Yee, Sacramento
Congratulations
to
Presiding CCBA President Damon Yee!
Presiding President Damon Yee of
the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association
(a.k.a. Six Companies) was sworn in on July 2, 2009 by
Assistant President pro Tempore of the California
State Senate Leland Yee Ph.D. On this auspicious
occasion, all of the CCBA presidents were present and
Damon Yee has commanded respect not only from
community leaders but elected official as well.
Attending the inauguration were California Board of
Equalization Chairwoman Betty Yee, Mayor Gavin Newsom,
Board of Supervisors President David Chiu and
Supervisors Carmen Chu, and Eric Mar, representatives
from State Senator Mark Leno, Assemblywoman Fiona Ma,
Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, and District Attorney Kamala
Harris all honored him.
The CCBA is the granddaddy of
family associations in the Chinese community. CCBA
started in 1850 and there are now seven associations:
1) Ning Yung Benevolent Association; 2) Sue Hing
Benevolent Association; 3) Hop Wo Benevolent
Association; 4) Kong Chow Benevolent Association; 5)
Yeong Wo Benevolent Association; 6) Sam Yup Benevolent
Association; and 7) Yan Wo Benevolent Association. For
close to 160 years, CCBA has stood the test of time,
serving and helping the Chinese community.
The Yee Fung Toy Family Association
elder Damon Yee, current Hop Wo Benevolent Association
president is now the Presiding President of CCBA
during July and August 2009 and his term as Hop Wo
President ends December 31, 2010. Congratulations!
Following the inauguration a dinner
banquet was held at New Asia with had over 350
community leaders, including our cousins Mas and Tses,
the Yees, family and friends. What a great dinner
banquet to finish off a spectacular evening that will
be remembered for a very long time.
Damon Yee would like to thank
everyone for the wonderful flowers and warm wishes. He
wishes everyone health, happiness and prosperity.
Thank you!
Larry Yee, San Francisco HQ
In
Memory of Grand Elder Kin Hoy Yee
Kin Hoy Yee (
November 1, 1924 - July 5, 2009)
Kin Hoy Yee was born in 1924 in
Cheung Lung, Taishan in Guangdong province, China. His
parents were Chung Hoa Yee and Ham Toy Mah. Chung Hoa
Yee immigrated to Detroit and was able to buy the Sam
Lee laundry on Gratiot.
Kin attended seven years of school
in the village. In 1936 Kin and his mother went to
Hong Kong to live with his uncle. By 1937 Canton was
occupied by Japan. Kin was able to attend school in
Hong Kong and learned some English.
By 1939 Kin's father sent money for
Kin to join him in Detroit. Kin traveled from Hong
Kong to Seattle on the Princess Margaret. Kin spent 5
½ months at the immigration detention center in
Seattle. Finally, Kin was able to travel by train from
Seattle to Detroit to join his father.
In Detroit Kin attended Stephens
School for classes for foreign-born students, where
one of his teachers recommended that Kin attend Cass
Tech High School. Kin then attended classes at Wayne
State University while working at the Sam Lee laundry.
Kin met Jane Fong in 1944 at an
all-Chinese Christian youth conference in Lake George,
NY. Kin attended as a representative of the Methodist
Chinese youth in Detroit. Kin and Jane were married in
1948. Their children are Catherine, Edward, Joanne,
Christopher and Brian. Niece Carolynne joined their
family in 1963. Their grandchildren are Sharon, Susan,
Teresa, Matthew, Megan, Aidan and Isabella. Their
great grandchild is Grace.
Kin's career as an electrical
engineer included positions with King & Park;
H.F.Campbell; Siegel & Sweich; Smith, Hinchman
& Grylls; DiClemente & Siegel Engineers and
Albert Kahn & Associates.
In 1993 Kin married Yin Kwan
Cheung. His stepchildren are Addla, Andrew, Annie and
Anthony. Their grandchildren are Justin, Cassandra,
Ethan , Grace and Lauren.
Fluent in both Cantonese and
English, Kin served in several positions in the
Chinese community including:
Honorary Mayor of Chinatown
President of the American Citizens for Justice
On Leong Council
President of the Chinese Welfare Council
Eastern Vice President and then Eastern President of
the National Yee Association
He is honored today by the Yee Association as a Grand
Elder.
Kin frequently was asked to serve
as an emcee at weddings and banquets and would
frequently entertain the crowd with Chinese opera.
Kin's family would like to thank
everyone for their kind expressions of sympathy and
for sharing their memories of Kin.
Kin Hoy Family Members
The
Yee Fung Toy Association of Sacramento 2009 Annual
Picnic
Our annual picnic was held on July
12th 2009 at William Land Park.
A record breaking 200 guests
attended. This year, instead of serving traditional
Chinese food at the picnic, we served roast beef and
turkey sandwiches.
There were 30 raffle prize
drawings. One lucky winner won both first and second
prizes valued at $450.
As with every year, there was good
food, games and fun in the sun!
Thank you to all who participated
in making the picnic a success.
Later, The Association hosted a
Volunteer Appreciation Dinner to thank all those who
worked at the picnic.
Melinda Yee, Sacramento
NY YFT 2009
Annual Summer Picnic - Bear Mountain
The New York Yee Fong Toy
Association's annual picnic was held on Saturday, July
11, 2009.
We had four chartered buses to
bring 220 people to Bear Mountain State Park in
Harriman, NY. We gathered in front of American Legion
on Canal Street at around 8:30 a.m. The buses left
Chinatown at around 9:15 a.m.
As usual, everything went according
to plan. Then I saw one girl who came late chasing
after our buses. Luckily, the bus driver was good
natured enough to let her on at the traffic light. We
made it to Bear Mountain in good time before noon. We
distributed lunches and took some pictures.
Then everyone scattered to find a
picnic area for lunch. After lunch, the older folks
just hanged around shooting the breeze. The younger
groups ventured off fishing, paddling boats, swimming
and to the zoo. I decided to take my nieces and
nephews to the zoo. In there, they have bears, bald
eagle, owls, snakes, lizards, otter, beaver, fox,
coyote, etc. It was a pretty neat zoo. I am sure the
kids enjoyed it a lot.
After the zoo, we played a game of
volleyball. It drew a lot of participants. Even
people, whom we were not familiar with, decided to
join in. In the afternoon, there were clouds moved in,
but it did not rain. Ah Gung must be smiling down on
us and gave us his blessings. It was a perfect day for
a family outing. Hope to see everyone again next year!
Elaine Yee, New York
Vancouver's
Yees and Mahs - A Day Trip to Whistler
Around 8:30 am on a fine sunny
Sunday morning on July 19th, 45 of us boarded the
"Happy Times Travel" bus that would take us from the
Yee Fung Toy Society House in Chinatown, to the Mah
Society of Vancouver on Hastings Street, picked up 11
Mah Society members to fill the 56-seats bus. Our Mah
cousins had already filled their other bus.
We then, were on our way to
Whistler, the site of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games,
via the Sea to Sky Highway for a one day outing
together.
This year, our Mah cousins
co-hosted with us for a "one day" getaway to Whistler.
Thanks to Chairman Jim Yee of the Yee Fung Toy Society
of Vancouver, and William Ma, Chairman of the Mah
Society of Vancouver for arranging this joint program.
Our buses drove by Horseshoe Bay,
Britannia Beach, Stawamus Chief Provincial Park, and
Squamish. We had a rest stop at Squamish's Tim Hortons
for some cool drinks and donuts. We arrived at
Whistler Village just before noon and spent the next
three hours exploring the place under the hot sun.
Some of us took a 15-minute shuttle
ride from Whistler to beautiful "Lost Lake". It is a
gorgeous, small mountain lake surrounded by lush
greenery and flowers. With the colorful scenery, it's
so unbelievable that seems like we walked into a
lovely postcard. A few of us took the Whistler-Blackcomb
Peak to Peak Gondola ride for a sight seeing
adventure, and some stayed in the Whistler Village to
do some shopping around.
After an enjoyable outing, our
buses drove us back to Vancouver's Chinatown, where we
dined at The Jade Dynasty Restaurant. Both appetizer
and entree dishes came out quickly and all were very
delicious.
The Yee-Mah friendship relationship
in Vancouver is just keeps on getting stronger,
deeper and better than ever!
Cheers to the Yees and Mahs! More
adventures and outings together in the future!
Martin Yee, Vancouver
Annual Outing at Canobie Lake Park
This summer's weather has been
somewhat abnormal and unpredictable. There were many
cool, cloudy, damp, and rainy days with few warm sunny
days. However, on July 25th a summer day finally
arrived. We had a great day for our annual summer
outing to Canobie Lake Amusement Park in New
Hampshire.
Although the park in located in
another state to the north, it was fairly close to
Boston. Driving time is approximately 40 minutes from
Chinatown. Thus, many people chose to drive their
family auto rather than take our bus.
Over the past few years, we had
attended Lake Compounce Them Park in Connecticut. This
year it was decided for a change and went to Canobie
Lake Amusement Park which was first opened in 1902.
Both parks are very similar. They both provide rides
and games for all ages. The standard cars, trains,
coaster, and carousel. A kiddies section with the
smaller version, and regular size rides spread
throughout the park for teens and adults. Also, a
cable car ride across the park gives a bird's-eye view
of the people below. It's like the cable car in Lake
Compounce that goes up to the mountain top.
Castaway is their water park where
families and others of all ages gather to enjoy
swimming, slides, and other water games.
Mystique, a mystical & magic
show is offered in the main hall. Also, theatre like
stages and bench were setup in a couple locations for
rest and enjoyment of musical song & dance shows.
Since Canobie Lake is a much
larger lake than Lake Compounce, it offered a longer
boat ride. The 30 minute ride around the lake was very
enjoyable and relaxing.
At 6:30pm we concluded our day at
the park and boarded our bus for the ride back to
Boston Chinatown. Another year, another fun day
enjoyed by all.
Winston Yee, Boston
2009 Seattle Yee
Fung Toy Family Association 55th Annual Picnic
The 2009 Seattle Yee Fung Toy
Family Association annual picnic was held on July 26
at the Woodland Park Zoo Picnic Area #3. On this
beautiful Summer day, preparation for the setting up
of the picnic began at 11:30 am when association
advisor Suey Yee and wife Linda brought in a truck
load of picnic essentials with boxes of paper plates
and napkins, chips, sodas and bottled water, water
melons and gifts for door prizes. Soon after,
Vice-President De Shum Yee and wife arrived with a van
full of hot food that include a whole roast pig,
barbeque pork, chow mein, fried chicken pieces and
Chinese style finger food and dessert items. Before
long, enough association members arrived to help with
the table set and arrangement of the food serving
table.
By 12:30 pm, over a 100 association
members and families had gathered together around the
picnic area. With the arrival of the Yee Fung Toy
Society of Vancouver Chairman Jim Yee and his wife
Betty, the picnic began with the traditional brief
remarks and thank you messages. Food was then served
and the annual scholarship awards presentation began.
This year, over 30 students from
Grade 1 - College Seniors received scholarships.
Association Senior Advisor, Uncle James Yee gave an
overview of the scholarships program and application
requirements. Door prizes began after the scholarship
awards were completed. The door prize drawing has been
the highlight of each annual picnic for many years and
this year was no exception. By 2:30 pm, the picnic
ended with an atmosphere of great fellowships and
enjoyment.
In the evening, the Association
held the traditional dinner at Renton Seafood
Restaurant of which Association Shek Jing is one of
the owners. All then look forward to the 2010 annual
picnic with great memories of another successful
picnic for our association for 2009.
Fred Yee, Seattle
Yee
Chung-sheung Ancestor Hall Rehabilitation Ceremony Is
Postponed to Early Next Year
Hi everyone,
After our meetings in Hong Kong and
Kai Ping last week, and on behalf of both Hong Kong
and Kai Ping Restoration Committee, I hereby announce
that the Yee Ancestor Hall Opening Ceremony will be
postponed to early next year. Further information
regarding this event will be sent to all of you in the
near future.
Regards
Johnson Yee Kin Lun
Hong Kong and Kai Ping Restoration Committee
Monday, July 27, 2009
The 23rd US
Yee Fung Toy Association Convention in pictures
New York YFT
2009 Scholarship Event
This year, because of the countless
hours spent in preparation for the 23rd National
Convention, New York Yee Fong Toy Association decided
not to hold its 2009 scholarship awards ceremony.
Instead, we requested all our
scholarship recipients to appear in person at our
association's hall to pick up their scholarships. The
idea is to get them acquainted with our association
and to understand where their scholarships come from.
In hope that one day they too can be contributors to
our association.
In spite of time constraint, our
scholarship committee worked tirelessly to review all
scholarship applications and produced this year's
scholarship winners. This year, 113 scholarship
recipients qualified for awards. Graduating high
school seniors tend to benefit the most from our
awards program.
Our big winner for this year is
Vivian Yu who received scholarship awards from a
special Five Tong Association scholarship program and
Dit Nam Yu memorial scholarship fund. Also receiving
awards from Five Tong Association's program are
Allison Yu and Diane Yee. Dennis Yu and Kimberly Yee
received awards from Dit Nam Yu's scholarship fund.
Stephanie Yee and Jessica Lauren Yee both got awards
from the late Ming Lai Yee Memorial Scholarship Fund.
This year, of the top six college students with a 3.5
or better average for 30-credit school year, three
already received our one-time special Five Tong
awards. The three recipients are Sammy Yu, Jia Xin Yu
and Shasha Yu. Education provided upward mobility to
all our future generations.
Our forefathers had a vision. They
saw the important of education so they set up
scholarship to motivate our youngsters to do well in
school. Nowadays, the new generations of Yees are
mainly middle-class professionals, who are living the
American dreams. America gave us equal opportunities
in this society. However, it takes a leader, one who
has a passion and is willing to make a difference in
life, to step up and be able to give back to the
community.
Today, we recognized your
achievements, but it is up to you to show us your true
colors. Congratulations to all our scholarship
winners!
Elaine Yee, New York
Congratulation
to new Eastern U.S. Grand President Kenneth Yee
On August 30, 2009 about 100
members, family and friends came out to celebrate the
newly elected Yee Fung Toy Family Association's
Eastern U.S. Grand President Kenneth Yee at Delight
Restaurant in New York Chinatown. Congratulations to a
person well deserving of the position. We consider
Kenneth not only a good family member to our
association but great good will ambassador to our
Chinatown community. We are appreciative of his
dedication and commitment in leading our family
association to new heights locally and now on a
national level.
A week later, September 6, Kenneth
wanted to show his appreciation by treating our
members to a buffet luncheon. In keeping with
tradition, he also wanted to pay respects to our
ancestor by bring a roast pig. Our Ma and Tse cousins
also came to wish Kenneth success in his new position.
We all had a great time. Thank you, Kenneth for making
this all possible.
Frank Yee, New York
Now that summer is over, it is Back
to School for most students. The next issue of the Yee
Fung Toy Global Village Voice will be published in mid
December, featuring reports of scholarship awards and
celebrations of the Moon (mid Autumn) festivals at Yee
Fung Toy associations around the world. Please submit
your articles to the Editor via email (editor @
yeefungtoy.org) or postal mail (The Editor, 226 East
Georgia Street, Vancouver, B.C., Canada V6A 1Z7) by
November 15.
