In this Issue:
Reports from
Yee Fung Toy Chapters
Next Issue
Welcome to the 45th
issue of the Yee Fung Toy Global Village Voice, an
electronic newsletter for the World Yee community. In
this issue we are featuring some of the Autumn
activities from the Yee associations around the world.
How time has flown,
the 6th World Yee Family Association Convention was
held not long ago in November and 2016 is just around
the corner.
This Convention was
considered by a lot of people that I had talked to to
be a very successful one, indeed, the Macau Yu Clan
organizers were really working hard to make this
convention one of the best I ever attended, though a
little snag at the convention hotel on the check in
day as described by a writer from Singapore.
Due to the Macau Grand
Prix event over the same weekend before the World Yee
Convention, racing fans at the Hotel were a bit late
in checking out, and most of the World Yee Convention
delegates and guests had to wait for their rooms to be
ready when they were checking in.
And now, we'd like to
thank all contributors, and remind anyone who wants to
become a contributor that they can email us their
reports and photos of events and activities from their
locale.
As you all are heading
out to celebrate the holiday season with friends and
family, on behalf of the World Yee Web Committee, I
wish you all happiness and special times together.
Have a safe, happy and
joyous holiday!
And we thank all those
who have made contributions to this issue, including:
- David M. Yee, Cheak M. Yee and John M. Yee of
Phoenix
- Fred Yee and Kevin Lee of Seattle
- Warren Yee, Peter Yee and So Yee of Boston
- Kai Fay Yee of Washington DC
- Larry Yee and William Yu of San Francisco
- Kai Yon Yee of Malaysia
- Kenny Yee and Chao Yu of Southern California
- Jim Yee, James Yu and Wing Yee of Vancouver
- Henry Yu of Sacramento
- Bing Kai Lee, Peter Yu, Johnson Yee of Hong Kong
- U Wa Chi, Yu Kon Shing, Iu Siu Chi and IU Va San
of Macau
- Peter Yee and Eu Chin Tiam of Singapore
- Worachai Aurprayoon of Thailand
- Yu Zexin and Yu Jian Qiang of Dihai, China
The Web
Committee wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a
Prosperous New Year.
Martin Yee, Vancouver
Washington DC chapter’s Volleyball
Team Participated in Invitational Tournament
The Yee Fung Toy Association of
Washington DC chapter’s volleyball team participated
in the North America Chinese Invitational Volleyball
Tournament held in New York City from September 5 to
7.
Our team was gracefully hosted by
the New York chapter. Special thanks to our Eastern
Grand President, Frank Yee, for his support of our
team. He actually watched our team played for three
straight days under the hot sun and he took lots of
pictures.
His pictures are posted in the NY
chapter’s website. Please follow this link to see
Frank’s hard work.
Kai Fay
Yee, Washington DC
Macau Yu Clansmen’s Association
Visited Clansmen in Shaoguan
Yu Kon-shing
（余幹成） and Iu Va-san
（余華燊）, Chairman and Vice-Chairman of Macau
Yu Clansmen’s Association respectively, together
with Mr. Leong Man-nin （梁晚年）,
famous artist in Macao and Mr. Un Rui-chi （阮銳志）, invited advisor
visited Shaoguan （韶關）,
the birthplace of Yu Cheng, our first ancestor and
famous minister in the Bei-song Dynasty, on 18 and
19 September.
We were warmly welcomed by clansmen
and relevant entities there, who introduced their
history and development plans in the future,
deepening and benefiting our knowledge about our
ancestor, Yu Cheng, and feelings about our township.
Meanwhile, we showed our recognition, interest and
support on the development of our township.
While visiting Yu Cheng Primary
School in the Qujiang （曲江）
District,we were warmly received by the
Vice-director of the Qujiang District People’s
Government, Lu Chuan-yan（盧春燕）,
Director of the Education Department, Chen Huan-yun（陳煥雲）and Principal Ao. We
had thorough discussions.
Vice-director Lu Chuan-yan
introduced the development plans of the Qujiang
District and mentioned that the area near Yu Cheng
Primary School would become an important living
society in the district, indicating that Yu Cheng
Primary School would be a key primary school in the
district.
Director Chen Huan-yun elaborated
the education policies and development paths of the
Qujiang District, as well as the importance and
imminent of establishing Yu Cheng Primary School.
Principal Ao of Yu Cheng Primary
School explained the development strategies and
future goals of the school, showing perfect
direction of running the school, full of confidence
for future developments and contribution to basic
education.
The Qujiang District People’s
Government has invested more than 80 million
renminbi（人民幣） in
establishing Yu Cheng Primary School, covering 45
hectares with a building area of 24,000 square
meters. It is a specified primary school with high
standards and top facilities, which came into
operation on 1 September this year, clearly
indicating the recognition of the Qujiang District
People’s Government on the importance of education.
The level of classes currently offered include
primary one to primary six, while primary one ranked
the most with six classes; excellent results are
obvious.
In order to encourage the school for
better operations, carry forward the merits of our
ancestors and the Yu Clansmen, Chairman Yu Kon-shing
donated again to the school for recognition of its
development paths.
Before the visit ended, the local
Qujiang Television had interviewed Chairman Yu, who
confirmed the establishment and development plans of
the school, encouraged pupils to learn diligently so
as to contribute to the nation. Chairman Yu also
mentioned that Macau Yu Clansmen’s Association would
strengthen ties and support on the school in order
to carry forward the merits of our ancestors.
For more details, please click here.
Macau
Yu Clansmen’s Association˙U Fong Choi Tong
Visit To NY Yee Fong Toy
Association
My wife Siew Eng, 2nd daughter
Sabrina and I made a last minute decision to travel
with 3rd daughter Clara
to New York City. Clara was then directing a
Singapore Tourist Promotion Board showcase of
Singapore’s contemporary creative talents, called “
Singapore Inside-Out” #創新# at
Madison Square Park. New York was the third leg of
venues after London and Beijing.
Sunday 20th
September
We met up with Frank Yee and his wife, Elaine, at
our hotel (my mistake to mislead him to the wrong
hotel). He gave us a ride to YFT Association in
Bayard Street, the Chinatown of NY. Frank was so
bubbly cheerful and accommodating. We found out that
we had so much in common (besides surname 余) –
webmasters and owners of Nikon D90 DSLR camera. YFT
Association NY was celebrating their Mooncake
Festival on that day. It was my timely visit there -
to exchange greetings and share our experiences with
so many members present. Amongst the members, Andy
Yu was a polished, outspoken character. We had a
good time sharing with Andy. He was de facto
authority re NYC Jewish Pastrami. I promised him we
would go there to try it out on our next trip. We do
love pastrami. Siew Eng meanwhile shared with Elaine
and members of the Women’s Group. We were introduced
to some “Mah” cousins.
All were wonderfully friendly,
caring and speaking in languages which we were
comfortable (Cantonese, Taishanese and English) that
we felt so much at home, akin - a large family.
So I think Clan Association is not
passé but a universal, living, family-based
congregation per se. We do apologize for not being
able to mingle with everyone present that day.
Monday 21st
September
Sabrina bought 7-days Metro Passes (subway passes
are strongly recommended). The next few days, we
toured Midtown Manhattan, fabulous Times Square and
its vibrant night-life, exhilarating walk across
Brooklyn Bridge at sunset, Lower Manhattan, Ground
Zero, UN HQ, Central Park, Statue of Liberty, Italy
Town, Korea Town, Wall Street iconic bull, NYSE,
Trump Building. We enjoyed breath-taking views atop
Empire State Building and a night view “Top of the
Rock” (Rockefeller Center). Watched a Broadway
“Matilda the Musical”. Toured Intrepid Aircraft
Carrier Museum, Museum of Natural History, Museum of
Modern Art.
Wednesday
23rd September
Singapore Inside-Out exhibition started on
23rd and finished on 27th Sept. We visited the
exhibition on the 23rd. We came to understand that
Frank Yee was there on the 24th. He even had a
photo, taken together with Clara, posted in his
Facebook. Frank and Andy were actively driving the
NY YFT Youth League.
Friday 25th September
Incidentally on the last day of our stay in NYC,
Pope Francis was in town, UN held their meetings and
China’s Xi Jinping was also in town. Security was
very tight. Frank Yee had big time meeting the Pope.
We left New York (EWR) Newark Airport at 12 noon for
Houston with pleasant memories of NY YFT
Association. I hope to reach out to fellow Yees in
New York.
Peter
Yee, Singapore
Visit To Houston Yee Fung Toy
Association
Friday 25th
September
We arrived in Houston at about 2:30pm. Lim Ewe Leng
(Siew Eng’s younger brother) was at the airport to
welcome us. It was a long ride to his house at “The
Woodlands”. Along the way, we saw large bungalows
widely spaced out, as if land size was no problem.
No wonder they say “Everything is big in Texas”!
Saturday
26th September
We took the opportunity to explore a bit of Houston.
There were many eateries, like iHOP, Cheesecake
Factory, shopping malls.
Sunday 27th
September
Our appointment with Frank Yu was at the Fung’s
Kitchen. Frank’s house was a mere 10 minutes’ drive.
Woodlands to Fung’s Kitchen was a 1 ½ hours’ drive.
Frank messaged me that he booked table 19, so that
was easy to identify Frank as we had never met
before. We exchanged greetings with Frank and his
wife Sue Ann. Fung’s Kitchen was a good choice. The
dim sum was excellent. We shared our association’s
experiences together.
Frank Yu invited us to his house and
showed us his DIY skills. I must admit his is really
an artistic handyman. His garden was superbly done,
timber decking, timber board-walk, gazebo,
water-feature complete with miniature water fall. He
even had a lighting system with 109 bulbs installed
in his garden. Sue Ann definitely has green fingers.
Look at those luscious greens. I liked the
chrysanthemums. She also had a herb garden in a
corner. One would be very satisfied to eat fresh
organic herbs on your table. Lastly, Frank showed us
his “workshop”. He had a large collection of powered
hand tools and shelving to store things neatly.
Monday 28th
- Tuesday 29th September
We explored the
Houston Museum of Natural Science, Houston Space
Center,
Old Town Spring displaying some Amish
carpentry.
Wednesday 30th September
Time to go! We left Houston at 10:50am for Tokyo.
Tokyo was our last leg of our itinerary.
Peter
Yee, Singapore
Macau U Fong Choi Tong Chairman Yu
Kon-shing Donated to Hospital in Nanxiong
Yu Kon-shing
（余幹成）, President of Pak Wui Culture and
Creativity Association and Chairman of the Executive
Committee of U Fong Choi Tong, Iu Va-san（余華燊）, Vice-Chairman of the
Executive Committee of U Fong Choi Tong, attended
the inauguration ceremony of the “Macao Teaching
Building” in Huang Keng Center Primary School （黃坑中心小學） in Shaoguan（韶關市） in response to their
invitation. Meanwhile, Yu Kon-shing donated
RMB300,000 to the Hospital in Nanxiong on his own
behalf, in order to support the purchase of
ambulance and other medical equipment.
For more details. please click here.
Macao
Yu Clansmen Association, U Fong Choi Tong
Macau Yu Clansmen’s Association
Assessed the Progress of Yu Cheng Statue in
Shaoguan
To promote the noble characteristics
of integrity and honesty of our first ancestor who
was a famous minister in the Bei-song Dynasty as a
role model for our descendants, the
Ex-Vice-President of Macao Yu Clansmen’s
Association, Yu Mei-siu（余美笑）,
donated one Yu Cheng Statue to Shaoguan, the
birthplace of our ancestor.
On October 31st, Iu Va-san（余華燊）, Iu Siu-chi（余少池）and U Kouk-cheng（余國禎）, Vice-Chairmen of the
Executive Committee and Robert Yee（余超權）, member of the
Executive Committee of Macao Yu Clansmen’s
Association, visited the craft factory to study the
important step of modeling the clay mold of the
statue, who were warmly accompanied by senior
clansmen from Kaiping including Jin-zhao（錦照）, Ze-xin （澤欣）, Jian-qiang（健強）, Uncle Quang （炯叔）, Jie-feng（杰鋒）, Yue-yu（悅儒）, etc. Clansmen from
Kaiping provided valuable comments on the statue.
For more details. please click here.
Macao
Yu Clansmen Association, U Fong Choi Tong
3rd Meeting of the 6th World Yee
Convention Organizing Committee
The 6th World Yee Convention
Organizing Committee met for the third time on
November 5th.
Committee members were discussing
arrangement plans for all the guest arrivals,
meetings, tours and other agenda items, to ensure
that all the guests will enjoy and to have a
memorable stay in Macau and China.
Iu Siu
Chi, Macao Yu Clansmen Association
Singapore Yee Clan Two Days and
One Night Tour
Day 1 - Our Tour Bus took us to
Tanjung Piai National Park supposedly to be the
"southernmost tip of mainland Asia". After a hike in
the National Park, we went to Kukup Fishing Village
for some seafood lunch. Next we visited Muar Yee
Clan. We had warm welcome by the Muar members. Our
journey continued to Malacca.
Day 2 - After breakfast, we
continued to tour Malacca's many attractions.
Everyone was happy with the tour and we finished the
visit with a fabulous dinner.
Peter
Yee, Singapore
Macau Wo Sing 2015 Yee Jing
Chinese Opera Gala
Organized by the Macau Wo Sing
Chinese Opera 澳門和聲戲劇曲藝會
and sponsored by 澳門基金會|
Fundação Macau | Macao Foundation, the Yee Jing
Opera Gala will be held at the 永樂戲院 Cinema Alegria on
November 13.
Iu Siu
Chi, Macao Yu Clansmen Association
Macau Yu Clansmen’s Association
Attended Groundbreaking Ceremony Of Shaoguan Yu
Cheng Cemetery Memorial Arch
The first ancestor of Yu, our
great-grandfather, and a renowned minister of the
Bei-song Dynasty, Yu Cheng （AD 1000-1064）, had been
appointed to Minister of Industry and Internal
Affairs （工部尚書） and
Minister of Justice （刑部尚書）.
His tomb was built at Cheng-jia Mountain （成家山）of Long-kuai Township（龍歸鄉 （nowadays Cheng-jia
Mountain, Kan-tong District, Xi-lian Town, Wu-jiang
District of Shaoguan City
（韶關市武江區西聯鎮甘棠區成家山）.
In July 2002, the Guangdong Province
People’s Government announced that the Cemetery had
been classified as a relic protection unit of
Guangdong Province.
For more details. please click here.
Macao
Yu Clansmen Association U Fong Choi Tong
Canadian Delegation at the 6th
World Yee Convention
The Canadian delegation consists of
members and friends from Edmonton, Calgary, Ontario,
Montreal and Vancouver attended the recent 6th World
Yee Convention held in Macau and Mainland China from
November 23rd to November 26th.
The Convention was also attended by
World Yee members from Thailand, Malaysia,
Singapore, Indonesia, USA, Hong Kong, and Macau,
guests from Taiwan and Mainland China were also in
attendance. We met a lot of old and new friends from
all over the world, we were also glad to meet with
Peter Yee from Singapore for the first time, and I
would like to thank him for sharing his photos with
us.
Overall the 6th World Yee Convention
was really well organized and the atmosphere was
wonderful! At any rate the convention was a
tremendous success.
Eddie Yee, Western Grand President
of the Yee Fung Toy Family Association of USA HQ,
was chosen as the next World Yee Chairman, and San
Francisco will host the 7th World Yee Family
Convention in 2018. Congratulations!
On behalf of the Canadian
delegation, I would like to thank all the Yu members
and volunteers of the Macau Yu Clansmen Association
for their hospitality and wonderful convention
program.
For more details in Chinese, please
click here.
Martin
Yee, Vancouver
6th World Yee Convention Macau /
Kaiping - My Personal Perspective
Nearly one year ago when I heard
news that registration was opened to attend the 6th
World Yee Convention. My reaction was spontaneous.
Firstly, I was so excited to be able to experience
the meaningful “Great Extended Yee Family Reunion”.
Secondly, to see for myself how Kaiping looked and
felt like. Visiting Kaiping was important to me
because it was my mother’s hometown and I had never
been there. Taishan was my father’s home village.
Fast forward to 23rd November; found
ourselves in Macau mingling with fellow Yees. I was
pleasantly surprised that Martin Yee found me at
Harborview Hotel lobby. We had never met before but
had emailed each other many times and had seen
photos of each other. Later, we self-introduced
ourselves and met many new cousins. It was a
wonderful experience meeting and sharing with fellow
Yees.
I was particularly interested in our
ancestral lineage. At Wulaoshan, I was wondering how
life was like at that era? Worshiping with roasted
pigs was customary with us, Chinese. The five tombs
were of unusual design, unlike those we saw in
Singapore. Perhaps this was the architecture back at
that period. Big thank you to those who fought to
keep this burial site from being ravaged by modern
development. You made this place our Heritage. The
archives at Yee Fong Toy Hall were interesting.
Alas, time was not with us to study each document
and artifact. I will be back!
As we toured Kaiping, I could see
and felt how my mother lived her childhood days
here. My senses were slowly unfolding to visualize
my mother’s way of life. It was emotional. She did
tell us stories of her childhood days. A big
surprise at dinner, we had steamed look-alike cake
dessert. This was the same comfort cake my mother
liked. That meant this type of pastry was around
long ago since she was young. Now I had the chance
to savor the original comfort cake or was this
mother’s blessings for remembering her!
I told my wife that we should
arrange a private visit to Kaiping and Taishan later
next year to fulfill my dreams to see my parent's
home villages.
Thank you to World Yee Family
Association Convention Committee for organizing such
a wonderful event.
Image credits: Yee Chai Yian, Yee
Lye Meng, Eu Chin Tiam, P Yee.
More photographs may be viewed at Flickr.
Peter
Yee, Singapore
Yu Clan Association Of Thailand
Delegation At World Yee Convention
The Yu Clan Association of Thailand
delegation, led by our chairman, Mr. Seng Ching Yu,
attended the recent World Yee Convention in Macau.
Above are some of our activity photos.
Worachai Aurprayoon, Thailand
Now that Winter is fast approaching, most chapters
are having their annual elections and celebrations.
The next issue of the Yee Fung Toy Global Village
Voice will be published in mid March, 2016,
featuring reports of Winter or New Year celebrations
and inaugurations of new Officers at Yee Fung Toy
associations around the world. Please submit your
articles to the Editor via email (world.yee @
gmail.com) or postal mail (The Editor, 226 East
Georgia Street, Vancouver, B.C., Canada V6A 1Z7) by
February 15.
