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The Chinese Canadian Historical Society of British Columbia was registered under the Society Act of British Columbia on May 18, 2004.
Our Vision - The Chinese Canadian Historical Society of British Columbia is a non-profit, participatory provincial organization dedicated to broadening our shared understanding of history of the Chinese in British Columbia through research, documentation, preservation and education. Board Meetings are held on the first Monday of every month (except when it falls on a Statutory Holiday). |
Board of Directors (2024-25)
Rob Ho (President) - [email protected]
Rob is a Ph.D. Candidate in the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles, and his dissertation examines the impact of Asian students at a major Canadian research university. He has taught at UBC, SFU, UCLA, and Douglas College. Raised in Kamloops, Rob received his Bachelor of Arts from Carleton University and his Master of Arts from the University of Toronto. He has published research articles about Asian Canadian Studies, the model minority myth in Canada, and Asian American student activism. A longtime Board Director, Rob has served as the Co-Vice President of CCHSBC from 2018 - 2022 and currently chairs the Awards Committee.
John Atkin (Vice-President)
John is a civic historian and author who conducts many walking tours around the city and province. His tours offer interesting and offbeat insight to the city's architecture, history, and neighbourhoods. John's publications include: Heritage Walks Around Vancouver, Strathcona: Vancouver's First Neighbourhood, Vancouver Walks, Skytrain Explorer, and Changing City. He co-founded and served as Vice-President and President of Heritage Vancouver Society. He is currently the President of the Dr. Sun-Yat Sen Classical Chinese Garden. John has been a CCHSBC board member since 2012, and has served as Co-Chair, President and Co-Vice-President.
Joyce Tang (Treasurer)
While an educator by trade (University Guidance Counselor), Joyce has a great love for history and was introduced to Chinese Canadian history in her final year of undergraduate studies at UBC (BA History). Despite stepping away to build a career in education and business, Joyce's passion for history didn't diminish, leading to both being one of CCHSBC's first coordinators in the early years of the society, as well as returning in 2015 to become a board member. During her break from CCHSBC, Joyce completed her Masters in Business Administration (University of Liverpool). She is currently CCHSBC's Secretary-Treasurer.
DENISE FONG (SECRETARY)
Denise Fong (PhD) is the Curator of Urban Cultures at the Museum of Vancouver. She is a past recipient of CCHSBC's Dr. Edgar Wickberg Graduate Scholarship in Chinese Canadian History. Denise previously served as the research director of UBC’s Initiative for Student Teaching and Research in Chinese Canadian studies. While completing her PhD at UBC, she co-curated two award-winning exhibitions – Burnaby Village Museum's Across the Pacific, and A Seat at the Table: Chinese Immigration and British Columbia featured at the Museum of Vancouver and the Chinese Canadian Museum of BC. She is the lead author and researcher of Rooted: Chinese Canadian Stories in Burnaby published by the City of Burnaby, and co-author of Challenging Racist “British Columbia”, 1923: Challenging Racisms Past and Present.
Larry Chin
Larry is an active volunteer for cultural organizations and initiatives in Vancouver’s Chinatown. He has contributed to multiple CCHSBC public programs and volunteered at the annual festivals hosted by the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. He is a passionate photographer in the neighborhood. Born in Malaysia, he immigrated with his family to Fort McMurray in northern Alberta. He graduated from the UBC in engineering. He is the founder of Telicam Technology, a company specializing in camera technology for transportation to address risk management. In addition to CCHSBC, Larry is also a Director on the Board of the Chin Wing Chun Society and the Vancouver Tsung Tsin (Hakka) Association. Larry joined the CCHSBC board in 2020 and chairs the publications committee.
GAYLE NYE
Gayle Nye has an extensive background as a labour advocate and educator for workers’ rights, human rights, equity and anti-racism. She is a specialist in cross-cultural communications and group building, harassment and bullying prevention. A community organizer and facilitator in cross cultural communications, Gayle volunteers with Victoria’s Chinese Community Services Centre (CCSC), Yen Wo Society/Tam Kung Temple and the Victoria Chinese Museum Society to deepen appreciation of our history, culture and community. Gayle is a founding member of the Asian Canadian Labour Alliance (ACLA) in BC and an active member of Uminari Taiko, Vancouver Island’s premiere Japanese taiko drumming ensemble.
WALTER QUAN
Walter is in the a third and a half generation of his family to live in BC on his dad’s side and fifth generation out of China to live in Hawaii on his mom’s side. He has been a long time supporter of CCHSBC since its early days with his donations of sushi and dim sum candles at our annual celebratory events. Having retired from the BC Arts Council after 29.5 years (1992 - 2021), he has chosen to join CCHSBC (after being asked to be on the board for [too] many arts organizations) as it takes him back to the roots of his first summer job in 1981 at the Chinese Cultural Centre where Hayne Wai and Paul Yee supervised that project. Walter currently splits time between Vancouver and Victoria where he volunteers for two sites of the Chinese Canadian Museum. In addition, he’s a key member of Catherine Clement’s team for the 1923 Paper Trail project as the designated “Victoria scanner”, and has just discovered a trove of interesting documents at the BC Archives. He looks forward to contributing to CCHSBC’s continued success!
GEOFF WING
Geoff has worked across three national cultures helping technology companies create cultures and structures that foster team learning and improvement. A 3.5th generation BC-born Canadian of Cantonese ancestry who lived his early adult life in Japan, he has been fascinated by how history and culture shape people's perceptions, attitudes, and behavior. Geoff's exposure to Chinese Canadian history is recent, starting with ancestral research he did during CCHSBC's 2017 and 2019 Heritage of Cantonese Migration tours in China's Guangdong Province. With assistance from CCHSBC, academics, researchers, translators and interpreters, relatives, archives, family documents, oral history, and much reading, he has discovered generations of family Cantonese cultural practices that his Canadian-born parents and uncles and aunts may not have been aware of. He is exploring creative nonfiction writing techniques as a way to reveal the lives and times of his ancestors through their real-world experiences. An avid photographer, he has documented some CCHSBC events.
VIVE WONG
Vive completed her M.Ed with a focus in Equity Studies in Education at Simon Fraser University. Inspired by her family story, she focused her studies in examining the historical relationships between Indigenous and Chinese communities in B.C. She is a youth advocate, community developer and social justice educator who has worked with the public education sector, non-for-profits, and community service providers to promote community engagement and youth empowerment through the lens of equity. Wanting to reconnect with the Vancouver Chinatown community, Vive volunteered with CCHSBC and recently became a member of the Chinatown Legacy Stewardship Group’s Relationship Building, Public Education, and Capacity Building (REC) Committee. Currently, Vive is a Community Schools Coordinator with the Vancouver Schools Board developing youth leadership programs, community partnership and services.
HENRY YU
As a founding member of CCHSBC, Henry has been a long-standing and active member of our board and the Chinese Canadian community for the last sixteen years. Over the years, Henry has been the Co-Chair of of the City of Vancouver's "Dialogues Between First Nations, Urban Aboriginal, and Immigrant Communities in Vancouver" and the Province of BC's Legacy Initiatives Advisory Council, served on various City of Vancouver committees that advised on historical discrimination against Chinese people, and Vancouver's Historic Chinatown. In addition to all his community engagement work, Henry is an Associate Professor in History and in Asian Canadian & Asian Migration Studies (ACAM), the Director of the Initiative of Student Teaching and Research in Chinese Canadian Studies (INSTRCC) and the Principal of St. John's Graduate College at UBC.
NICK YU
As a second-generation Chinese Canadian, Nick joins the board of CCHS with deep passion and commitment to community advocacy, cultural preservation, and strategic leadership. Over the years, Nick has been deeply involved in efforts to protect and celebrate the history and heritage of Chinatown including organizing the annual Fire Dragon Festival, participating in dragon dance performances at Lunar New Year parades, and advocating on behalf of Indigenous and Chinese Seniors for more safe, affordable, and culturally appropriate housing. His advocacy and policy development experience has created meaningful partnerships between community members and government officials at both city and provincial levels to bring this vision to life.
Nick graduated from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and a Masters in Management. Outside of Chinatown, Nick is a Management Consultant with a proven track record of guiding organizations and leaders in the creation of actionable strategies that lead to lasting results. Passionate about preserving and honoring the rich history of Chinatown, Nick is excited to contribute to the preservation and promotion of CCHS’s rich legacy.
Nick graduated from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and a Masters in Management. Outside of Chinatown, Nick is a Management Consultant with a proven track record of guiding organizations and leaders in the creation of actionable strategies that lead to lasting results. Passionate about preserving and honoring the rich history of Chinatown, Nick is excited to contribute to the preservation and promotion of CCHS’s rich legacy.
Past Presidents
Dr. edgar wickberg (1927 - 2008)
Professor Emeritus, University of British Columbia, Founding President of CCHSBC. Ed taught in the Department of History from 1969 to 1992 and published numerous research on the overseas Chinese. He was a coordinator of the team which published the first major research on the Chinese in Canada - China to Canada: A History of the Chinese Communities (McClelland and Stewart, 1982). In gratitude for his vision and his hard work as the Founding President, CCHSBC created the Edgar Wickberg Scholarship in 2006 to honour his lifetime of passion for Chinese Canadian history.
larry wong
A longtime community organization board member, author, and researcher on Vancouver's Chinatown and Chinese Canadian history, Larry is a board member and curator of the Chinese Canadian Military Museum. In addition, Larry is also CCHSBC's local history, host of "Ask Larry". He is the co-author to Eating Stories: A Chinese Canadian and Aboriginal Potluck, and the author of Dim Sum Stories: A Chinatown Childhood.
hayne wai
A former public servant, Hayne was most recently a sessional instructor at UBC's Faculty of Education. Hayne has served on Federal, Provincial, and local boards on anti-racism, multiculturalism, and diversity. Hayne is a founding CCHSBC board member and was a Trustee of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. He is also the co-author in Finding Memories, Tracing Routes and Eating Stories: A Chinese Canadian and Aboriginal Potluck.
gordon mark
Born in Grande Prairie, Alberta, Gordy is a past regional director for a federal government department. He has a strong interest in Chinese Canadian history and genealogical research and contributed to the development of the Vancouver Public Library Chinese Canadian Genealogy website. He is a co-author in Eating Stories: A Chinese Canadian and Aboriginal Potluck.
coleen mcguinness
A consultant who also serves as the Executive Director of the BC Guangdong Business Council & Vancouver Guangzhou Friendship Society, Collen has been involved for many years with development of ties between Vancouver and Guangzhou, and BC and the Guangdong province. She was a Trustee of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden and member of the City of Vancouver Chinatown Area Planning Advisory Committee.
ken yip
A retired biomedical engineer, Ken is a part-time healthcare technology consultant and part-time BCIT faculty member. He has researched his grandfather in Cranbrook during the 1870's, his father in World War II as part of the Canadian/British Army SOE Force in Burma, and Chinese Market Gardens in Metro Vancouver. He is a co-author of Finding Memories, Tracing Routes and Eating Stories: A Chinese Canadian and Aboriginal Potluck.
robert (bob) sung
A 4th generation Canadian, Bob has a passion for culinary arts and history. He attended the University of Hawaii studying Business Administration, as well as the Durbrulle Culinary Institute of Professional Chef Training. His personal and business life has revolved around the food/hospitality industry for many years. Bob's main goal is to educate and entertain from a culinary and cultural approach. In addition to CCHSBC, Bob is a member of the Vancouver Chinatown Revitalization Committee and an advisor to the Asian Heritage Month Society.
sarah ling | 凌慧意
Sarah has a background in public history, cultural heritage, community building, and visual storytelling. Born and raised in Prince Rupert, BC on unceded Tsimshian territory, Sarah received her Master of Arts (Interdisciplinary Studies, UBC) where she conducted community-based research on the intercultural history of Chinese market gardening on the Musqueam reserve. She is the co-editor of Journeys of Hope (2018) and lead producer of the award-winning documentary film All Our Father's Relations (2016). She serves as the Member-at-Large on the City of Vancouver's Chinatown Historic Area Planning Committee. She is the Exhibition and Program Manager for the Chinese Canadian Museum. Sarah has been a CCHSBC Board of Director since 2015 and has served as President from 2018 to 2022.