Yvonne Yan-Kiu Chiu

YVONNE YAN-KIU CHIU (NEE TANG) Beloved mother of Derrick Man-Fung and adored wife of John Hung-Cheung, passed peacefully in her sleep early morning of Sunday, September 27, 2009. Born in Shanghai, China on March 17, 1944, she discovered my father in 1959 as pen pals through their love of fiction and music, finally meeting in Hong Kong that September when they attended St. Paul's Co-Ed College. They became the best of companions through their love of all the arts and travel and their support of one another through all crises. Yvonne graduated McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, in 1966 with a Degree in Microbiology. Yvonne and John married in Hong Kong on June 9, 1968 and had their only son, Derrick Man-Fung Gregory on April 8, 1970, in Ottawa, Ontario, where my father was doing postgraduate medical residency in radiology. Eventually, in 1974, the Chiu family moved to Toronto, Ontario, where they live to this present day. In the meantime, mother became a community and cultural superstar in this city of Toronto. She was a lecturer and associate professor in Microbiology and Genetics at University of Toronto, Scarborough campus for over 30 years, and named as a Great Mind of U of T on their 175th anniversary in 2002. Yvonne was a cultural patron of the highest order: known as an "Angel of the Arts", she at various times sat on the Boards of the National Ballet, the Canadian Opera Company, the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Roy Thompson & Massey Hall Corporation, the Royal Conservatory of Music, the Strafford Festival of Canada, the National Ballet School, the Textile Museum of Canada, the Toronto Arts Council Foundation and a current member of the Ontario Arts Council. She was an integral supporter and patron of Ontario SuperBuild Program which produced the recent and inspiring additions and renovations to all the aforementioned cultural institutions. She was an influential and proud member of the Chinese-Canadian community in Toronto, as Chair of Fundraising for the Mon Sheong Foundation from 1988, as a co-founder of the Chinese Cultural Centre of Greater Toronto, in Markham, Ontario, in 1991, as the Chairperson of the Cathay Pavilion at the Metro Toronto Caravan in 1991 and as a founder of the Education Foundation of the Federation of Chinese Canadian Professionals (Ontario) in 1994 with my father. She continued through to this year as a volunteer as an AGO docent, and gave Wagner Society talks and pre-opera "chats" before COC performances, and taught cooking classes at the CCC. On May 30, 2001, Yvonne was awarded as a Member of the Order of Canada, of which she was tremendously proud. Yvonne and John celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary on June 8, 2008 and their 50th Anniversary of meeting one another on June 17, 2009. She is survived by her husband and son, her siblings, Donna Tang, David Tang and Ada Siu, her vast circle of friends and the fondest memories of a rich and fulfilling life on this earth. Friends and family will be received at the R.S. Kane Funeral Home, 6150 Yonge Street, at Goulding, south of Steeles, on Thursday, October 1 and Friday, October 2 from 4-8 p.m. The Funeral Mass will be held on Saturday, October 3 at 10:30 a.m. at Holy Rosary Church, 354 St. Clair Ave. West. A reception will follow the Service at the Panorama Lounge, Manulife Centre, 55 Bloor St. West, 51st floor (elevators from 2nd flr. of South Tower beside Cineplex Cinemas). In lieu of flowers, donations to The FCCP Education Foundation for the establishment of a scholarship fund in memory of Yvonne YK Chiu, c/o Dr. John Chiu, 48 St. Clair Ave. West, Ste. 1103, Toronto, ON M4V 2Z2. The FCCP Education Foundation is close to the family's heart as it was founded by Yvonne and John.