TCCC Endowment Spotlight: Vincent C. Lam 纪念林志忠
A $5,000 donation to the Tucson Chinese Cultural Center endowment has been made by Mrs. Amelia A. Lam in memory of her husband, Dr. Vincent C. Lam.
Born in 1953 into extreme poverty in post-World War II Hong Kong, Vincent Lam sometimes existed on rice soup, just water boiled with a little rice in it. By the time he was ten years old, Hong Kong had been hit with a shattering drought. He often had to carry water buckets from the community tap, which itself was only available a few hours a week. This was the only water his family had for all its bathing, cooking, and cleaning. By the age of twelve, he was working in a sheet metal factory whenever he was not in school, feeding sheet metal into cutters. Some nights he fell into bed with no dinner because of exhaustion. The only people he saw who had money were the Triads.
But young Vincent finished school and received a partial scholarship to attend college in the United States. His family had no way to pay his passage, and an anonymous donor provided the fare. At school he worked to earn additional money and studied hard, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering. A Master’s and Ph.D. in the same discipline followed. Vincent became a proud U.S. citizen and went to work in the Defense industry. A brilliant engineer and extremely hard worker, he excelled. He won numerous awards and held three patents. For as long as necessary, he lived extremely frugally, but cared well for his family and learned to successfully manage his investments so that he could finally retire with no financial worries.
Throughout his life, Vincent remained proud of and engaged with his Chinese heritage. He loved to travel, and the picture above was taken on a Yangtze River cruise in 2015, when he was basking in Chinese culture and history. Vincent and his wife came as often as they could to major events at the Tucson Chinese Cultural Center, such as Chinese New Year, Ching Ming, and Mid-Autumn Festival. Every time they came, he was filled with the unselfconscious joy of being Chinese and celebrating Chinese heritage with the Chinese community.
Vincent had only recently retired when he was diagnosed with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) in 2019. He and his wife had planned a schedule of cruises before his illness progressed, but the pandemic robbed them of much of it. In March of 2021, he was still able to travel, and the couple had booked a Mississippi River cruise that was not canceled. After the required precautions, they boarded the plane to New Orleans. Vincent was extremely happy to be traveling once more. He passed away peacefully while taking a nap on the flight, preparing to do something he loved.
Vincent Lam lived a consequential life, embodying the best immigrant values of hard work, education, and contribution while honoring his ancient culture and the Tucson Chinese community. He told his wife that had he stayed in Hong Kong, he probably would have become a Triad. Instead, he lived the best values of both the US. and China.
Mrs. Lam, when selecting ways to honor her husband, realized that he would have felt joy knowing that he was supporting the sustainability of the Tucson Chinese Cultural Center for new generations. Through the endowment, his memory will benefit the Chinese community and the whole Tucson community for years to come.
