Mr. Iu Bun Lam

It is with profound sadness that we congregate here today to mourn the passing of our beloved father. Our feelings are mixed. We grieve that he is no longer with us. We miss his caring presence and his reassuring voice, yet, it is soothing to know that he is now resting in peace in the Light of the Lord.

Dad was born in Hong Kong on October 26, 1916, as the fourth child out of eight to Lam Kwong Shik (1887-1936) and Chan Wai Hing (1889-1948). His three elder siblings passed away at a very young age, placing the responsibilities of being the eldest upon his shoulders. Dad had already distinguished himself as an outstanding student in his early years, ranked number one at the Primary Six Examination in Hong Kong and was awarded full scholarship for his high school tuition at The King’s College. Unfortunately, my grandfather died when Dad was only twenty. Instead of fulfilling his dream of pursuing a higher education at the University of Hong Kong, he joined the Government of Hong Kong after matriculation.

Being a kind hearted and generous man, Dad volunteered at the St. John’s Ambulance. Fortune smiled upon him as he found himself attracted to a beautiful and intelligent Teachers’ College student, our mother Tong Kwai Chun. They fell in love and got married subsequently on May 31, 1942 , during the Japanese Occupation, after dating for a few years. From then on, they gave each other all their love and support on their fulfilling journey, shoulder to shoulder. Dad had been a devoted husband and treasured Mom as God’s most gracious gift all through their 66 years of marriage. We celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary in Toronto in 1992, their Diamond Wedding Anniversary at Banff in 2002 and their Blue Sapphire Wedding Anniversary at Las Vegas last May.

Dad was conscientious, hard working, well organized and dedicated as much to his work as to his life. He was awarded a three month merit trip to the UK in 1962. We found a copy of this announcement in a newspaper clipping with his picture at the airport before departure. I can still remember the thrill and pride that filled me when I was entrusted with the responsibility to look after my siblings in my teens while Mom and Dad were away.

Having had a successful career, Dad retired in 1971 as the Superintendent with the Department of Health. However, his enthusiasm and dedication to serve Hong Kong had not faded. Sensing the onset of industrialization in Hong Kong and the associated environmental problems, he continued on and established a company called Hong Kong Industrial Waste Disposal and has been a pioneer in automated industrial waste disposal in Hong Kong.

Dad loved all five of his children dearly; three girls – Helen, Dorothy and Katherine, followed by two boys - Raymond and Stephen. He worked hard to ensure that we all attended reputable schools – girls to Maryknoll Sisters’ School and boys to Hong Kong Wah Yan College. He provided for all of us, despite his relatively limited resources, opportunities to further our education at universities in Canada, and to take piano, swimming and tennis lessons. To ensure we have a solid foundation in Chinese, a private tutor was hired to instruct us on Chinese literature. There are no words to adequately express our gratitude.

Dad treasured family life very much. We still remember the hiking trips he took us along, together with his classmates from Kings College and their kids to the New Territories and the islands; the tennis matches he had with his colleagues and we had with the children of his colleagues; and the weekly gatherings with relatives until we all left for Canada in the ‘60s. We still have fond memories of these joyous golden childhood days.

Though all five of us had left home, he sent each of us, our spouses and the eight grandchildren birthday cards, as well as wedding anniversary, Chinese New Year and Christmas cards, 33 times per year, for over four decades, rain or shine, and never late. Above all, he treasured and kept all the cards and photos we sent them, for all these years with captions made on almost every picture and neatly kept in photo albums.

Dad was not only a loving husband and father, he was also an excellent son-in-law, treating our grandparents as if they were his own parents. And, Dad never hesitated to help his relatives and friends who were in need. His kindness, patience and generosity had earned our great respect.

Reading had been Dad’s life-long passion. He kept his subscription to the Readers’ Digest from his early years till now. He liked to challenge himself by doing the puzzles, submitting them to Readers’ Digest, and had won a number of prizes. No wonder he was given the nickname “Walking Dictionary” in his high school days as he was learned and intelligent and excelled in both English and Chinese.

Dad and Mom emigrated to Canada in 1973. After spending a few years commuting between Hong Kong and Canada, they settled down in Toronto with Raymond and Edith for several years. They then moved to Vancouver in the early ‘80s and stayed with Stephen and May. Stephen and May have been taking excellent care of Dad and Mom for over a quarter of a century. Dad and Mom were baptized in 1986 and attended Sunday School faithfully besides attending services at the Vancouver Chinese Pentecostal Church.

Dad traveled the world with Mom and had been to many places like Israel, Hawaii, Egypt, Europe, Australia, China, the United States, etc. until his health started to decline in 2006. He went home with the Lord after a short sudden illness, surrounded by his family at his bedside at the Vancouver General Hospital, at the age of 92, on Earth Day, April 22, 2008. Besides Mom and Dad’s five children, three sons-in-law (Chung Ho Woo, Sam Chow, Wing Man Chan); two daughters-in-law (Edith Chiu and May Ong), and eight grandchildren (Winston Woo; Jeffrey and Letitia Chow; Bryan and Karen Chan; Jennifer and Andrew Lam; and Heather Lam); Dad also leaves to mourn one brother Albert Lin and one sister Kam Ching Lam in Hong Kong.

Dad, sleep warm, sleep tight, sleep well. We love you. Always have and always will.

===============================================================

頌辭

今天我們以百感交集及沉痛的心情，在這裡集會來哀悼親愛的父親的逝世；為他離開我們而悲傷。我們喪失了他的關懷及堅信的音容、共享我們成功時的歡樂、教導我們的品行、及在我們失意時的安慰。但是，我們卻為他現在安息在天國裡而高興。

父親於一九一六年十月廿六日生於香港，在八兄弟姊妹中排行第四。他以全香港小六會考成績之冠，得中學全免費獎學金入讀英皇書院。可惜他二十歲時喪父，便進入香港政府工作，沒有達到上大學的夢想。父親為人正直、勤奮、做事專誠及有組織。在香港市政衛生局官拜監督，並於一九六二年獲獎勵派往英國考察及渡假三個月。他終生愛好閱讀，對中英文認識及理解甚深，在中學時有“活字典”的綽號。

父親與我們的母親湯桂珍於一九四二年五月卅一日日本佔領香港時結婚，婚後養育三女二男，如次是：敏瑩、婉瑩、潔瑩、念濤、俊濤。他對子女愛護有加，盡量供給，訓練我們成才；又珍惜家庭生活，常帶領子女參加一切課餘活動及週日親友聚會，給予我們一個快樂的美好黃金童年的回憶。

父親不僅愛妻子及子女，他對待我們的外公、外婆，一如孝順自己的父母。他又從不猶豫地去幫助有需要的親友；他的仁慈、忍耐、及博施，成為我們的榜樣。在六十六年的婚姻歲月中，夫婦相親相愛、相敬如賓，與子女一齊歡渡了金婚、鑽石婚、及藍寶石婚；又一同到世界各地旅遊。

父親自一九七一年退休後，繼續在香港服務，成立一間香港工業廢料處理公司，成為香港工業廢料處理自動化的先驅。

五個子女離家以後，四十多年來父親都不斷地準時寄給眾人一切節日賀咭，又把我們多年來寄給他倆的各類賀咭及照相，分類特別整理珍藏。

父母於一九七三年移民加拿大，最初數年定居多倫多，與念濤和詠儀同住；然後在八十年代移居溫哥華與俊濤和美錦同住，得到他們廿五年來盡心盡力的照顧。

父母於一九八六年接受洗禮，誠心上主日學，及參加溫哥華華人神召會的各項宗教儀式。

父親突然病倒之後，於二零零八年四月廿二日在溫哥華醫院，在家人繯繞看護下，蒙主寵召，享年九十二歲。

爸爸，您好好地安息吧。我們愛您，一 如往日，直到永遠。