Obituary 4/23/21
Eunice May Chu (formerly Dong and nee Yip) passed away peacefully on April 18, 2021 in Stouffville, Ontario surrounded by her children.
Eunice was born on January 7, 1936, daughter of Yip Kew Hong and Esther Chinn, granddaughter of Chinese Canadian pioneer, Yip Sang. She was born and raised in the historic Wing Sang building in Vancouver Chinatown. She was immensely proud of her family’s rich heritage in shaping Vancouver and Canada.
She married James Dong in 1957 in Prince George. They lived briefly in Kitimat before relocating to Vancouver in 1959. After James’ passing she lived in San Francisco and then moved to Toronto following her marriage to Nelson Chu in 1998. Eunice is predeceased by James Dong in 1991 and Nelson Chu in 2020.
Eunice is survived by her five children with James Dong: Darryl (Eva Hartman) of New York, NY, Edward (Tia Mendoza) of Ross, CA, Katherine (Didier Glattard) of Wilmette, Il, Shirley (Philippe Elmaleh, Peter Rosengard) of Santa Monica, CA, and Barbara (Gary MacPhie) of Stouffville, ON; her 12 grandchildren: Amber, Lukas (Aliki), Sabrina, Tiffany, Paris, Nicholas (Kari), Christopher, Jacqueline, Lily, Benjamin, Jameson, and Maggie; and her younger sister Audrey. Jim and Eunice inspired their loved ones to spread their wings to pursue their lives, careers and education around the globe. Eunice instilled in her children and grandchildren to live life to the fullest and remembering the verse “Good better best, never let it rest, until the good is better and the better is best.”
Eunice was active in the Vancouver community, proudly holding offices of President of the Canadian Engineers Wives Club and President of the Canadian Women’s Club and volunteered at the Vancouver Olympic Club, VanDusen Botanical Garden and Canadian Citizenship Council. She was also a successful realtor in Vancouver and San Francisco.
Eunice will be buried at Ocean View Cemetery, in Vancouver, B.C. next to James. A private service will be held with her immediate family due to COVID restrictions. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation, the Alzheimer Society of Canada, or the VanDusen Botanical Garden.
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