Yin Tong Tam

Mrs. Yin Tong Tam (譚李燕棠) passed away peacefully in Richmond, British Columbia on September 11, 2019 at the age of 82. Yin is survived by her husband, Ernest (譚文根); four children, Mavis (Peter), Albert (Ida), Myra (Kevin), and Alan (Dawn); younger brother, Richard (Chiyoko) and families in Boston; six grandchildren, Adelina (Trevor), Jonathan, Stephanie, Natalie, Lisa and Brendan; and great-granddaughter, Gemma. Yin was born on March 20, 1937 in Kaiping, Guangdong, China (中國廣東省開平市) to Ho-Lau and Yee Yu-Ching Lee. She moved to Hong Kong from Kaiping with her mother and two younger brothers, Chi-Yuen (Bill) and Charn-Sun (Richard) in the early 1950’s and later married her husband, Ernest on December 14, 1956. On December 29, 1974, she and the entire Tam family moved from Hong Kong to Richmond, British Columbia and lived here happily ever since. Yin Tong was a loving and caring daughter, sister, friend, wife, mother, aunt, grandmother, and recently a great-grandmother. Her gentle, loving, caring and helpful efforts were greatly appreciated by everyone around her in Hong Kong; Richmond; and her extended families in the Boston and San Francisco area. Yin Tong was the center for the Tam family, always focused on the health and well being of her loved ones. She organized family gatherings, frequently and regularly inviting everyone into her home. She enjoyed the chaos of a busy loving household, consistently taking care of the day-to-day needs of several of her grandchildren and families. A funeral is scheduled for Monday, September 23, 2019 at 10:30 am at Oceanview Funeral Burial Park – Chapel Courtyard (4000 Imperial Street, Burnaby, British Columbia), with a reception to follow at Sun Bo Kong Restaurant in Vancouver (1363 Kingsway, Vancouver, British Columbia). Visitation is scheduled just prior to the funeral at 10:00 am. Mr. John Yu will officiate the ceremony. All are welcome to attend and celebrate Yin's life. In lieu of flowers, please send donations in memory of Yin Tong Tam to the Richmond Hospital Foundation at 7000 Westminster Highway, Richmond, BC V6X 1A2 or online at (https://www.richmondhospitalfoundation.com). The family would like to thank the hospital staff at Richmond General Hospital for their effort and care.