My father, Cheung Hong Tai (Teacher Cheung), was born in Hong Kong in 1926. Raised in a traditional Chinese family, he was the third of four brothers. In his early years, he attended Wah Yan College (class7-3) and Queen’s College (class2-1). As a young man, he loved sports, particularly basketball and football.
During the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, he worked on ships traveling between Guangxi and Shantou. After the war, he briefly worked at Shek Kong Airfield. In 1954, he enrolled at Hong Kong Technical College to study land surveying and later joined the Hong Kong Government's Lands and Survey Department (later renamed the Lands Department) as a surveyor, where he worked until his honorable retirement in 1990.
On the family front, he married my mother in 1956, and they welcomed a daughter the following year, followed by a son a few years later. Known for his gentle and amiable nature, my father was well-loved by the neighbors. He often organized tree-planting initiatives on the hillside behind their residence to stabilize the slope—a legacy still fondly remembered by our family today. He had a wide range of interests, especially sports and travel. Back then, a group of over ten neighboring families would often gather to share their travel experiences by screening 8mm films, creating joyful memories that remain vivid in our hearts.
Deeply passionate about Chinese culture, my father spent the first few years of his retirement immersing himself in the study and collection of antiques, including jade and ceramics. He later took up jade and seal carving, as well as pottery-making. He also studied traditional Chinese painting and calligraphy under masters. Excelling in his studies, he went on to teach at the University of Hong Kong’s School of Professional and Continuing Education (SPACE), laying a robust foundation for his golden years.
In 1993, at the age of 67, he immigrated to Toronto, Canada. There, he taught calligraphy and Chinese painting classes at the Carefirst Senior Communities for nearly two decades. During this time, he considered it a great honor to promote Chinese culture overseas and to bond with his students, sharing the joys of calligraphy and painting as both a teacher and a friend. Here, we also express our gratitude to all his students for their enduring respect and affection for Teacher Cheung.
In his later years, my father’s health gradually declined. By God’s grace, he came to know and accept the Lord Jesus Christ in the final chapter of his life. On May 24 of the same year, he peacefully passed away, free from earthly toil, and returned to his heavenly home. Though we miss him dearly, his memory lives on forever.
He lived a full life of 99 years. The Lord’s grace abides with him always.
爸爸对生活充满熱愛,自理和學習能力都比同龄要好,直至九十多歲以後才有所减退。他實現了他的“在家養天年,不住院舍,遇绝症不過度治療”的心願。他入醫院之前已想好他簡單的離别儀式。我們感謝给他最後一週照顧的North York General Hospital 的醫護人员,讓他有尊嚴地安詳離世。
“凡事都有定期,天下萬務都有定時” (傳道書三章一節)。
爸爸,一路走好!❤️
颖儀(女兒)拜别。
It is one of the greatest privileges of my life to have known my father-in-law, Hong Tai Cheung. I first met him in the 1980s. Wing’s parents were visiting, and I was invited to a meal with them. I still remember how nervous I felt, so afraid that I would say or do the wrong thing. I need not have worried. I soon learned that he was a patient and kind man. This was the first of hundreds of shared meals and happy memories, whether big dinners in restaurants, or simple breakfasts around the family table. He introduced me to many new foods like pomelos, congee and fried bread sticks, or soup-filled dumplings that explode in the mouth. Just a few days before his final illness the family celebrated his 99th birthday with hotpot and oysters, one of his favorites, and later meringue cake. This will always remain a precious memory.
He was a family man, and you could tell how immensely and rightfully proud he was of his children, Anthony and Wing. He was remarkably talented with boundless curiosity and dedicated much of his time to his art, generously sharing his knowledge and passion with his pupils. As an artist, a scholar and a gentleman, he continued to teach well into old age and formed many strong friendships through his art. He was a master of Sudoku puzzles, and his mind stayed sharp long after his body slowed down. He never stopped learning new things, I remember showing him a pinball game on my laptop and within a few minutes he had become a much better and more enthusiastic player than I ever was. Even in his nineties, he explored new things, whether it was digital technology or how to make breakfast pancakes. His tenacity and determination were inspirational. He never gave up and continued to live on his own with the help of his family, especially Anthony, until his very last days. Although we were from very different backgrounds, he always made me feel welcome and at home. I always looked forward to seeing him and now that the sun has set on his long life I will miss him deeply. Goodbye, and may you be at peace forever.