Success Lies in Hard Work

By Andy Wang

As a first generation Taiwanese American, I have always been interested in how our family came to reside in the United States. My father Chao-Huei “Jeffrey” Wang (王肇輝）came to the United States when he was a young man to pursue his studies. He ultimately chose to stay and start a family.

My father grew up the oldest child in a large family in Tainan, Taiwan. He attended Yong Fu Elementary School, and later Tainan First High School. In high school, my father lost his father in a tragic accident, and became head of the household at a young age. When it came time to choose a career his mother felt Jeff was to shy too make a good businessman. Staying involved in the family business would be left to Jeffs siblings. After high school my father hoped to become an architect, but was “told” he could be a chemist after taking college admissions tests.

My father’s undergraduate chemistry education was completed at National Cheng Kung University.

He moved to the United States to pursue a Master’s degree and continued on to complete his Ph.D. in organic chemistry also at the University of Nebraska. Looking back, he always felt that learning the language was the most challenging aspect of his move to the U.S. Although he had scored highly on the chemistry portion of the graduate entrance exam, he really struggled with the English portion of the test. While it was difficult for my father to become accustomed to life in the U.S, several of his classmates commented that he truly helped make their adjustment easier when they arrived.

On April 19th, 2008 my father passed away peacefully surrounded by family after succumbing to complications of cancer. Even in his illness he continued to bring joy to his family and friends. He was loved by all as a generous friend, brother, father, and grandfather.

Lessons for Young Scientists:

Today my office used to be my father’s. A piece of artwork that remains to this day has Chinese characters. It loosely translates to, “Success Lies in Hard Work”. This is a sentiment that he strongly believed and lived. Chemistry may not have been my father’s original passion, but it became a successful career for him through hard work and perseverance. As important as hard work was generosity to others and always acting in a caring, trustworthy and genuine manner. This is evident in the loyalty created in his friends, colleagues, employees and customers. My father always had a smile on his face, he told me this was advice he received from a colleague in graduate school. He stressed the importance of not being afraid to take some chances that might otherwise pass. This would be his guidance for today’s young scientists.

[1] Andy Wang, President, Spherotech, Inc., 27845 Irma Lee Circle, Unit 101, Lake Forest, IL 60045