Historical Information about the Opening of the Southern California Taiwan Center
Editor: Freeman Huang
The Southern California Taiwan Center Train is on the Move
Simon Lin, editor and compiler of the Taiwan Center commemorative book
The establishment of a local Taiwan Center is the collective wish of many overseas Taiwanese. However, due to the huge scale of the project, many areas have only dared to dream of such a place without actually creating one. As of this moment, the only large-scale Taiwan Centers in North America are located in New York, Houston, San Diego, and Vancouver, and each of these centers have gone through periods of ups and downs throughout their histories. I’ve thought about it for a long time, and I think the closest metaphor to describe the Taiwan Center is to say that it is like a train, with the Taiwanese community being represented by the passengers who are on board enjoying the ride. But before this can happen, you have to be able to afford the train (the Taiwan Center), have enough fuel (operating funds), and employ competent personnel (chairman, director, and secretary). If you take the New York and Houston Taiwan Centers as an example, it took them an average of three years from the creation of a Foundation to fundraise for the project until they could transfer operations to the Center. Fortunately, in the case of Southern California, Kenjohn Wang generously donated the entire train. Thus, the first preparatory meeting was held on February 19th, 1998, and by June 12th, we had already established and opened the Taiwan Center for business.
During the four-month preparation period, though there was no risk of the ship being completely capsized by a typhoon, the wind and rain continued to beat down on us non-stop. There were some people who asserted from the get-go that the train would not be able to start. Once dozens of meetings were held, there were also some people who jumped aboard and bravely rushing about to get things done. There were also people who jumped aboard and then jumped back off again, and there were some people who looked on from the side, waiting to see a sign that things were going well before they jumped on themselves. I have seen all different attitudes and responses. But none of that really matters, since ultimately the project came to a successful conclusion.
Now that the Taiwan Center train has slowly taken off, the preparation committee’s openness, transparency, and flexibility are the keys to its success. We have evolved from the early stage of having many conveners, planning groups, and bureaus, to the current stage of having Mr. Li Pei Wu serve as general convener and the establishment of a Board of Directors. This change is thanks to the crystallization of everyone’s shared wisdom, and all of the participants should feel comforted and proud of their own hard work. Southern California’s train has been blessed, it has had no oil spills (no loans to pay off), and there are a lot of personnel (50 directors). Though the Taiwan Center has no desire to be an “express train,” it does seek to continue moving forward at a steady pace without being derailed. I would like to say the following words to my fellow Taiwanese in Southern California and other places across the nation: “Dear elders and fellow countrymen, if you have a second to spare, please come visit and have a cup of tea with us.”
The history of this commemorative book has great significance, as it was worked on by Freeman Huang, president of New Asian Weekly. We are especially grateful to him for editing this book. The creation of this commemorative book will represent a milestone in the collaborative capabilities of the members and organizations of the Taiwanese community.
The Preparation Committee’s First Promotion, Inviting Enthusiastic Participation in the Taiwan Center’s Fundraiser
Dear fellow Taiwanese community members,
We are all from Taiwan, we all grew up eating Taiwanese rice and drinking Taiwanese water. Though we are fortunate enough to be living peacefully in a free country like the United States, there is a saying that goes, “When drinking water, remember its source, the traveler yearns for home” (remember your roots). Though we are far away, our love for Taiwan is still as passionate as ever, and we are all very proud of being Taiwanese. But where is our spiritual fortress? The Japanese and Jewish communities living in America all have their own community centers, but the 700,000 Taiwanese immigrants that currently reside in Southern California have no permanent place where we can host events and build friendships. Taiwanese people shouldn’t feel like we are losing to others; we should have our own home. We need a Taiwan Center!
Since the establishment of the Taiwan Center Preparation Committee on February 19th, 1998, the Taiwan Center project has received much attention and support from our enthusiastic community members. Everyone recognizes that having a Center is a necessity, so after just a few encounters, people from more than 30 Taiwanese organizations across Southern California have begun participating in the planning work. Through engaging in democratic procedures and a number of heated discussions, we have collectively decided to establish the Taiwan Center Foundation to raise funds.
The Taiwan Center Foundation will be a tax-exempt non-profit organization, and lawyers from the Taiwanese American Lawyers Association are currently working on drafting up a charter for the Foundation. In the future, the Foundation will have sovereignty over the Taiwan Center, and be able to decide the development and direction of the Taiwan Center.
The Taiwan Center will become a coordination center for various local Taiwanese associations, as well as an event venue for Taiwanese community members. However, the successful establishment of the Taiwan Center is still heavily reliant on your strong support. We wholeheartedly welcome you to join us as a founding member of the Taiwan Center Foundation. Founding members donate a minimum of $1,000 and a maximum of $10,000 which can be paid in installments. Each member of the Foundation has equal rights and obligations. Of course, those who do not want to become a founding member but nonetheless would like to sponsor the project are equally welcome to join us by making a donation of any size. Alternatively, you can help by volunteering for the Taiwan Center. Those who can donate, please support us financially; those who have time and energy, please support us by volunteering. The Taiwan Center project needs the support of each and every person in the community, through both human and material resources, in order to succeed!
In order to inaugurate the establishment of the Taiwan Center Foundation, we plan to hold our inauguration meeting and banquet on the evening of June 12th (Friday) at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel, a five-star hotel in downtown Los Angeles. There will be famous Taiwanese entertainers in attendance, and we will be inviting influential Taiwanese politicians to come and participate in this groundbreaking event. This event will be like a large gathering of Taiwanese people, so you absolutely shouldn’t miss out. Let’s come together and work towards our goal of building the Taiwan Center!
If you have any questions, please call office at our toll-free number (800-7000-8578) or contact our convener.
Sincerely,
The Preparation Committee of the Southern California Taiwan Center Foundation
Reflections on the Preparation for the Southern California Taiwan Center
Tsung-ming Liao, Secretary-general of the Preparatory committee
Mr. Kenjohn Wang, a veteran in the overseas Taiwanese community, well-known personality, and Commissioner of Overseas Community Affairs Council has had an extremely successful career. In addition to this, his love for Taiwan is clearly visible for all to see. He first founded the Taiwan Hotel-Motel Association and the Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce in order to protect the welfare of local Taiwanese associations, and is generally concerned about freedom and democratization of Taiwan. After donating one million dollars, he established the Taiwanese American Foundation which awards yearly scholarships to extraordinary talents both in the US and overseas. Later, the Wang family donated the entirety of its over 20,000 square foot estate located in Rosemead to the Taiwan Center. Mr. Wang’s generosity and dedicated spirit was truly moving to all who witnessed it, and it inspired positive responses from many different Taiwanese community members.
Financial genius Li Pei Wu is a well-known and distinguished member of the overseas Taiwanese community. He has been a consistent supporter of democratization and liberalization efforts in Taiwan and has been a helmsman in the promotion of democracy and freedom overseas. His efforts truly inspire heartfelt admiration. In addition to donating one million dollars to the Taiwanese United Fund and the Chilin Foundation, he also readily agreed to be elected as the general convener for the Taiwan Center preparatory committee. He also was elected as Chairman of the Foundation and worked hand-in-hand with Mr. Kenjohn Wang to create a beautiful future for the Taiwan Center, a reality which was just around the corner.
I had the honor of being elected by Mr. Kenjohn Wang and the many other talented members of the committee to serve as Secretary-general of the committee. Facing so many learned experts, individuals with successful careers, and leaders from a number of different organizations, it was impossible not to feel a little terrified and anxious to live up to everyone’s expectations for the establishment of the Taiwan Center.
The construction of the Taiwan Center was a significant project, which everyone had been discussing for over a decade, but as the saying goes, “things are easier said than done.” Thus, the Taiwan Center up to this point had remained a castle in the sky, with everyone being unable to come to a consensus, continuously delaying the project. This left the Taiwanese American community and all of their organizations to wander about without a home, like clouds drifting through the sky, or duckweed floating on the surface of the water. Thinking about it truly makes one sigh with deep emotion.
Getting people to automatically reach into their pockets and give you money, or convincing others to think like you are two extremely difficult tasks. Fortunately, everyone on the preparation committee was of the consensus that the construction of the Taiwan Center was urgent. Thus, by virtue of our interpersonal relationships and sheer doggedness, we charged out into the world without fear, unabashedly moving towards our mission. We encountered a number of obstacles, and I don’t know how much time and effort was spent to collect donations to build the Taiwan Center. We worked hard, never stopping to rest until the Taiwan Center was finally finished today.
Today, we at the Taiwan Center felt gratified and at ease to finally announce the Center’s official opening. The establishment of the center will give the community a place to gather and make friends, as well as provide everyone with a fixed event venue and a kind of spiritual fortress. This place is not just for us, but for the continued benefit of our children and grandchildren and all future generations. This major collective effort is all thanks to the hard work of Mr. Kenjohn Wang and Li Pei Wu, as well as to the many community members and preparation committee members who worked day and night with dedication and enthusiasm.
Though we are celebrating the opening of the Taiwan Center with high spirits today, when I think back to the preparation period, during which the members of the preparation committee hid the bitterness of this task from outsiders. Only those with personal experience can truly understand this taste. In regard to my own job, the Secretary-general of the preparation committee, I had to comprehensively read through all of the committee affairs, including the planning process and personnel details. It was truly painstaking work.
In order to make sure the preparatory work was carried out smoothly, I not only devoted every day to the project, but I often also wrote furiously in the middle of the night, and sometimes even woke up mid-dream to go organize information until dawn. My wife would accompany me day and night, worried that I would disregard the advice of my physician and that my illness would worsen to an unmanageable degree.
Fortunately, my faith is firm, and I hold the strong belief that if asked a favor, one should do their utmost to do a good job. I believe that God will favor me and bless my love and dedication to the Taiwan Center, and preserve my life, vigor, and motivation so that I can continue to work with the Taiwan Center and my fellow preparation committee members. We continue to fight so that Taiwanese organizations in Southern California can feel a sense of pride and accomplishment. In addition, I am confident that no matter what difficulties and obstacles we encounter, through hard work and perseverance, our project will definitely succeed, and the Taiwan Center will forever shine radiantly in all directions, going down in history and being remembered for eternity.
Thoughts and Hopes for the Taiwan Center Foundation Fundraising Effort
Fundraising Committee Convener San John Huang
Returning from my vacation in Japan, I saw both negative and positive reports about the Taiwan Center Preparation Committee in the news, which made me simultaneously happy and worried. I am happy because our local Taiwanese community has been discussing the establishment of a Taiwan Center for over ten years, and now, thanks to the generous donation of the Wang family, we have finally found a spiritual home, an event venue, and a physical place for our Taiwanese cultural heritage. I am worried because if we can’t reach our fundraising goal of one million dollars and the Taiwan Center is weight down by debt, how can it sustain its operations?
I have been serving in Taiwanese associations for the last twenty years, and I really hope that we can use the collective power of all of the associations for this project. I look forward to being able to preserve over 400 years of Taiwanese culture overseas, so that our descendants can understand and learn about our culture. I hope they can also share it with others and help them better understand our incredible Taiwan. When my colleagues in the preparation committee recommended me as the convener for the Fundraising Committee, I couldn’t refuse and accepted the job, even though I knew it would be extremely challenging to raise a million dollars. Over the past two and a half months, I have been thinking long and hard about how to accomplish this million-dollar fundraising project, which will be a difficult, enormous, and historic initiative. When I begin thinking about this project, I often find it hard to sleep. Though it is true that the difficulty of the project has caused some preparation committee members to leave, most of the workers have continued on with courage. For the sake of public benefit, they have sought donations from everyone, unfazed by rejection. Though we have met some people who made up false reasons to refuse us, leaving us disappointed, we have encountered many more generous community members who not only donated, but also introduced our mission to their friends and family. They have encouraged us, joined us, and provided us comfort.
When Mr. Kenjohn Wang saw the dedicated preparation committee members working tirelessly to raise funds for the Taiwan Center, he decided to make an even greater commitment, promising that if fundraising exceeded the remaining loan amount of $528,000, then the Wang family would match the donation to pay off the loan, and the property rights could immediately be transferred to the Foundation with the hopes that we could still raise a million dollars for the Foundation. This news came as a great relief to us fundraisers and was greatly encouraging. The entire donation could be used for the future Taiwan Center’s operations, which is wonderful!
The Taiwan Center has been successfully established. I look forward to all my fellow Taiwanese who, with the same heart of generosity as Mr. Kenjohn Wang, will continue to donate their time, money, and energy, regardless of amount, in order to preserve and transmit our great ancestral culture. Let us all wish the Taiwan Center founding meeting great success.
Excerpt from the Foundation of the Southern California Taiwan Center Special Issue 06/1998
Translated from 29. 南加州台灣會館開創的史料/黃樹人編輯/2014/09
