Hoodini
2007-03-07 15:33:53 UTC
Irene Cheng; Hong Kong-born educator was a citizen of the world
By Michael Kinsman
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
March 4, 2007
Nobody seems to recall how Irene Cheng boarded the wrong airline
flight that took her behind the Berlin Wall, but everyone agrees the
East Germans got the worst of it.
“She wound up in East Berlin and was forced to talk her way out,” her
daughter, June Dandliker, said. “And, she had a very strong will.”
It also came as no surprise to her friend, Gwendalle Cooper, that Mrs.
Cheng got out of a Communist-controlled city in the early 1960s at the
height of the Cold War.
“She could talk her way out of anything,” Cooper said. “They were
probably happy when she left.”
Mrs. Cheng, who died Feb. 17 of congestive heart failure, had a streak
of fierce independence throughout her life. She was 102 and lived in
Pacific Beach.
Born in Hong Kong in 1904 to a well-to-do Eurasian family, Mrs. Cheng
was the first woman to attend Hong Kong University.
She went on to become friends with anthropologist Margaret Mead,
served on the executive board of the World Federation for Mental
Health and devoted herself to education in China and the United
States. She had lived in San Diego since 1967.
“She was a very strong person who wouldn't back down until she got
what she wanted,” said Cooper, professor emeritus of counseling and
psychological services at San Diego State University.
Cooper recalled a 1988 trip to China with Mrs. Cheng. They led a
10-member delegation to learn how special education students were
treated in schools and hospitals.
The Chinese government held a dinner in Mrs. Cheng's honor at
Tiananmen Square in Beijing, but she balked when she learned her
American entourage would not be invited.
“I could see her lecturing a state official in Chinese,” Cooper said.
“I didn't know a word she was saying, but I could tell she was getting
her point across.”
Later, her traveling companions were invited to the dinner and
presented with menus printed in English.
In many ways, Mrs. Cheng was a world citizen.
Her family was among the wealthiest in Hong Kong, but because of her
European/Chinese mixed heritage, they were looked down upon. Still,
the family lived in lavish homes and her father, Sir Robert Ho Tung,
was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1952.
After graduating from Hong Kong University in 1925, Mrs. Cheng
attended King's College in London, received a master's degree from
Columbia University's Teachers College in New York and taught at
Lingnan University in Canton, China.
She returned to China in the 1930s, marrying a Beijing engineer,
giving birth to her only daughter, and was widowed less than two years
after her wedding.
Mrs. Cheng took a position in the Education Department in Hong Kong
and became the highest-ranking Chinese woman in the department.
On her retirement in 1961, she was awarded by Queen Elizabeth II the
title of Officer of the Order of the British Empire.
Several years later, she moved to San Diego to be closer to her
daughter and other family members.
In 1970, she founded the Chung Hwa School of San Diego to teach
Chinese culture to young people. She also lectured at UC San Diego,
taught adult education and citizenship classes and worked with
Vietnamese refugees at Camp Pendleton during the mid 1970s.
In recent years, she wrote two books. One was about the life of her
mother, Clara Ho Tung. She also wrote an autobiography, “Intercultural
Reminiscences.”
Mrs. Cheng is survived by her daughter, June Dandliker of San Diego;
sister, Florence Yeo of Sussex, England; two grandsons; and one
great-grandson.
A memorial is planned for 2 p.m. May 12 at Kate Sessions Park in San
Diego.
The family suggested donations to a girls school founded by Mrs.
Cheng's mother, Tung Ling Kok Yuen, at 15 Shan Kwong Road, Happy
Valley, Hong Kong.
By Michael Kinsman
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
March 4, 2007
Nobody seems to recall how Irene Cheng boarded the wrong airline
flight that took her behind the Berlin Wall, but everyone agrees the
East Germans got the worst of it.
“She wound up in East Berlin and was forced to talk her way out,” her
daughter, June Dandliker, said. “And, she had a very strong will.”
It also came as no surprise to her friend, Gwendalle Cooper, that Mrs.
Cheng got out of a Communist-controlled city in the early 1960s at the
height of the Cold War.
“She could talk her way out of anything,” Cooper said. “They were
probably happy when she left.”
Mrs. Cheng, who died Feb. 17 of congestive heart failure, had a streak
of fierce independence throughout her life. She was 102 and lived in
Pacific Beach.
Born in Hong Kong in 1904 to a well-to-do Eurasian family, Mrs. Cheng
was the first woman to attend Hong Kong University.
She went on to become friends with anthropologist Margaret Mead,
served on the executive board of the World Federation for Mental
Health and devoted herself to education in China and the United
States. She had lived in San Diego since 1967.
“She was a very strong person who wouldn't back down until she got
what she wanted,” said Cooper, professor emeritus of counseling and
psychological services at San Diego State University.
Cooper recalled a 1988 trip to China with Mrs. Cheng. They led a
10-member delegation to learn how special education students were
treated in schools and hospitals.
The Chinese government held a dinner in Mrs. Cheng's honor at
Tiananmen Square in Beijing, but she balked when she learned her
American entourage would not be invited.
“I could see her lecturing a state official in Chinese,” Cooper said.
“I didn't know a word she was saying, but I could tell she was getting
her point across.”
Later, her traveling companions were invited to the dinner and
presented with menus printed in English.
In many ways, Mrs. Cheng was a world citizen.
Her family was among the wealthiest in Hong Kong, but because of her
European/Chinese mixed heritage, they were looked down upon. Still,
the family lived in lavish homes and her father, Sir Robert Ho Tung,
was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1952.
After graduating from Hong Kong University in 1925, Mrs. Cheng
attended King's College in London, received a master's degree from
Columbia University's Teachers College in New York and taught at
Lingnan University in Canton, China.
She returned to China in the 1930s, marrying a Beijing engineer,
giving birth to her only daughter, and was widowed less than two years
after her wedding.
Mrs. Cheng took a position in the Education Department in Hong Kong
and became the highest-ranking Chinese woman in the department.
On her retirement in 1961, she was awarded by Queen Elizabeth II the
title of Officer of the Order of the British Empire.
Several years later, she moved to San Diego to be closer to her
daughter and other family members.
In 1970, she founded the Chung Hwa School of San Diego to teach
Chinese culture to young people. She also lectured at UC San Diego,
taught adult education and citizenship classes and worked with
Vietnamese refugees at Camp Pendleton during the mid 1970s.
In recent years, she wrote two books. One was about the life of her
mother, Clara Ho Tung. She also wrote an autobiography, “Intercultural
Reminiscences.”
Mrs. Cheng is survived by her daughter, June Dandliker of San Diego;
sister, Florence Yeo of Sussex, England; two grandsons; and one
great-grandson.
A memorial is planned for 2 p.m. May 12 at Kate Sessions Park in San
Diego.
The family suggested donations to a girls school founded by Mrs.
Cheng's mother, Tung Ling Kok Yuen, at 15 Shan Kwong Road, Happy
Valley, Hong Kong.
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