Our donors

The connections of the Wong-Tsang family to the University go back more than 50 years, when Dr Yat Kwong (YK) Wong (MBChB Medicine, 1965; MD Medicine, 1973) became the first of 10 family members to study medicine at Birmingham.

The role Birmingham Medical School has played in the careers of YK, brothers Yat-Sun, Yat Kiu (Buddy), David and YK’s son Alexander and daughter Patricia was reflected in the family’s recent gift to the Hong Kong Foundation.

The donation honours YK’s parents, as his father was responsible for setting him on his career path as a doctor, after sending him to the UK for his education.

He explains: ‘My father was a merchant, who had business connections with companies in Europe. As a father of eight children, he often had to call upon the services of doctors when any of the children were sick. At that time, there were few Western-trained doctors in Hong Kong.’

YK was sent to the UK when he was only 12, taking a month-long boat trip via the Suez Canal with his older brother Jack and guardian. His travels then took him from a boarding school in Wales to the independent Quaker school Leighton Park, in Reading, from where he would start his long dreamed of medical degree at Birmingham.

YK would spend time on rotation working at various hospitals in the region, including the old Birmingham Children’s Hospital in Ladywood, which kick-started his career as a paediatrician.

YK’s brother Buddy would go on to become an ear, nose and throat surgeon and acknowledges the importance of YK blazing a trail for the family, saying: ‘It was very difficult to get into medical school in those days, but because YK had already earned his place it felt more achievable.

‘To receive an offer from a medical school is a prize to be treasured and my time at Birmingham was very much my “formative years”.’

Both agree that their studies involved plenty of hard work – requiring a prompt arrival at the Medical School Library at 8am to make sure they had access to the limited number of books.

Nevertheless, the nature of the course meant that close friendships were formed. Buddy adds: ‘The work was often a hard slog, but I still have friends with whom I am in touch. We were organising our 50th anniversary reunion for last summer, but the pandemic forced us to postpone it.’

While the four brothers all studied at the University in quick succession, YK put no pressure on his children to follow in his footsteps, saying: ‘They simply came to have a look at the campus. Both decided they liked it, and so they applied – and they have stayed in the UK ever since, to make their careers.’

The family’s generous gift to the Foundation is commemorated with an engraved plaque honouring their parents. The plaque was installed next to a Tilia Tomentosa (silver lime) tree in the Green Heart, near the new library. YK chose the tree to reflect his love of Der Lindenbaum (The Linden Tree) by 19th-century composer Franz Schubert. Linden trees are commonly called lime trees in the UK and he adds: ‘Lime trees are not native to Hong Kong but have beautiful flowers. It felt like a good way to pay my respects to my parents.’

Byung Won Park’s gift towards the University’s Collaborative Teaching Laboratory reflects the positive effect on his career from one Birmingham lecturer.

Hong Kong based alumnus Byung Won Park (BSc Chemical Engineering, 1971) remembers his time at Birmingham fondly and the impact Dr David Lihou (BSc Chemical Engineering, 1960; PhD Chemical Engineering, 1963), a former lecturer in Chemical Engineering made on him.

Mr Park chose to honour Dr Lihou by making a generous donation towards the Collaborative Teaching Laboratory, which opened in October 2018.

‘I will always appreciate what Dr Lihou did for me,’ he says. ‘He tutored and guided me, but most importantly he helped me to grow my confidence. One memory that sticks with me is being invited on a weekend canoeing trip, which meant a lot as I was far from home. I feel very fortunate and proud to be able to recognise him in this way.’

Mr Park also made an important contribution to the fight against the pandemic in 2020, as his company Modern Testing Services repurposed its laboratories to run COVID-19 tests for the Hong Kong government. He has been in the consumer products quality control industry for more than 40 years and attributes his success to his engineering education at Birmingham.

He returned to campus in 2017 for a reunion with his friends of more than 50 years, who he met while studying in Birmingham. The group also had a very special reunion with Dr Lihou, who says: ‘I really enjoyed teaching and helping students to succeed. It was such a surprise to be honoured in this way and was so nice to see Byung again.’

Dr Jason Brockwell (MBChB Medicine, 1989) Orthopaedic Surgeon, Asia Medical Specialists

Chi Kuen Chan (MBA Public Service, 2001)

Mr William Cheng (BCom Accounting, 1982)

Hon Frankie Ching-Ming Yick, SBS, JP (MSc Industrial Management, 1980) Member (Transport Functional Constituency), LEGCO

Mr Pont Shun Kong Chiu (BCom Accounting, 1982) General Manager (Risk Management and Internal Audit), Sino Land Company Ltd

Mr Raphael WC Ding (BCom Accounting, 1982) Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer, Greenheart Group Ltd

Mr Christopher Hooley (LLB, 1976) Partner, Hugill and Ip Solicitors

Kai Ho Law (MSc Marketing, 2007)

Mr Stephen Law (BSc Civil Engineering, 1984) Managing Director, ANS Capital Ltd

Joey Lee (BSc Accounting and Finance, 2004; MSc Accounting and Finance, 2005)
I am honouring Mr. C. H. Chan and Dr. S. H. Ho, the two donors offering Overseas Scholarship through Hang Seng School of Commerce (renamed as The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong) supporting my study at the University of Birmingham. Without their generous donations and selfless contributions, I would not have had the chance to study overseas and receive high quality education at Birmingham. Following their charitable acts, I would like to support the next generation of students to benefit from the University.

Dr Gabriel Leung (BSc Electronic and Electrical Engineering, 1982) Managing Director, Hewlett Packard Enterprise

Pat Wah Patrick Lim (BCom Accounting and Finance, 1982)

Ms Anna Lin (MBA Industrial Economics and Business Studies, 1988) Chief Executive Officer, GS1 Hong Kong

Dr Guy Look (BCom Industrial Economics and Business Studies, 1979; DUniv 2013) Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director, Sa Sa International Holdings Ltd

Wang Kwan Lu (LLB Law, 1988)

Celeste Luk (LLB Law, 2007)

Eva Luk (BSc Mathematics and Computer Science, 1982)

Mr Adrian Mak (BSc Chemical Engineering, 1983) Chief Financial Officer, Television Broadcasts Ltd

Kwok Leung Mak (BSc Mechanical Engineering, 1982)

Mr Byung Won Park (BSc Chemical Engineering, 1971) Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, Modern Testing Services (Global) Ltd

The Honourable Mr Justice Robert C. Tang (LLB, 1969) NPJ, GBM, SBS, QC, SC, JP

Sau Ching Tsoi (MBA, 1988)

Chang Yun Hung Wanda (MSc Health and Hospital Management, 2000)

Frances Chi Nam Wang (MBA, 2012)
In fond memory of Mr William Ka Sze Wan.

Mr Edward To and Ms Wendy Wong (PG Dip, Business Administration, 1987; MBA Industrial Economics and Business Studies, 1988) Chief Financial Officer, Top Ease (HK) Ltd; General Manager and Head of International Division, The Bank of East Asia Ltd

Dr Amy Bik-May Tsui (PhD Linguistics, 1986) Professor Emerita, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong

Dr Buddy Wong (MBChB Medicine, 1970; MSc Health and Hospital Management, 1998)

Dr IR Conrad Wong, BBS, JP (MSc [Eng] Foundation Engineering, 1988) Vice-Chairman, Yau Lee Holdings Ltd

Dr David Wong (MBChB Medicine, 1976)

Mr Sammy Hip Sang Wong (BSc Mechanical Engineering, 1983) Managing Director, Edwin McAuley Electronics Ltd

The Wong-Tsang family:
Dr YK Wong (MBChB Medicine, 1965; MD, 1973)

Dr Buddy Wong (MBChB Medicine, 1970; MSc Health and Hospital Management, 1998)

Dr David Wong (MBChB Medicine, 1976)

Kwok Hing Woo (LLB Law, 1968)

Cheun Hon Yau

Wai Kei Yeung (BSc Computer Studies, 1986)

Edmund Ka Sun Young (BSc Civil Engineering, 1962; MSc Civil Engineering, 1963)