MLA Rice celebrates Henry Wong's 100th with Legislature mention

North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice sharing the story of
Prince Rupert's Henry Wong with the Legislature this week

Celebrating his 100th year has made Prince Rupert's Henry Wong a local celebrity and on Thursday his story was told to a wider audience as North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice paid tribute to her constituent with a mention of his recent birthday celebrations during the Thursday morning session of the Legislature

Ms. Rice offered up a short recap of a captivating life, tracing his family's history in China and their journey to Canada, the tribute almost a short history lesson for the times from 1919 to today, with the MLA noting how the elder statesmen of the Chinese community in Prince Rupert was recently honoured by family, friends and members of the community at the West End Restaurant.

How do you live past 100? Well, never drink cold water, only eat food that's been cooked well, get lots of fresh air and exercise, avoid MSG and be happy. That is the secret to living well, according to Prince Ruperite Henry Fook Hen Wong, who recently turned 100. 

 Henry's father, who had 12 children with six wives, moved to Canada to work on the railroad. In 1928, when he was ten, Henry and six of his siblings were sent back to China to get their education. 

At 18, Henry and his family were forced to flee the city of Guangzhou and move to Hong Kong after the Japanese invasion of 1937. During the occupation, he met his wife, Julia, and they had two sons, Philip and William. Unfortunately, Julia passed away while the children were young. Wong and his two sons moved back to Guangzhou, but after the Communist Party came to power in China and began seizing privately owned land, Henry returned to Canada in 1947 for more opportunity. 

Working ten-hour days at the B.C. Royal Restaurant in Vancouver, earning 30 cents an hour, it took Henry ten years to save enough money to bring his kids back home to Canada with him. After being reunited with his children, Henry continued to work as a cook in Vancouver until he arrived in Prince Rupert in 1979. He continued cooking in Prince Rupert until he retired in 2012, at the age of 94. 

Surrounded by family and members of the Prince Rupert Chinese community, Henry recently celebrated his 100th birthday at the West End Restaurant, a popular Chinese eatery in Prince Rupert — clearly a determined and hard-working man, still driving his own car. I'd like to recognize and wish a happy 100th birthday to Henry Wong.

The video of her statement to the House can be viewed from the Legislature Video archive here, her presentation to the Chamber starts at the 1:28 PM mark of the afternoon session.

For more items of note on the work of the Legislature see our archive page here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.