November 12, 2019 was the 153rd anniversary of the birth of Sun Yat-sen. In the afternoon on this day, the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa Library and the Dr. Sun Yat-sen Hawai‘i Foundation jointly organized a soft opening of the “Sun Yat-sen and Soong Ching Ling Research Room” on the fourth floor of Hamilton Library on the Mānoa campus. UH president David Lassner, interim University Librarian Monica Ghosh, Dr. Sun Yat-sen Hawai‘i Foundation Chairman of the Board Warren Luke, and associate director of the UH Center for Chinese Studies Cynthia Ning made congratulatory speeches. The Research Room is located in Room 409; it is small, but quiet and comfortable—an excellent place for research. A large number of related books, photos, statues and paintings relating to Sun Yat-sen and Soong Ching Ling are on display. There is also a temporary exhibit of books and documents on display in the corridor. Yen Chun, Executive Vice President of the Dr. Sun Yat-sen Hawai‘i Foundation, said that a total of $75,000 had been raised over several years, to cover the cost of obtaining the site, supplementing library holdings, and providing subsidies to visiting researchers working on Sun and Soong. Memorabilia displayed in the room were donated by descendants of the Sun family, the family of Yen Chun, the Shanghai Soong Ching Ling Foundation, and others. The donors selected the University of Hawai‘i library as the site of the Research Room because of its holding of some 500 titles relating to Sun Yat-sen and his wife Soong Ching Ling, which provide researchers with a ready source of information.
The event was co-sponsored by the UH Center for Chinese Studies. Center director David Yang, Center member and history professor Shana Brown, President of Chinese Chamber of Commerce Michele Choy, and Dr. Sun Yat-sen Hawai‘i Foundation of Chairman of the board Warren Luke and board members were in attendance, for a total of 30 persons.
Article by Juliet Tierney, translated by Cynthia Ning
President David Lassner (center in green) joined the board members for a photo at the soft opening
Left to Right: Warren Luke, Carolyn Luke, David Lassner, Monica Ghosh and Yen Chun
Photos by Dick Lum Ching
