The Legacy of Gold Mountain

The second presenter was Yen H. "Gary" Low, who immigrated to Tucson in 1948 at the age of 13 from his birthplace in Canton, China. Mr. Low's enormous energy, love of life, and love his Chinese heritage were abundantly clear to everyone. His life is full of examples of his dedication to his community, family, and country. Among the many things he does in his retirement is teach the traditional Chinese lion dance.

The third presenter was Patsy Lee, who was born in Tucson and is a first generation Chinese American. Ms. Lee grew up in Barrio Hollywood in the 50s and 60s, earned a degree from the UofA and taught at Tucson High for 28 years. She continues to coach girl's and boy's volleyball at Palo Verde High.

From each speaker's remarks and from their answers to questions from audience members, we heard how important education and hard work has been in their families. Below are the short bio statements distributed at Friday evening's event. For more information on Discovering Southern Arizona, call the PCC Information Center at (520) 206-4500.

About the Presenters
David Tang, Jr. is a third generation Chinese American and a second generation Tucsonan. He was born in 1947 and graduated from the University of Arizona with a degree in journalism and from Brooks Institute of Photography with a degree in Cinematography and Illustration. He is married and has one son. As Director of Media Production and Publications at Pima Community College, David has been awarded national, regional and local awards for his art direction and graphic design. He also is the president and general partner of Tang Holdings LLC.

David's father David Tang, Sr. immigrated from China in 1929 and was a business owner and real estate developer in Tucson. David's maternal grandfather came to Tucson in 1880, and his mother Esther Don Tang was born in 1917. David and Esther Tang had four children. Esther Tang is recognized as one of the 100 leaders in Tucson, and for the past 50 years she has been considered the spokesperson for the Chinese community. She has been given countless local and national awards recognizing her contributions to the community and was named the Tucson Woman of the year in 1955. David has followed his mother's lead and has served and is serving on community and national boards including the Tucson Museum of Art, the Southern Arizona Community Foundation, the Tucson Chinese Cultural Center and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. David Jr. is passionate about his family, friends, Tucson and fishing.

Yen H. "Gary" Low immigrated to Tucson in 1948 at the age of 13 from his birthplace in Canton China. He attended Wakefield Junior High and Tucson High School where he played saxophone in the high school band and later attended the University of Arizona. Gary joined the Arizona National Guard in 1952. Six years later he attended Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning Georgia. He went on to graduate from Army Rangers School, was a member of the Army Guard rifle shooting team and retired from the Army Guard in 1963. Gary and his wife Sim were married in 1960, and the couple has two sons. In 1963 he opened Low's Quick Stop Market located at Palo Verde and Benson Highway. The business was sold, and Gary retired in 1994. During the 1980s, Gary was appointed to serve as a planning and zoning commissioner for 10 years. Gary continues to be very active in his retirement. He enjoys hunting and fishing, karate, gardening and plays senior league baseball. Gary volunteers his time to the Chinese Community and shares cultural lion dance traditions with children and leads activities on Senior Day at the Tucson Chinese Cultural Center.

Patsy Lee is a native Tucsonan and first generation Chinese American. She was raised in Barrio Hollywood in the 50s and 60s and still lives there today. Growing up, she spoke Chinese, English and Spanish. Patsy attended Davis Elementary, John Spring Junior High and Tucson High, and she played sports and was in student government at Tucson High. A graduate from the University of Arizona with an education degree and master degree in secondary education, Patsy played volleyball, basketball and softball at the UA. She taught physical education and coached at Tucson High for 2 8 years and taught two years at Palo Verde High. Although she retired from teaching, Patsy continues to coach girl's and boy's volleyball at Palo Verde High, and is in her 35th year of working with young people. As a volunteer, she heads the Senior Program at the Chinese Cultural Center on Thursdays and serves on the board for the Tucson Chinese Association. In her spare time she loves to play golf.