David See-chai Lam, (; July 25, 1923November 22, 2010) was a Hong Kong-born Canadian banker, businessman, investor, philanthropist, and politician. From 1988 to 1995, Lam was the 25th

Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia The lieutenant governor of British Columbia () is the viceregal representative of the , in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The office of lieutenant governor is an office of the Crown and serves as a representative of the monarchy in ...

, and he was the first

Chinese Canadian , native_name = , native_name_lang = , image = Chinese Canadian population by province.svg , image_caption = Chinese Canadians as percent of population by province / territory , pop = 1,715,7704.63% of the ...

to be appointed as a

vice-regal A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...

in Canada. He was known for his charitable efforts, donating millions of dollars and leveraging millions more to support educational institutions and activities in Hong Kong, Canada, and the United States.

Early life

David See-chai Lam was born in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

on July 25, 1923; he was the second oldest of nine children of Lam Chi Fung, a Hong Kong

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

importer and distributor, and Chan Chik-Ting Lam. When Lam turned 18, his plans to attend university were sidelined by

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. During the war, he worked in the administration of the family’s coal business, and his life was often at risk. Among the close calls, Lam was bombed at a dock, chased by

pirates Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

, and opted not to board a ship that was later

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...

ed. Understanding the danger, Chi Fung decided it was time for Lam to undertake his university studies. In 1947, Lam earned a degree in economics from

Lingnan University Lingnan University (LN/LU), formerly called Lingnan College, is a public liberal arts university in Hong Kong. It aims to provide students with an education in the liberal arts tradition and has joined the Global Liberal Arts Alliance since ...

in Hong Kong. He developed fluency in five languages, and earned an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

degree from

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

in the United States. He returned to Hong Kong in 1949 and began a successful career in his family's

banking A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Because ...

business at

Ka Wah Bank Ka Wah Bank Limited (Traditional Chinese: 嘉華銀行有限公司) (Former stock code: ) was a bank in Hong Kong. It was acquired by CITIC International Financial Holdings and renamed as CITIC Ka Wah Bank Limited (Traditional Chinese: 中信� ...

. While dancing at a

ball A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but can sometimes be ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used f ...

, Lam met his future wife, Dorothy. They dated for two years, and married in the fall of 1954. Together they had three daughters: Deborah, Daphne, and Doreen. After working as a banker for 18 years, Lam and his family

immigrated Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

to Vancouver in 1967.

Career

Lam became a prominent real estate entrepreneur in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, and was a leading proponent of many groundbreaking real estate development ventures. He is also noted for being a leading

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

. He founded the Floribunda Philanthropic Society, and the David & Dorothy Lam Foundation. He donated substantial funds to cultural projects in his adopted province and country. He served as Chairman of Hong Kong Baptist College, trustee of the Chancellor's Circle at the University of British Columbia, which later awarded him an honorary degree, and was a benefactor to the David C. Lam Institute for East-West Studies at Hong Kong Baptist University. In 1986, he helped found the

Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival {{more citations needed, date=June 2014 The Canadian International Dragon Boat Festival or Concord Pacific Dragon Boat Festival takes place every June on the waters and shoreside of False Creek in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It is North Ame ...

Lieutenant Governor

In 1988

Governor General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

Jeanne Sauvé Jeanne Mathilde Sauvé (; April 26, 1922 – January 26, 1993) was a Canadian politician and journalist who served as Governor General of Canada, the 23rd since Canadian Confederation. Sauvé was born in Prud'homme, Saskatchewan, and educate ...

, on the advice of Prime Minister

Brian Mulroney Martin Brian Mulroney ( ; born March 20, 1939) is a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th prime minister of Canada from 1984 to 1993. Born in the eastern Quebec city of Baie-Comeau, Mulroney studied political sci ...

, appointed him lieutenant governor. Lam represented the Crown during the term of three Premiers: William Vander Zalm,

Rita Johnston Rita Margaret Johnston (born April 22, 1935; née Leichert) is a Canadian politician in British Columbia. Johnston became the first female premier in Canadian history when she succeeded Bill Vander Zalm in 1991 to become the 29th premier of Bri ...

, and

Michael Harcourt Michael Franklin Harcourt, OC (born January 6, 1943) served as the 30th premier of British Columbia from 1991 to 1996, and before that as the 34th mayor of Vancouver, BC's largest city, from 1980 to 1986. Early life and education Harcourt was ...

. He formally ended the practice of lieutenant governors wearing the

Windsor uniform The Windsor uniform is a type of formal dress worn at Windsor Castle by male members of the British royal family (and some very senior courtiers). History The uniform was introduced by King George III in 1777. The full dress version, which ha ...

. This practice was reinstated by Lieutenant Governor

Steven Point Steven Lewis Point, (''Xwĕ lī qwĕl tĕl'') (born July 28, 1951) is a Canadian jurist and current chancellor of the University of British Columbia. He served as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia from 2007 to 2012. He also served ...

. Lam was Canada's second non-white lieutenant governor (the first being

Lincoln Alexander Lincoln MacCauley Alexander (January 21, 1922 – October 19, 2012) was a Canadian lawyer who became the first Black Canadian member of Parliament in the House of Commons, the first Black federal Cabinet Minister (as federal Minister of Labou ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

) and was the first

Asian Canadian Asian Canadians are Canadians who were either born in or can trace their ancestry to the continent of Asia. Canadians with Asian ancestry comprise both the largest and fastest growing group in Canada, after European Canadians, with roughly 19.3 ...

as well as the first

lieutenant governor.

Honours

*In 1988, he was made a Knight Commander of the Order of St. John (KStJ) and Vice-Prior of the Order from 1988 to 1995. *In 1988, he was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

and was promoted to Officer in 1995. *In 1994, he was made a Commander of the

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

(CVO) by the Queen in 1994. *In 1995, he was awarded the

Order of British Columbia The Order of British Columbia (french: Ordre de la Colombie-Britannique) is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Instituted in 1989 by Lieutenant Governor David Lam, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier B ...

. *In 1995,

David Lam Park David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

in Vancouver, BC was named after him.

Death

Lam died on November 22, 2010 from

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

at the age of 87. He was predeceased by his wife of 43 years, Dorothy, who died in 1997, while survived by three children and seven grandchildren.

Arms

References

External links

Order of Canada Citation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lam, David 1923 births 2010 deaths 20th-century Baptists 20th-century philanthropists Alumni of Lingnan University (Hong Kong) Businesspeople from Vancouver Canadian Baptists Canadian Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Canadian investors Canadian philanthropists Canadian politicians of Hong Kong descent Canadian real estate businesspeople Deaths from prostate cancer Hong Kong emigrants to Canada Lieutenant Governors of British Columbia Members of the Order of British Columbia Naturalized citizens of Canada Officers of the Order of Canada Reform Club of Hong Kong politicians Temple University alumni