FAMILY

 Standing - Edward, grandson Jared, Nancy and granddaughter Jamie. 

Sitting - son Ulysses and daughter-in-law Maritza

Drafted to the Army 1952          Served in Korea 1953           Discharged as a Corporal in 1954

Edward.  I was born in New York City, New York but left the United States at the age of one.  I spent most of my formative years  (see Parents Page) in Southeast Asia traveling with my parents who were in show business.  My education was rather limited. In my early years I was too young to be left alone in a boarding school while my parents were traveling and when I was old enough World War II (WWII) broke out and all the schools were closed.  Not until after WWII when I was a teenager did I start my formal education.  Like my father before me I tried to catch up with my schooling.  I had 3 years of boarding school at Malayan Seminary in Singapore before returning to the United States in 1950.

In the Military.  I was drafted into the military service in 1952 as I was about to start my Junior class in high school.  My basic training was at Fort Ord, California where I also attended Language classes. I was trained as a medic at Fort Sam Houston in Texas. In Korea I was stationed  with a medical unit near Panmunjom where the POW (Prisoners of War) camps were located.   I served as an interpreter treating Chinese POWs during the Korean War.  When the Korean War ended in 1953, I was honorably discharged the following year as a corporal.

After the Korean War    I took advantage of many correspondence courses to improve myself while I was in the Army. After discharge, I continued my education with the help of the GI Bill.   Because I did not graduate from high school, I had to pass the G.E.D. (General Education Development) test to enable me to attend City College of San Francisco. From City College of San Francisco, I continued my education at the University of California in Berkeley  graduating in 1959 with a BA degree.  In 1960, I began my civil service career at the U.S. Naval Air Rework Facility in Alameda, California, until I retired in 1990 as a Technical Manual Editor.  After retirement I spend my time pursuing my hobbies (see Hobbies of Edward) and serve as a volunteer at the Alameda Mastick Senior Center.

Fong Ling aka Nancy    Born in Guangzhou, China, Nancy spent most of her formative years in Hong Kong under the care of her grandmother along with her younger brother and sister.  Their father passed away when they were very young.  Their mother had to work to support herself. Nancy attended Chinese school and worked after school.  She worked at a jewelry store and later at a photo studio. At the jewelry store, her boss gave her the nickname, Nancy.  Her legal Chinese name  is Fong Ling.  

Nancy came to the United States as an immigrant from Hong Kong in 1959 with her brother, uncle and aunt. They arrived first in Provo, Utah where another aunt lived. Unable to find jobs in Provo, Nancy, her uncle and aunt came to San Francisco.  Her brother stayed in Provo where he was able to find a machinist job.  One day while looking for a job at an employment agency in San Francisco Chinatown, Nancy met a buddy of Edward, who arranged for them to meet at another friend’s house. 

Edward and Nancy   We seemed to click the moment we met.  She seemed to like my bad jokes and I like her smiles.  I am not quite sure if she was smiling at my bad jokes or was it just natural for her to smile. We dated over a year before we got married on November 11, 1961.  We have been married for over 50 years.  I am still telling my bad jokes and she is still smiling.

Three Generations of the Wong Family  Nancy and I are now grandparents.  We call our family the Favorite Family.  Our only son is our favorite son, as are our only daughter-in-law, grandson and granddaughter are our favorites. Our son, Ulysses was born in San Francisco and raised in Alameda.  He attended Alameda High School and the University of California at Davis, graduating in 1985. He got his MBA degree from the University of Santa Clara. He is presently employed at Xyratex, a leading provider of enterprise-class data storage subsystems and hard disk drive capital equipment. as the vice president of Global Account Management. Our daughter-in-law Maritza is from Los Angeles, California and also graduated from the University of California at Davis. She is a Program Manager at Allscript Outsource, Santa Clara Valley Medical Center. Our grandson, Jared is a Sophomore at MIT (Masachusette Institute of Technology).  Our granddaughter, Jamie, is  a Junior at Lynbrook High School in San Jose.

Edward’s Roots   I am unable to trace my roots on my mother’s side but am able to trace the roots of my paternal grandfather who came to the United States in 1870.  My grandfather was among the early Chinese who came to search for gold in the Black Hills of Deadwood, South Dakota. Later, he became a prominent frontier merchant in Deadwood.  You can read about my grandparents on my Grandparents Web Page   My father was a magician who traveled and performed extensively throughout Southeast Asia from 1936-1953. He escaped from the Japanese occupation of Malaysia during World War II by hiding in the jungle with the rest of the family and was able also to hide his identity as an American citizen.  To check out the fascinating lives of my parents, go to the Parents Web Page.