Ping Shing Yu

My grandfather was an illegal immigrant.  He left his family in 1960 because he wanted something better for them.  In those days, china was very poor.  You were lucky if you had one meal a day; even something meager.  There was no clean water, no electricity, no reliable work, and rice was a precious commodity which few families had.  When my grandfather decided to come to America, he was trying to give his family hope by finding a way out.  My grandmother was left to care for two little girls, my mom and aunt.  Those were tough years for my grandma.  My grandfather’s first attempt at leaving china was unsuccessful.  He was discovered inside a cargo ship and spent a couple years confined in Taiwan.  After he was released, he found some other work on another boat which brought him to America.  My grandpa didn’t speak english, had no papers or anything, so before this boat docked, he jumped ship and stepped ashore into a new world.  I wish I could say everything was smooth sailing from then on, but it was not.  My grandfather found work with a chinese restaurant owner who gave him a place to live.  He would work during the night and sleep during the day.  For ten years, he spent most of his waking moments working and trying to get his green card with the help of the owner.  Eventually, through providence, my grandfather met Wong Kai, who started some restaurant business in Sarasota, Florida, and he wanted my grandfather to work for him.  So in the early seventies, my grandfather moved to Florida.  After he got his green card, he began applying for American citizenship.  His goal was to bring the rest of his family over.  In 1981, My grandmother, aunt and grandfather were reunited.  After about twenty years of hardship and tears, they were together again.  As a family, they settled in Venice, Fl, built a nice house, and started their own restaurant.  Seven years later, they brought their other daughter over, along with her husband and four kids.  Over the course of the next 15 years, my grandfather was able to bring two more families to America.  On August 29, 2008, my grandfather passed away after three years of battling lung cancer.  This post is dedicated to my grandfather; a tribute to his life and work.  In so many ways, the sacrifices he made for his family continue to live on.  We, his children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and on, are his life and work.  I miss my grandpa.  He was a good man, a good father, and a faithful husband; all the things I want to be.