Immigrant built cultural bridges in B.C.

David Lam, the Hong-Kong born philanthropist who put a generous face on the strong wave of ethnic Chinese immigration to Canada and became one of the province's most memorable lieutenant-governors has died at the age of 87 from prostate cancer.

Often referring to himself as a "bridge builder" and "healer" between cultures, Mr. Lam succeeded more than any other person in easing some of the tension that developed when hundreds of thousands of Chinese immigrants began flocking to B.C. in the late 1980s, many of them well-off entrepreneurs from Hong Kong and Taiwan.

One of B.C.'s wealthiest men, Mr. Lam was a real-estate magnate and Baptist with a penchant for Confucian philosophy and an undying gratitude to Canada.

When Vancouver Sun columnist Denny Boyd wrote the first media piece ever published about Lam in 1985, the gifted developer and investor was already retired and starting to give away $1-million a year to favourite causes.

"I have seen a lot of wealth -- like gold, silver, diamonds and cash in the bank. But these are dead wealth. These are useless to me," he once said. "True riches are of the mind."

Today, Mr. Lam's name graces dozens of buildings, parks, gardens, musical groups and awards in B.C.

Mr. Lam was born into a well-to-do family in Hong Kong on July 25, 1923. He worked there as a banker but made his fortune after moving in 1967 to Canada with his family -- wife Dorothy and three daughters, Deborah, Daphne and Doreen. He ended up investing in real estate in B.C., California and Arizona, often partnering with new immigrants.

Although Mr. Lam was unceasingly gracious and jovial, he could be tough minded.

At the same time he was asking Canadians to openheartedly accept new immigrants, he was constantly chastising Chinese newcomers to be more polite, think about something other than money and fully embrace Canadian life.

He also showed his no-nonsense backbone in 1991, when he revealed he was ready to use the extraordinary, but rarely used powers of a lieutenant-governor to ask for the resignation of scandal-plagued premier Bill Vander Zalm.

The Social Credit premier had been accused of using his office for personal gain in a deal involving his Fantasy

Gardens theme park. Mr. Lam never had to wield his royal hammer, however, because Mr. Vander Zalm resigned on his own.

Mr. Lam had taken on his high office with reluctance. When he was appointed by former prime minister Brian Mulroney, he was anxious about becoming the first ethnic Chinese lieutenant-governor in Canadian history.

"I turned the job down two times," he said. "I was not born here. English is not my first language. Try to imagine being appointed lieutenant-governor of Quebec and see what intimidation you will face. Then I thought: The real shortcoming is my imagined shortcomings."

His appointment made headlines around the world.

No slouch when it came to fulfilling his regal duties, Mr. Lam and his wife, who died in 1997 at age 67, once admitted they had to receive medical treatment for muscle problems that developed in their arms from shaking thousands of hands.

Mr. Lam said being lieutenant-governor was a hectic, 14-hour-a-day challenge. Each year he gave 350 speeches, wrote 1,000 letters and entertained 2,000 visitors at Government House mansion on Rockland Avenue in Victoria. The rate of invitations tripled after he came into office.

He seemed to love all Canadians, and they returned the favour -- even if he couldn't smile to show his appreciation.

Around the time he accepted the lieutenant-governor's role, he developed a minor facial paralysis called Bell's Palsy, which made his left eye droop. He hoped people would be tolerant. He said: "People ask, 'Why don't you smile any more? Aren't you happy?' Well, dammit, I can't smile."

When Mr. Lam stepped down as lieutenant-governor in 1995, a Victoria Times Colonist editorial said that not one word of the fulsome praise that had been showered upon Mr. Lam for his time in office could be called "empty flattery."

Calling Mr. Lam an "admirable" man who couldn't conceal his pride in being Canadian, the editorial noted: "Whenever an opportunity arose to speak to new immigrants, he tried to encourage them to make great efforts to integrate into Canadian society. From someone with his ancestry and his self-made success, the message carried particular potency."

Although he called money "dead wealth," Lam made much of his estimated $100-million fortune through loyalty and genial shrewdness.

When disoriented Hong Kong immigrants arrived at Vancouver International Airport, he would go to Richmond to welcome them. In many cases, he would soon be giving them advice on how to invest their millions of dollars on the West Coast, often entering into partnerships.

Although Mr. Lam had links with the Progressive Conservative Party and was a diehard supporter of free enterprise, it didn't stop him worrying about how the marketplace was creating a growing gap between rich and poor, especially in ruthless Hong Kong. "To me," he said, "pure capitalism is a very horrible thing."

With his strong commitment to fairness, social cohesion and peaceful change, he urged Canadians to embrace immigrants from all corners of the world, saying "the old B.C. has passed" and "we must expect growing pains."


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