The webinar of “A Dialogue on Aging: Genetics and Environment” 誰主衰老？基因共環境？was successfully held on March 6, 2021. Our two HKU Alumni and globally acclaimed speakers, Professor Lap-Chee Tsui 徐立之教授, HKUAAO Honorary Chairman, and Professor Chi-Chung Hui許志忠教授, University of Toronto and Sick Kids, shared with the participants their expert knowledge on genetics and the aging process. Since this is a very popular topic, within a short period of less than 2 weeks, close to 95 people registered for the event and 75 participants showed up. Notably, there were some participants joining from Hong Kong, other than Professor Tsui. They included Bernadette Tsui and Monica Wong of HKU Department of Alumni Affairs Office. Although our webinar was held on a Saturday evening at 7pm Toronto time, it did not deter those attending from Hong Kong, as it was an early Sunday morning at 8 am Hong Kong time.
Lilian Ma, HKUAAO President, started off the webinar with a welcome to all.
Professor Tsui began the webinar by presenting some basics in genetics and how genes control our bodily function using a simple and easy to understand language. A few slides of Professor Tsui’s presentation are attached below for sample information:

Professor Hui then shared with us current scientific understanding about the aging process. He explained the importance of mitochondria and how mitochondrial dysfunction contributes to aging. He further suggested that exercise, healthy diet and “intermittent fasting” are a few ways to improve the function of mitochondria. Three of Professor Hui’s presentation slides are shown below for brief reference.

After the presentations, many participants eagerly and enthusiastically joined in the discussion of this hot topic. A total of 10 questions were received before the webinar. Irene Chu, HKUAAO Founding President raised the first question of “the recent technological advances and its relevance on aging”. Other questions included “Any way to reverse aging process”, “How to delay memory loss?” and “Intermittent fasting” etc.

Professor Tsui further referred the audience to the Mayo Clinic article titled “Memory Loss: 7 tips to improve your memory”. Please click here to access this article.

The atmosphere during the event was lively and enjoyable. Due to the time constraint, we ended the event at 8.45pm (Toronto time) with a closing remark delivered by Denis Au-Yeung, our past president.

HKUAAO would like to extend our deep gratitude to Professor Tsui and Professor Hui for generously sharing their time and expert knowledge with our members, so we are more informed of the relationship between genetics and aging.

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Presenters

Dr. The Honourable TSUI Lap-Chee, GBM, GBS, JP   徐立之教授  

Professor Lap-Chee Tsui was the 14^th Vice-Chancellor of The University of Hong Kong (HKU) from 2002 to 2014. Prior to this appointment, he was the Geneticist-in-Chief and Head of the Genetics and Genomic Biology Program of the Research Institute at the Hospital for Sick Children (Sick Kids).

Professor Tsui, a world-renowned molecular biologist, received international acclaim in 1989 when he identified the defective gene that causes cystic fibrosis, which is a major breakthrough in human genetics. He has also made significant contributions to the study of the human genome, especially the characterization of chromosome 7, and identification of additional disease genes. His work paved the Human Genome Project and the HapMap Project. To recognize his accomplishments, Professor Tsui was honoured in sculpture and with a floor plaque in the University of Toronto’s Donnelly CCBR building.

In addition to his many national and international awards, which include the Orders of Canada and Ontario as well as 16 honorary doctoral degrees from prestigious universities around the world and the 2018 Warren Alpert Foundation Prize, he is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, Royal Society of London and Academia Sinica. He is also an International Member of the National Academy of Sciences (USA), a Foreign Member of The Chinese Academy of Sciences and a Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Laureate.

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Professor Chi-Chung HUI   許志忠教授

Dr. Chi-Chung Hui is Professor of Molecular Genetics at the University of Toronto, and Senior Scientist, Developmental & Stem Cell Biology at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids).

As an expert of mouse genetics, his research focuses on several signalling pathways (e.g., Hedgehog signaling, Iroquois homeobox genes) in development and disease. His laboratory, Hui Lab, has generated a variety of genetic mouse models of human congenital malformations, cancer, and obesity.

Professor Hui has received a number of prestigious awards, including a Tier I Canada Research Chair in Mouse Development and Disease Modeling, Research Scientist Award of National Cancer Institute of Canada (1999-2005), Terry Fox Young Investigator Award and Premier’s Research Excellence Award of Government of Ontario. He is also the Director of International Partnership at SickKids Research Institute and has been actively involved in promoting research and education collaborations between SickKids/University of Toronto and several leading universities in Asia and China such as University of Hong Kong and Zhejiang University. For further details about Professor Hui’s research work, please visit his web page at the Sick Kids.

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Reported by the organizing committee:
Augustine Chan, Verdi Yau, Maggie Poon and Glendy Sze

The webinar event on “Mental Health and the Pandemic” presented by our alumni members Dr. Peter Chang and Dr. Ted Lo, well known psychiatrists to Asian Canadians in Ontario, and moderated by Dr. King Fun Siu, another alumnus practicing family medicine in Ontario, took place on January 16, 2021, 7 – 8 30 p.m.  using the ZOOM platform.   The agenda included the three areas: impact of COVID: bio psychosocial aspects of the pandemic; Coping with the Pandemic and getting ready for the new-normal.

It was a well-attended event, with 95 registered and 87 attending, with participants from HKUAAO members, families and their friends as well as members from the HK Joint Universities Alumni members, in Ontario as well as other parts of Canada such as B.C.

The event began with a welcome to all and introduction of the presenters by the HKUAAO President, Lilian Ma.   Moderator Dr. KF Siu then took over the proceedings. 

The presentation was in three parts: the impact, the coping and preparing for the future.

Dr. Peter Chang started with the “biology” part of the subject, citing that the COVID virus can affect the body in many ways – including the mind – by affecting our nervous system.    Body and mind are interrelated and work as one.  There is a lot of psychological impact due to the pandemic, some due to prolonged stress, which can also lead to other physical symptoms such as increased hypertension.   At times these may be reversible but there is no cut and dry answer to each case.    Negative stress has been shown to shorten telomeres in our DNA which regulate how long a cell can keep dividing – thus its life longevity.  Epigenetics also come into effect in deciding on the expression of genes. In other words, environment is an important factor in affecting our overall health.   Doctors are expecting a pandemic on mental health issues following the COVID pandemic.

Dr. Ted Lo followed up on giving examples that he encountered during the pandemic.  He talked about how we can deal with the problems.   The participants also shared their experiences during the pandemic, such as some reporting having a lot of dreams and disturbed/interrupted sleep.  One should not hesitate to seek mental help support  if one feels onset of anxiety, depression and a sense of hopelessness. These can be triggered and compounded by economic hardship, necessity to learn new ways of doing things, and lack of social interaction/support felt by many during the lock downs. One can call organizations such as Hong Fook which specializes in helping Chinese Canadians in their mental health issues in the language of their choice.   One important factor is to keep a schedule of activities every day – particularly important if we are doing working from home.  With a schedule we can keep ourselves busy. Also we must include exercise in our schedule – exercise is crucial to keep ourselves not just physically fit but also mentally fit.    A daily walk, with a family pet if any, will do anyone good – the fresh air and sight of nature can be most beneficial. Dr. Lo also shared his tool kits with the audience.  Dr. Lo also explored the future as a result of the pandemic.  While this topic was not fully elaborated due to time, he suggested that there will be a new normal, which we have to adapt to with the learnings we derive from the pandemic. We need to prepare by looking for changes that would help our communities as well as our personal lives. 

Throughout, the presenters were happy to answer questions. The webinar and discussion lasted 1 ½ hours.  The HKUAAO would like to thank the presenters for donating their time and expertise to us all so we are better informed to take care of ourselves and our families during these difficult times.

Reported by Lilian Ma

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Presenters

DR. PETER PAI-TAK CHANG
Dr. Peter Chang graduated from the Faculty of Medicine of HKU (1968), trained in Castle Peak Hospital and in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. He obtained his specialist qualifications in Toronto, Canada and in London, U.K. In 1992, he graduated from the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto, and started a law practice here in 1994.
Around forty years ago, Dr. Chang joined Dr. Lo and others in starting Hong Fook Mental Health Association because they discovered in their own psychiatric practices that there was a general lack of awareness of mental health needs within the Chinese and Southeast Asian communities, and that there were serious barriers to getting mental health services in these populations.
Dr. Chang changed jobs several times in his career, worked in about three provincial psychiatric hospitals and several general hospitals since he moved to Ontario from Hong Kong. In his administrative roles, he was drawn into the legal issues pertaining to mental health reform and the patients’ rights movement in the 1980’s, which might have induced him to join the legal profession about 26 years ago. 

DR. TED HUNG-TAT LO
Dr. Ted Lo graduated from the uFaculty of Medicine of HKU (1971), trained in Castle Peak Hospital and in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. He obtained his specialist qualifications in London, U.K., and in Toronto, Canada.
Along with Dr. Peter Chang, Raymond Chung (both HKU alumni) and others, they founded the Hong Fook Mental Health Association (hereinafter referred to as “Hong Fook”) between the late 1970’s and early 1980’s for the purposes of promoting mental health among the Chinese and Southeast Asian communities in the Greater Toronto Area, and improving access to mental health services in general. Both of them have continued to work within Hong Fook in various capacities as called upon. Recently Dr. Lo organized a series of webinars on mental health in the pandemic called “Together We Thrive” for the Asian communities.
Dr. Lo has also joined the Faculty of Medicine at University of Toronto to design training in cultural competence for the psychiatric residents, and to further develop the field of cultural psychiatry in Canada.

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Dear HKUAAO members,
The HKUAAO wishes to thank Dr. Michael Lam and the assistance of Dr. Ellen Lam in the presentation of the webinar on birding during the COVID pandemic on Nov 7 2020. We have approximately 30 particpants who engaged in a successful two hour interactive event.

We are sharing this event recording with all of you and you can click on this link to view at any time.

Hope to see you at one of our functions soon.
On behalf of the HKUAAO
Lilian Ma
President of Hong Kong University Alumni Association of Ontario

JOIN US FOR HKUAAO’s BIRDING UNDER COVID-19 PANDEMIC PRESENTATION ON NOV 7, 2020.

Dear Alumni,

With self-care and the pursuit of hobbies being more important than ever, we are thrilled to invite you to join us for a fun virtual session on : Birding during the COVID-19 Pandemic
on November 7, 7:30 PM EST.

During this interactive session, Dr. Michael Lam ( graduate year 1978 ) will share his experience of bird watching during the COVID-19 pandemic. In times of lockdown and isolation, bird watching itself , as a form of exercise, connects us to nature. It also allows us to interact with our friends through sharing stories, pictures and knowledge. It can be an independent sport or one that can be shared together with friends.

Join us and prepared to see wonderful photos from his photo collection, and some from other HKU birding group members too!

Please register here for this webinar if you are interested.

We hope that you’ll join us! Let us bring you to a world of beauty and wonder!

Sincerely,
Ellen Leung
Special Interest Group – Bird Watching
Hong Kong University Alumni Association of Ontario

Date: November 7, 2020 (Saturday)
Time: 7:30 pm
Venue: Online Zoom Meeting
Cost: Free
Registration: Please register using the form below

* Zoom meeting details will be sent to all participants on November 5, 2020.

Registration is over. Thanks for your support!

The 35th HKUAAO AGM was held via Zoom due to COVID 19 ban on in person indoor meeting. It was attended by 17 Alumni members and Board Directors pursuant to e-notices sent out by our Secretary, Communication and Membership Directors.  

The Board had delayed the holding of the AGM in April 2020, under normal circumstances according to our by-law.  However, delay for the AGM for 6 months was allowed due to the Pandemic under the Ontario Corporations Act through the Ontario Emergency Orders which were effective since March 17, 2020.  Also, a virtual AGM meeting format was allowed.  Unfortunately, as a result, we could not hold the usual Dinner event which normally follows the AGM as in the past.

Nevertheless, under these difficult circumstances, we did the usual formalities required such as quorum confirmation, chair and secretary for the meeting designation, as well as appointment of Scrutineers and Sargeant- at-arms for the meeting.  

Business dealt with included the receipt and adoption of the 2019 AGM minutes, President’s Report for 2019-20 and Treasurer’s Annual Financial Statement for 2019-20.

Election was held resulted in the following slate being elected: as the new Board of Directors:

Lilian Ma

Augustine Chan

Romeo Au

Tim Cheng

Verdi Yau

Maggie Poon

Franki Cheng

Raymond Leung

Dennis Au Yeung

Margaret Law

Wilson Chan

Glendy Sze

Evelyn Man ( overseas)

The AGM took one hour to complete.

On behalf of the Association, we would like to thank all the members who took time to attend the AGM.  We also thank the Board of Directors for 2019 -20 and our Honorary Advisors Irene Chu and Peggy Sum, Bassanio So, as well as our Hon. Chair Professor Tsui Lap Chi for their support.  We also thank the leaders of the various interest groups for their contributions to keep our alumni and family members together in their various interests such as birding, table tennis, hiking activities etc. throughout the year.  We hope to see each other again soon when the pandemic is over.

Reported by Lilian Ma
2019 -2020 President of the HKUAAO

Date: September 23, 2020 (Wednesday)
Time: 7 pm
Venue: Online Zoom Meeting

Cost: Free
Registration: Please register using the form below

We will elect the new board of directors and executive committee members for 2020 – 2021 at the A.G.M. All members are encouraged to nominate and be nominated for the Board for the coming year.

Notice of Annual General Meeting

NOTICE is hereby given that the Annual General Meeting of the Hong Kong University Alumni Association of Ontario will be held on Wednesday, the 23th day of September, 2020 at 7 p.m. by Online Zoom Meeting with the following business to be transacted: –
– To receive and consider the Annual Report for 2019-2020;
– To receive and consider the Treasurer’s Report;
– To elect directors and members of the Executive Committee of the Association for the year 2020-2021;
– To transact any other business.
AND FURTHER TAKE NOTICE that any regular member in good standing shall be entitled to nominate another regular member in good standing to the Board of Directors and to be elected to the Board and to cast vote. Any such nomination should be emailed to the Association at hkuaaont@hku.hk on or before September 10th 2020.
By the order of the Board of Directors
Pierre Fan, HKUAAO Secretary, August 30, 2020

HKUAAO AGM 2020 is over.
Thanks for your support!

Dear HKU Alumni and Members of HKUAAO:

Normally during this time around Easter the HKUAAO would have held our joyful AGM and dinner event where we would get together, say hello and renew old acquaintances. However, this year is marked by the unusual COVID-19 pandemic and it does not look like we can resume our normal programs until well after the summer months. Nevertheless, the Board of Directors would like to send a Happy Easter message to all and wish you a healthy and safe staycation with your family for the public good during these Easter holidays! We win if we are not physically together!

If you check our Alma Mater website, you will find out how HKU is responding to the impact of the COVID-19. In particular, the HKU LKS Faculty of Medicine School of Public Health has a useful website which provides up to date information on the coronavirus. Feel free to explore and follow the development at our Alma Mater.

HKUAAO, although not an organization for any designated social causes, is a responsible community group and had in the past supported issues when needed, like enhancing the awareness of the Chinese heritage, to raising fund for the SARS deceased hero,etc.

During this crisis, I am sure many of you have already extended help in one way or another to help fight the spread of COVID-19, to support our front line colleagues and to help the needy. This Update, as concerned members of community, is just a reminder for your consideration to continue to do our part to help fight the spread of the virus and to help the vulnerable in our community.

The Board of HKUAAO became aware that a number of our alumni are involved in fundraising to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic. We have listed several below for your reference. There are, of course, other organizations in the community which are carrying out similar or other activities to fight this horrible common enemy.
A campaign called by Dr. Joseph Wong https://www.stopcovid19gta.com/
A campaign partnered with Carefirst is calling for masks https://frontlinemasks.ca/
A campaign by New Horizon Lion Club and Mackenzie Health https://mhf.akaraisin.com/hostanevent/newhorizonlionsclub
A campaign for North York General Hospital https://events.nygh.on.ca/site/TR?px=1565999&fr_id=1160&pg=personal

Thank you all for your support. Let us remain optimistic and keep healthy. We hope to see you all after the summer!

Yours sincerely,

Lilian Ma (President of HKUAAO)
On behalf of all the Board Directors
Hong Kong University Alumni Association of Ontario

Dear HKU alumni and friends,

We hope that you are keeping well and safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. While March is normally the time when the Board would be sending out e-notice to you all about the upcoming activities such as our Annual General Meeting, however it is an unusual time for us this year due to the COVID-19 situation.

Our Board members have been monitoring the situation specially about the importance of practicing social distancing as warned by public Health agencies from the federal, provincial and municipal levels. We support the notion of working together to slow down the spread of the virus, for everyone’s sake.

Rest assured that while we are postponing the timing of the AGM and dinner, and also refrain from publicising news of any other social events including Joint U activities most of those are cancelled anyway due to the pandemic, we are making sure that we have your best interest at heart.

If the situation improves, we will also consider a spring hike around May/June

Kindly be patient and await our announcement of the AGM dinner and update on social activities when the situation becomes more favourable. The Board begs your indulgence in this regard.

Yours sincerely,
Lilian Ma, President of HKUAAO

Hong Kong University Alumni Association of Ontario

Talent Show 2:00 – 6:00 pm.

The hosting university, Chu Hai Alumni Association suggested to organize a talent show instead of a sports activity for a change. The idea received huge support from all alumni associations. The event was held in Infiniti Strings’ concert hall in Markham with professional audio and video facilities.  A rehearsal was arranged two weeks before so participants could acquaint themselves with the venue and audio/visual facilities to raise a notch in their performance.

You could not believe how good the performances were. All participants had shown their utmost professionalism, dedication and put on their best effort to entertain the audience. Together with the audio, video and special effects, I must say close to 200 audience could not imagine these ‘amateurs’ can put up such an excellent show that they can talk for weeks, if not months.

Over 30 alumni came to enjoy and show support to our mini musical drama led by our Eddie Ho, Maggie Poon, Margaret Law and Verdi Yau. Their act微型音樂劇：家豪與愛玲won the Favourite Performance (最受歡迎獎), one of the four awards. The other awards went to:

浸會大學 (Baptist U) – Award of Creativity (最佳創意獎) – Dancing: Dark Forces  

嶺南大學 (LingNan U) – Best Costume & Make Up Design (最佳做型獎) : 古箏妙韻樂悠揚

理工大學 (Polytechnic U) – Award of Excellence (最專業演出獎) 婦唱夫彈 : 情意兩漫漫

Congratulation to all winners and also to all performers. Without them, we could not have a wonderful and enjoyable afternoon to share with our families and friends.

In case you wonder what had been performed during the Talent Show, below please find the programs for your ‘imagination’.

程序	型式	項目	演出校友
1	樂器	西樂伴奏 : 金曲 Medley	中文大學
2	歌曲/舞蹈	經典”君”曲巡禮	浸會大學
3	舞蹈	Zumba勁舞賀JU	樹仁大學
4	歌曲	廣東小調：風流夢	珠海大學
5	歌曲	難忘金曲 : 聽海	珠海大學
6	中國工夫	虎鶴雙形拳	理工大學
7	樂器	古箏妙韻樂悠揚：山丹丹開花紅豔豔  /  瀏陽河	嶺南大學
8	音樂劇	微型音樂劇：家豪與愛玲	香港大學
9	舞蹈	Waltz舞翩翩	理工大學
10	歌曲	粵曲：山伯哭英台	珠海大學
11	特式	「但願人長久」朗誦，歌唱，書法，中樂伴奏	中文大學
12	歌曲	經典金曲：愛到發燒	理工大學
13	樂器	二胡合奏 : 彩雲追月	科技大學
14	舞蹈	Dancing : Dark Forces	浸會大學
15	歌曲	粵曲小調 : 樓台會	樹仁大學
16	歌曲	中西樂韻：一生最愛/ O Mio Babbino Caro	嶺南大學
17	歌曲	金曲 : 祝我幸福	樹仁大學
18	歌曲/樂器	婦唱夫彈 : 情意兩漫漫	理工大學

Gala Dinner – 6:00 – 11:00 pm.

As usual, JU committee had arranged a gala dinner right after the Talent Show and almost 300 alumni, guest, families and friends had attended. They made use of this banquet to celebrate all the hard work, efforts they had given for all JU activities organized in 2019. HKUAAO had 60 alumni came to share the fun and joy. During the banquet, a lot of thoughtful performances were organized and especially the repeated performance of the awards winners in the Talent Show to give those who were not able to come in the afternoon.

The evening included passing the baton to 2020 JU hosting university – Polytechnic University Alumni Association and souvenir presentation to our long time sponsor – Hong Kong Economics and Trade Office (Toronto). Together with nice people, good food, excellent performances and warm atmosphere, JU alumni, families and friends left the gala dinner full of joy and happiness and anticipated to return in 2020.

Reported by Romeo Au

Click here to view photo album

Photo by KC Choi

Dear Alumni,

I am sure we are looking forward to the HKJU annual function on this Sunday Oct, 6, 2019. I just reiterate the events on the day if you by chance have missed our previous notice.

A. HKJU Talent Show

Date: Sunday October 6, 2019
Time: 13:30 – 17:00
Venue: Infiniti Music Hall Unit 1, 351 Ferrier St., Markham ON L35 5Z2
            (https://infinitistrings.com/gallery)

There will be 18 programmes like singing, dancing, kung-fu, musical instrument, drama etc. perform by different alumni. I enclose a program for your reference. Over 30 HKUAAO alumni already committed to show up to give full support for the performers.

HKUAAO will perform a 20 minutes musical ‘家豪與愛玲’. Director, script writer and performers are Verdi Yau and Maggie Poon. The story is about the love story of a young couple during World War II in Hong Kong and Canada. Together with alumni Margaret Law, Eddie Ho, Danny Leung, Sylvia Tang and Thomas Law and 4 songs (Beyond <<十八>>, 大壯<<我們不一樣>>, Simon & Garfunkel <<Sound of Silence>> and Beyond <<光輝歲月>>) are incorporated in the drama, I just can’t wait to see their performance. If you have time, please come and cheer for them.

Seats are limited and HKJU will try to accommodate everyone to the best of the situation. Entrance is prohibited when program begins and allowed during the interval of each program. Therefore please be considerate and patience at times.

In addition, parking is limited. Please come by car pool or ask people to drop off you to the venue. If you by chance can find a spot in front of Infiniti Strings, make sure you can park in Unit 1 spot only. However, you are free to park any spaces at the back of the building since most offices are off in weekend. If full, you can try side streets or plaza nearby.

B. HKJU Gala DinnerDate: Sunday October 06, 2019
Time: 18:00 – 22:00
Venue: Casa Victoria Fine Dining (紫爵金宴)  
             Unit 4-6, 8601 Warden Ave. Markham, ON  L3R 0B5
Cost: $50.00 per person

The response is excellent and we will have close to 30 tables. Registration is closed and over 60 HKUAAO alumni and their friends will celebrate the JU spirits together. For those who have registered, you should receive an email from me in the next day or so. Please contact romeoyhau@hotmail.com (416-529-3361) if you don’t.

Hoping to see you all on this Sunday.

Regards,

Romeo Au
Designated Representative to HKJU 2019