History of the San Francisco-Taipei Sister City Committee
The San Francisco – Taipei Sister City Committee’s mission is to serve as a cultural and economic link between the two cities, presenting the best of San Francisco to Taipei and in turn showcasing the best of Taipei to San Francisco. Since 1969, San Francisco and Taipei have been developing their sister city relationship by fostering increased understanding on a people-to-people basis between business and civic leaders of both cities.
San Francisco Mayors Art Agnos, Diane Feinstein, Frank Jordan, Willie Brown and Ed Lee have all visited Taipei and Taipei Mayors Tend-hui Lee, Yang-jeon Ma, Lung-bin Has and current Mayor Wen-je Ko have all visited San Francisco.
Deep relations in cultural, business, and technology bring the people of both cities together. Taipie’s vibrant cultural groups frequently come to San Francisco to exhibit their creativity. In 2018, Master Hwai-min Lin, founder and chief choreographer of the globally renowned Cloud Gate Dance Group, shared his experiences with the audience of San Francisco. And on November 5, 2018, the Sister City Committee hosts Taiwan’s National Symphony Orchestra.
One of the most telling signs of how San Francisco and Taipei value each other is when disasters struck. When one city was in adversity, the other reached out and helped. When earthquakes shook San Francisco in 1989, Taipei donated money and sent help. When Taipei was hit by a heavy tremor in 1999, San Francisco offered financial support in return.
The San Francisco-Taipei Sister City Committee is proud of the positive impact it has helped bring to the relations between the two cities and looks forward to continuing to deepen the civic, cultural, business, and social exchanges that have been going on for half a century.
The Sister City Committee sincerely thank you for your support.
Historical Timeline
Official Establishment
Officially established by City of SF via resolution signed by Mayor Joseph Alioto on Dec. 19, 1969, tying SF with Taipei (3rd Sister City) and then Mayor Henry Yu-Shu Kao
48th Anniversary
– Taipei signed in Feb. 1970.
– Children’s Playground to TaipeiGolden Gate Pavilion
Taipei “Golden Gate Pavilion” at Golden Gate Park in April of 1981—dedicated by then Mayor Diane Feinstein and then Mayor Lee Teng-Hui. Taipei continues to give funds for upkeep—Taipei to this day continues to provide funding for repair and upkeep of the pavilion. Due to the harsh weather the tiles and painting have to often be redone by the Rec and Park Dept. Taipei has over the years also provided the Chinese tiles for the roof of the Pavilion.
Lowell High School Girls Basketball team to Taipei
SF Dragon Boat
SF Dragon Boat Team participates in Taipei Dragon Boat Festival (May/June each year)
Mayor Agnos Visited
Govt. Visits—on-going, every Mayor till the present.
1989 Loma Prieta Quake—Taipei to SF–$100,000
Orchestra
All Taipei Student Orchestra to SF
Taipei Youth Athletics performance, recent years
SF Showcase hosted by Bechtel Corp (late 1990’s)
80th Anniversary
Visited Taipei with 20 person delegation under Chairwoman Rose Pak for 80th Anniversary of 10-10 Holiday.
Mayor Jordan Visited
Govt. Visits—on-going, every Mayor till the present.
Marching Band
Northgate High School Marching Band to Intl Band Festival
High school exchange on drug abuse—six students each way.
Sister City Relationship
1. Sister City visit led by Dennis Wong, Sister City Chairman (now deceased), with President of Board of Supervisors Kevin Shelley and Supervisor Mabel Teng and delegation of approx. 20 persons. Visit was to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Sister City relationship.
2. Mei-Chang Folk Dance Troupe
3. Miss Chinatown visits to Taipei (annually)
4. Taipei scholarships to SF citizens studying Chinese in Taiwan (annually)
Mayor Brown Visited
Govt. Visits—on-going, every Mayor till the present.
Sister City under Elizabeth Liu joined with Mayor Willie Brown for official mayoral visit.
Taipei Quake
1999-Taipei Quake—SF to Taipei (Sept. 1999)–$250,000 (sponsored by Mayor Brown, Supervisor Yee and Supervisor Teng)
Govt. Visits—on-going, every Mayor till the present.
From Taipei, City Council Speaker CC Chen, Clement Chang, Mayor Ma Ying-Jeou (now President of Taiwan)—visited twice to SF—once with Mayor Brown and with Mayor Newsom (2005), Mayor Chen Shui-Bien (former President now in jail)—visited under Mayor Brown.
City Council Visited
members of City Council—visit every year—last major visit in 2008
Taipei Mayor Hau lung-Bin Visited
Taipei Mayor Hau lung-Bin—visited in March 2009—hosted for reception in City Hall by Mayor and City. Visited Recycling Facility at Pier 96. Hosted for dinner by Sister City Committee at Banker’s Club (President Chiu attended). Hosted by Six Companies. Visited Silicon Valley.
Sister City under Elizabeth Liu and Irene Yee Riley joined with President Supervisor David Chiu and 20 person delegation visited Taipei.
Taipei Mayor KO Wen-Je Visited
Taipei Mayor KO Wen-Je—visited in March 2016—Meeting with Mayor Lee; Visited San Francisco Department of Emergency Management Center; High Tech Companies.
Meet Our Teams
Dr. Ta-lin Hsu is Chairman of H&Q Asia Pacific and has been investing in Asia for over 34 years. He joined Hambrecht & Quist Group in 1985 as a General Partner and founded H&Q Asia Pacific in 1986. Before joining Hambrecht & Quist, Dr. Hsu worked at IBM for 12 years. In his last position, Dr. Hsu held corporate responsibility for all of IBM’s advanced research in mass storage systems and technology.
Recognition and Awards
Due to his role in various landmark transactions as well as in developing the Asian venture capital and private equity industry, Dr. Hsu has been recognized by BusinessWeek in its “Stars of Asia” ranking; Forbes magazine as one of the 25 Top Tech Deal Makers in 2007, one of the Top Deal Makers in 2008 as well as one of the 25 Notable Chinese-Americans in 2008; and New Fortune Magazine as one of “100 People Influencing China’s and the World’s Capital Flow” in 2009.
Corporate Affiliations
Dr. Hsu serves on the boards of various leading global corporations, including ASE Inc., Sinogen International Ltd., and One Inc.
Government/Non-Profit Affiliations
Dr. Hsu plays an active role in developing business and policy relationships between the U.S. and Asia, including advisory positions with government, academic and industry organizations. Dr. Hsu was a founding member of the prestigious Technology Review Board, a group established to advise the Executive Yuan of Taiwan on all technology matters, and is one of the founding members of and Advisor to the Monte Jade Science & Technology organization, the premier non-profit organization promoting business and technology relations between Taiwan and the U.S.
Dr. Hsu is a Board Member of K T Li Foundation for the Development of Science and Technology, the Founding President of the Chinese Institute of Engineers / USA SF Bay Area Chapter, Chairman of the Board of Give2Asia. Additionally, Dr. Hsu serves on the boards of the Asian Americans for Good Government, Shin-Shin Educational Foundation, represents H&Q Asia Pacific at the World Economic Forum, and is a member of the Committee of 100.
Education
Dr. Hsu received his B.S. degree in physics from National Taiwan University (from which he received the “Outstanding Alumni Award” in 2009), his M.S. degree in electrophysics from the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn, and his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of California at Berkeley (from which he received the “Distinguished Alumni Award” in 2015).
Law Offices of David J. Yang was established by David J. Yang in November 1984, in San Francisco, California. Mr. Yang received his Bachelor of Law degree (LL.B.) from National Cheng-Chi University, Taipei, Taiwan; Master of Law degree (LL.M.) from Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas, and his Juris Doctor degree (J.D.) from Ohio Northern University, Ada, Ohio. Mr. Yang also completed courses relating to estate planning at Golden Gate University, San Francisco, California (LL.M. – Taxation Program).
Mr. Yang was admitted to the State of California bar in 1983. Mr. Yang is also admitted to practice at the U.S. District Court, Northern and Central Districts; U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals; U.S. Supreme Court and U.S. Bankruptcy Court Northern and Eastern Districts.
Mr. Yang has received his Foreign Legal Affairs Attorney license issued by the Ministry of Justice, Taiwan in October 2011 and is admitted to the Taipei Bar Association, Taiwan (as a Foreign Legal Affairs Attorney).
Throughout Mr. Yang’s professional law practice, he has emphasized legal counseling to both business enterprises and individuals in the areas of business transactions, business litigation, international law, intellectual property law, high technology law, real estate law, bankruptcy law, immigration law, civil and criminal matters, personal injury, probate, wills, trusts and trust administration. Mr. Yang has extensive litigation experience in both California State Courts and U.S. Federal Courts.
Mr. Yang, acting as the legal counsel for Taiwan and its instrumentalities, has two published opinions in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit: Taiwan v. U.S. District Court, 128 F.3d 712 (9th Cir. 1997) (re Taiwan’s Consular Immunity in U.S.) and Tei Yan Sun v. Taiwan, 201 F.3d 1105 (9th Cir. 2000) (re Taiwan’s Sovereign Immunity status in U.S.).
Mr. Yang has taught California Civil Procedure, Contract Law and Business Law at the University of California, Berkeley, Extension, Paralegal Studies Program.
At present, Mr. Yang serves as a volunteer Pro Tem Judge at the San Francisco County Superior Court, State of California, in conducting pre-trial settlement conferences (Unlawful Detainer cases) and presides cases, filed with San Francisco County Superior Court, Small Claims Division.
Sherman Tang – Currently, serving as the Treasurer of San Francisco-Taipei Sister City Committee and the National Board of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance as the Treasurer. Sherman is an experienced senior financial analyst and longtime community volunteer; he served on the board as President of the San Francisco Bay Chapter of the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA); President of Chinese Community Cultural Association; former Presiding President of the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association; President of the Chinese Culture Foundation as well as Assistance Treasurer for the Board of the Chinese Hospital.
Dr. Hu has extensive start-up and Executive experiences from both profits and non-profits. He co-founded a FinTech company Ellie Mae, Inc. in 1998, focusing on a SaaS and cloud solution to automate the US mortgage industry. Ellie Mae had acquired 9 tech companies, went public in 2011, and was acquired for $3.7B in 2019. In September 2020, Ellie Mae was acquired by NYSE parent company Intercontinental Exchange for approximately $11B.
In 2002, Dr. Hu led a fundraising effort to raise $3M to build an FCSN Center in Fremont, CA, and then became the first Chairman when it started operation. FCSN now has two centers in the Bay Area with more than 100 employees, and serves hundreds of children and adults with Autism, Down syndrome, etc.
He is currently serving as
- President, Silicon Valley Chinese American Computer & Commerce Association, a non-profit organization
- Honorable Chairman, Monte Jade Global Science and Technology Association, one of the most important Chinese American non-profit technology platforms
- Board Member, Friends of Children with Special Needs, a nonprofit organization
- Board Member and Member of Government Committee, Square Panda, an online Education Software startup based in Silicon Valley
- Limited Partner and Advisor, Acorn Pacific Venture, a Silicon Valley venture capital
- Founder, Advisor and Mentor for many startup companies and entrepreneurs
Education
1984 BS in Electrical Engineering, National Taiwan University
1990 PhD in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, UC Berkeley
C.Y, co-founder of Benefit Tomorrow which promoting Civic awareness and public services to develop the young leaders of tomorrow in the United States, Asia and other Pacific-Rim Countries.
C.Y was Ex Chair of Monte Jade Global and Monte Jade West Science and Technology Association, C.Y is Board member of ACE (Asian/Pacific Islander American Chamber of Commerce & Entrepreneurship in Washington DC (National ACE), also Advisor member and Vice Chair SF Chapter of ILF (International Leadership Foundation in Washington DC,
C.Y has more than 30 years of experience in Semiconductor industry, C.Y served as VP of Technology and Operation for Integrated Device technology which acquired by Renesas in 2019.
Hsing is Managing Partner of Acorn Campus Ventures, a technology venture fund and incubator in Silicon Valley and East Asia. Hsing co-founded Pine Photonics in 2000 and was CEO and founder of Luxnet Corp from 1998 to 2000. He has co-founded and led several other optoelectronics companies after beginning his career at Hewlett-Packard in 1974. In recent years, Dr. Kung has devoted his time to promoting civic engagement among the Chinese American community. He serves on the California State University Board of Trustees as well as the boards of Vision New America, 1st ACT Silicon Valley Arts, and Monte Jade. His passion as a leader and commitment to serving his community can be seen in the work he has done for various organizations. Previously he served on the boards of Fremont Union High School District, American Leadership Forum Silicon Valley, San Jose Repertory Theater, Rotary Club of Cupertino, United Way Silicon Valley and the Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association.
Over the years, Grace Huang has held numerous leadership positions within organizations promoting business opportunities for the Asian community. Ms.Huang formerly served as on the board of directors of the Northern California Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce for a period of two years. For several years, she was the president of the Mandarin Business Association in San Francisco. Her husband, Otto Huang, was the founder of the Mandarin Business Association. Ms. Huang is the Vice President of the Lion’s Club for the San Mateo metropolitan area. Ms. Huang’s goal is to promote friendship and business opportunities among minorities and the mainstream society.
Ms. Huang was born in Shanghai, China, and she immigrated to Taipei, Taiwan as a baby. Ms. Huang attended college and majored in business. After graduating, she was a manager for the San Young Building Materials Company for five years. Before she was married, she became the marketing manager for the five-star Mandarin Hotel in Taipei. In 1979, Ms. Huang and her family moved to the United States. She worked as an office manager for Tennessee Handbag Incorporated.
In 1982, Ms. Huang moved to California and worked as an office manager for a travel agency for approximately five years. Subsequently, she worked at a law firm for almost twenty years. In 1987, Ms.Huang’s husband started Union Way Corporation, a successful shoe import company headquartered in San Francisco. Grace is now president of Union Way Corporation and also of Sundance Shoes, Inc. These corporations facilitate large shipments of shoes from factories in China for distribution to well-known shops and stores in the United States, generating much revenue each year.
Ms. Huang is currently involved in many other civic services and organizations. She is the co-chair of the National Advisory Committee for the International Leadership Foundation. Presently, she is also the Honorary President of the Mandarin Business Association. In addition, Ms. Huang holds positions that facilitate relations with the Republic of China, Taiwan. These include the commissioner of the Overseas Compatriot Affairs and serving as a member on the board of directors for the Chinese Women’s League.
Ms. Huang’s family includes her son Dennis, who now works for Union Way, along with his wife Catherine; and daughter Amy, who graduated with a Master’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and now also works for Union Way.
Bob Lin is the co-founder and previous Chairman of Healthink, the largest medical emergency service and the largest consumer genomic testing services company in China. He is the original co-founder of Acorn Campus and Acorn Venture, a pioneer incubator VC fund in Silicon . Bob has more than 40 years of angels and venture investment expertise with multiple IPOs. He also has long history of hands-on entrepreneurial start-up and international business, marketing, and management experiences.
Bob is well known for launching 30 successful investment including Avanti (IPO ’95), AltiGen (IPO ‘97) , LightLogic (Sold to Intel for $400M ’01), Vertex Network (Sold to Mitel for $200M ’99), MPS (IPO ’04, now $10B), Pine Photonics (a co-founder, sold to Opnext ’03; IPO ‘07), Fortinet (IPO US ’09, now $22B), MONDAY Tech (sold to Yahoo ‘08), Luxnet (Founding board member, IPO Taiwan ’10), Winning Health (IPO China, ’11, now $7B), Sumilux (Acquired ’16), TechPoint (IPO ’17), BaseVenture (acquired ’18), CSPA (acquired ’19), Farasis (Board member 2010 – 2018; IPO 2020, now $4.5B), Healthlink (IPO in process, scheduled 2021)… etc.
Bob currently serves on the board of Healthlink of Beijing, Farasis Energy of California, R2.ai of Silicon Valley, Knowing of Taiwan. He has also served in the past as a board director or advisor to Pine Photonics, Monday Technologies (sold ’08), Greatland Electronics (IPO ’09), and Luxnet of Taiwan, Winning Health of China. Bob is also the General Partner of consulting company PHYCOS of Taiwan, as well as a Senior Partner of boutique investment bank OceanIQ Partners.
Bob is also the author of 8 top selling books in Asia: “Find Your Way To Success & Happiness” in 2003 (Top seller of the year); “Creating Value to Differentiate” in 2004 (Honored with the National Level Golden Book Award); as well as “Build Your Career From Where You Are”, best seller in 2005. His 4th book “It is easy to be super happy” became the top seller in late 2007. His 5th book “Family Education of the Successful People” sold out the first prints the 3rd week after launch in 2011. His 6th book “Angel Investment” became the Top 10 best seller on Amazon.com of China and also #1 on the chart of best selling investment book in Taiwan in 2014. His 7th book “Entrepreneurs Think Differently” was well received in both Taiwan and China, followed by his 8th book “Play your way to success”.
Bob was also the leading columnist for the largest business/investment newspaper in Taiwan “Economic Daily News”, and “Commercial Times” as well as many leading investment magazines in China. He has been a long time guitarist and pianist in the popular rock band “Southern Breed” in the ‘60s in Asia and “Silicon Valley Band” present days.
Bob served as Chairman of Global Monte Jade Association, considered one of the most influential Chinese hi-tech executive associations worldwide. He was the Chairman in Chinese Association of International Trade (CAIT) twice in a row and a Board member of Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce twice. He has also served both as the Commissioner and the Chairman of Santa Clara County – HsinChu County Commission. Bob has a MSEE degree from University of California at Santa Barbara. He has been very active in community services.
Teddy Liaw has been a member of the San Francisco Taipei Sister Committee since 2013. He is currently the CEO of NexRep, one of the largest virtual contact center marketplaces in the world. He was appointed by CA Governor Gavin Newsom onto his CA Entrepreneur Task Force. He founded the Global Leadership Organization, an 501c3 nonprofit organization, Taiwanese American Professionals, was National Chairman and President of Taiwanese American Citizens League. He studied Business Administration and Ethnic Studies at UC Berkeley, where he was student body President, served as a Trustee on the Berkeley Foundation, and founded the Asian American Association.
Being friendly, flexible, reliable, committed and selfless as a volunteer. My energy and enthusiastic about a cause, will bring me a positive spirit can motivate others to take action towards the cause, it contagious and spread to others. Align with my passionate at my volunteer work, I have done a long commitment on a regular basis for a period of time since 1985 in community, organizations and help with many tasks. My ultimate goal is stay passionate, positive, be myself and will help bring a fun and loving spirit to any volunteer opportunity.
Amelia Ho (current role)
1979-2020 President, Cal Travel & Tours
2017-2020 Commissioner, SFO-TPE Sister-city
2015-2020 Funder, Public Benefit Platform, SV.
2014-2020 Commissioner, OCAC, Taiwan, ROC
2012-2020 Honorable Chair, FuJen Worldwide Alumni Association
2004-2020 Rotarian(Los Altos, Cupertino)
Amelia Ho (past role)
2000-2010 Chair, Los Altos – ShiLin Sister-city
1985-2020 Involved in many organizations, charities, fundraisers.
Ho Chie Tsai, MD is the founder of TaiwaneseAmerican.org, a non-profit organization and website whose mission is to connect and highlight the next generation of Taiwanese America. He has spent most of his life working to build organizations and networks that serve the Asian and Taiwanese American communities. A popular speaker among youth audiences, his personal mission is to inspire young people to discover their values and passions so that they can make a positive impact in this world. He is currently the board president of the Taiwanese American Foundation and a past founder of Taiwanese American Professionals in San Francisco. He has been involved with the Intercollegiate Taiwanese American Students Association since its formation in the early 1990’s and remains a frequent speaker for their regional conferences. In 2012, Ho Chie was recognized with the Outstanding Asian American Alumni Award from his alma mater, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, for his influential community-organizing work, which ultimately led to the establishment of both an Asian American Studies Department and Cultural Center. Professionally, Ho Chie is a board-certified pediatrician at the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, Oakland, which serves an ethnically diverse and mostly under-privileged patient population. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and a Master’s degree in Biomedical Engineering.
Awards and Accomplishments:
• “Outstanding American Chinese Business Women Award” 2013 Appointed By SF Mayor Lee
• #1 Ranked District to Target in Western Market (2013-2014)
• Top 2 Ranked District (Out 223 Districts) in the Company for Promotional Sales Saturdate event (10/2014)
• Ranked Top 5% of Most Community Events in the Company (2013-2014)
Professional Experience
Franchise owner of Mr. Pickle’s Sandwiches shop for 3 stores Nov2017 to Present
1515 Broadway St. Concord, CA
3342 Clayton Rd, Concord, CA
3130 Balfour Rd, Brentwood, CA
CVS Health 2015-2018
District Manager East Bay Area, CA
• Oversee stores overall Margin, Profit, Shrink and Manpower
• Coaching , Training and developing supervision team and Store managers on leadership, store condition, planning business report, and drive profit.
Walgreens Company1999 to 2015
District Manager (San Francisco Bay Area, CA)
• Oversee stores in daily operation, promoting sales and profit.
• Hire, train and mentor all Store Managers, Pharmacy manager and responsible for promotion and discipline.
• Make all the Human Resources decisions.
• Responsible for all public relations and customer relations on a daily basis.
• Full P&L responsibilities for both FE and RX.
United Parcel Service Recruiter (Chicago, Illinois) 1997 to 1999
• Build up a network of potential employees in the community through job fairs and local events.
• Promoted the company’s new image in a television commercial.
• Raised the minority percentage of qualified hires through effective affirmative action practices.
World Journal Chinese Newspaper
Reporter (Chicago, Illinois) 1995 to 1996
• Research and published articles about current local events.
• Managed and marketed the advertisement department.
• Branch leader in sales for advertisement listings.
• Increased the advertising portfolio from local to a nationwide account.
Education:
Roosevelt University
Bachelor of Science, Psychology, 1995
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
HBDT – A Design Build Firm in the Bay Area
Principal 2003-Present
Astute Group – Land Development Company in the Bay Area
Partner 2000-2003
Universal Paragon Corporation – The Baylands Development Company
General Manager 1990-1999
PGAV Architects – A Global Design & Planning Firm
Senior Project Designer 1985-1990
EDUCATION:
Washington University in St. Louis, MO – Master of Architecture, 1983
Tamkang University Taiwan – Bachelor of Architecture, 1978
Amy is a renowned entrepreneur operated several restaurants serving American, Chinese and Japanese cuisines. She has retired. She served as a Moderator and Master of Ceremony for Taiwan and Hong Kong Varieties shows in Las Vegas for about 20 years. Served as Commissioner of the City of San Francisco Arts Commission, and the San Francisco Chinatown Economic Development Commission as Vice Chair. Currently, she serve as SF-Taipei Sister City Committee member; Commissioners of Overseas Community Affair Council R.O.C.; Board Member of the World Buddha’s Light International Association, Board Members of Asian Women’s Association and Founding President of Chinese American Cultural Association. For her community services, Mayor Willie Brown proclaimed August 14, 2001 as “Amy Chuang Day”.
夏玉珠簡介：早年服務於銀行界，後経營飲食業，曾擁有中、美、日多間不同餐廳。在美國拉斯 維加(Las Vegas) 為著名経紀人夏玉順主持港台着名影歌星的秀達20年. 工作餘暇投身於各種非牟利社區服務機構，諸如：新僑服務中心、亞洲婦女服務中心、美洲華人婦女聯誼會、市府機構如舊 金山市府藝術委員會委員、華埠經濟發展委員會副主席、舊金山、台北姊妹市委員、佛光會日落區分會會長、佛光山世界總會理事及舊金山灣區縂會長、中美文化芸術協會創會會長、中華慧妍 縂會共同創辦人、會長、董事。為表彰她對社區的貢獻，三藩市市長布朗定二零零一年八月十四日為『舊金山夏玉珠日』.
Theresa Lee is an experienced public sector and business administrator. She is the former Deputy Airport Director of Administration and Technology at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) where she worked for 18 years. Her portfolio of responsibilities included Information Technology and Telecommunications; Human Resources and Staff Development; Equity and Inclusion Programs; Contract Administration; Employment and Community Partnerships; Health, Safety and Wellness; Reprographic Services, and the SFO Medical Clinic. She oversaw the creation and implementation of new revenue and cost recovery programs for technology and support services to meet airlines and tenants’ needs. She also established new programs to strengthen and improve administrative operations and developed innovative recruitment and outreach initiatives to diversify the airport workforce.
Prior to SFO, she worked for San Francisco Mayor Frank Jordan as Deputy Budget Director and Legislative and Community Liaison on a variety issues including ADA, Workers Compensation reform, economic development, and public health issues. Her private experience included restaurant and retail management. In addition to serving on the the S.F. – Taipei Sister City Committee, Theresa is currently serving on the Board of Directors of the Pacific Asian American Woman Bay Area Coalition (PAAWBAC). She has also served as a member of the S.F. Board of Supervisors’ Airport Facilities Naming Committee, President of the Chinese American Women’s Business League (CABWL), Treasurer of the S.F. Municipal Executives Association, Board member of the S.F. Chinatown YMCA, President of the Sacramento Chinese Community Service Center, Inc.
Theresa was born in San Francisco and raised by immigrant parents from China and Taiwan. She graduated from UC Berkeley and received her postgraduate degree from the University of Chicago. Theresa regards community service as an essential responsibility for every person young or old and to be effective in helping others we must recognize and understand our own biases and be open to different perspectives. Economic and cultural exchanges through the S.F.-Taipei Sister City programs are a great way to achieve a more understanding and accepting community.
Chu Hai University Alumni World Headquarters
San Francisco - Taipei Sister City Committee Programs and Accomplishments
- Facilitate and planed the official visits of the Mayor of San Francisco to Taipei City and the visit of Mayor from Taipei City. These visits promote the city related to tourism, business opportunity and educational events or exchanges.
- To facilitate, participate and plan for program exchanges as requested by both cities.
- To facilitate the needed funds for the periodic maintenance and upkeep of the Taipei “Golden Gate Pavilion” at Golden Gate Park. This Pavilion was a gift from Taipei City to the citizen of San Francisco in April of 1981—dedicated by then Mayor Diane Feinstein and then Mayor Lee Teng-Hui. Taipei City has provided funds for upkeep and repair of
the pavilion. Due to the harsh weather the tiles and painting have to often be redone by the San Francisco City Recreation and Park Department. However, the Sister may need help facilitate fund raising efforts to help funding needs if the City and County of San Francisco or the City of Taipei have difficulties in appropriating the needed repair funds. - Student Exchange Program and leadership training program such as Taipei Dragon Boat Festival, Taipei scholarships to San Francisco citizens studying Mandarin in Taiwan, and other programs.
- Participate, sponsor, plan and facilitate cultural, sports, arts and other activities as requested by both cities that benefit the citizens of both cities.
- Hosted and sponsored the Swinging Skirt LPGA Tour, an international sports tournament event from Taipei to the San Francisco Bay Area. These activities increased the economic, tourisms and cultural activates that benefited the San Francisco Bay Area Cities.