Albert was born in the Philippines although his family came originally from the Guangdong province in China. After his mother passed away, he returned with his siblings to his ancestral village in China to get a basic education. When a Japanese invasion seemed imminent, he returned once again to Manila. There he quit school to help support his family and allow his younger brother to complete high school. When Japan invaded the Philippines in 1941, he found refuge in the mountains near Baguio until the end of the Pacific War. After the end of hostilities, he went to work in the mess hall of a US army base in Okinawa where he greatly improved his English – something that would be critical for his career.
After a few years in Okinawa, Albert decided to return to Hong Kong. There he met the most important person in his life, Edith Poon, who would be his partner for the next sixty years. Though she came from a humble background, she was incredibly capable. She took care of four young children, pampered Albert to the extent that he never had to set foot in the kitchen, and played a critical role in helping Albert launch his business career. Albert had parlayed his English skills into a managerial position with a large trading company, but he had always harboured ambitions of having his own business. His first few attempts failed, until he met the American importer Brainerd Mellinger. The two worked seamlessly together for some thirty years until the untimely death of Mr. Mellinger, who did most of the marketing in the US while Albert handled the sourcing, production and shipment of a wide range of products, particularly specialty watches. Starting from his home office, Albert’s business took off rapidly and even though it was a rather small family style operation, the steady profit was more than enough to support a comfortable lifestyle for his family, and allow him to send all four children to the US for their college education.
In the early nineties, Albert decided to shut down his business and retire. He has been an avid traveller all his life, and after retirement he was able to spend more time to travel with Edith to the US to visit his two daughters and as well as his beloved granddaughters. He particularly enjoyed cruises with them, with multiple trips to the Caribbean, the Mediterranean and Alaska. When he was not travelling, the arrival of yet another granddaughter in 1999 meant that his time in Hong Kong was equally fun-filled.
In 2007 Edith was diagnosed with late stage cancer. When she succumbed to the illness a year later, Albert was devastated. But his new found faith as well as the fellowship of the Oi Kwan Road Baptist Church congregation supported him during this difficult period. After his baptism in 2009, he told others that at this stage of his life, he was able to look back and recognize that he was indeed a blessed man. He was indeed blessed with remarkably robust health well into his nineties even though he could no longer travel abroad. He continued to enjoy good food and the frequent visits by overseas family members right up to his sudden departure on Jan 29, 2020.
‘My cup overflows with Your blessings’, the psalmist mused in Psalms 23:5. This verse would indeed be a fitting epitaph on Albert’s life.