Peter Wing

Peter Wing (traditional Chinese: 吳榮添; simplified Chinese: 吴荣添; pinyin: Wú Róngtiān; Jyutping: ng4 wing4 tim1), CM OBC (May 4, 1914 – December 27, 2007) was a Canadian politician and was the first mayor of Chinese descent in North America.[1] He was born in Kamloops, British Columbia in 1914 and had lived most of his life there.

Life

In 1910, Wing's father, Eng Wing Him, at age 16, went to Canada from the region near Canton. He went back to Canton to get married in the same year and returned to Canada in 1913.[2] Peter Wing was born on May 4, 1914, in Kamloops.[2] Wing had three brothers, John, Jim and David, and three sisters, May, Lily and Jean.[1]

He studied at Stuart Wood School[2] but left in grade nine to work for his father's restaurant and grocery store. He learned to play the piano by himself, and played a pump organ during Sunday services in the Chinese Methodist Mission on Victoria Street West. Afterwards, he joined the United Church choir. He was married to Frances Kwong (better known as Kim) of Revelstoke in 1932.[1]

In 1934, he became the youngest member of the Kamloops Board of Trade. He worked as an orchardist and realtor.[1] First elected as an alderman in 1960, he then served as mayor of Kamloops for three terms starting in 1966. During his term as mayor, Wing was also president of the Union of British Columbia Municipalities. Wing was also the first native-born mayor of Kamloops.[3] On 27 December 2007, Wing died at the age of 93 in Vancouver from a stroke.[4]

Recognition

In 1976, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada and was awarded the Order of British Columbia in 1990. In 1999, the city of Kamloops renamed the Peter Wing Rotary Rose Garden in his honour.[5]

See also

Further reading
  • Terrence Roth. The peasant's gold: the story of Peter Wing. ISBN 1-894179-15-3.

References
  1. "Remembering the life of Peter Wing 1914 – 2007". vancouversunandprovince.remembering.ca. Retrieved 2021-10-19.
  2. "Heroes Peter Wing". www.heroesofconfederation.com. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
  3. "Order of British Columbia citation". Retrieved October 27, 2017.
  4. "North America's first mayor of Chinese descent dies in Vancouver". Canadian Press. December 29, 2007.
  5. "Former Kamloops mayor dies at 93". Times Colonist. December 31, 2007. Archived from the original on November 3, 2012.
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