Please note:
- In order to properly recognize all donors for their contributions, West Vancouver Foundation will share your name and donation amount with the fund representative unless you have checked the anonymous box on the donation form.
- This fund’s granting purpose is subject to change.
- All donations to this fund will be permanently endowed.
The Sylvia Hsin-Ping Yu and Kui-Lan Shao Memorial Bursary Fund
The Sylvia Hsin-Ping Yu and Kui-Lan Shao Memorial Bursary Fund was established by Sylvia’s beloved husband, Kuo-Wei Hung at the West Vancouver Community Foundation in 2026 in memory of both his wife and mother-in-law. The Memorial Bursary Fund was designed to help high school graduates who are also struggling during difficult circumstances. This fund will be granted to and administered by the North Vancouver High School Education Foundation (NVHSEF). The application will be processed by the NVHSEF and awarded preferably to North Vancouver School District graduates who pursue post-secondary education while suffering the loss of an immediate family member during high school, and who need financial assistance.
Sylvia Hsin-Ping Yu
Born in Keelung, Taiwan, 1971, Sylvia was raised to be a calm, kind, caring, patient, family‑oriented, frugal, respectful and smart child. She was humorous and naturally talented in languages, history, literature, and Traditional Chinese Medicine.
In 1994, one year after graduating from National Taipei University (aka Chung-Hsing Law and Commerce), Sylvia moved to North Vancouver with her parents, Yean-Wen Yu and Kui-Lan Shao. While looking after her elderly parents, Sylvia worked hard to get a certificate as a Chinese-English interpreter, worked towards a Master of Public Administration from the University of Victoria, worked at the SUCCESS, located in downtown Vancouver to help newcomers, and in 2002 began the job she held for 23 years at the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB). Sylvia was fluent in Mandarin, Taiwanese, English, and Cantonese which she learned through her work at SUCCESS. She also continued her studies in French while working at the IRB.
After a nine‑year long‑distance relationship between Taiwan and Canada, Sylvia married her beloved long-time boyfriend in 2003. She helped her husband to adapt to the new life in Canada; taught him how to order food at Subway, Delany’s, White Spot, and Hong Kong-style restaurants; told him that stopping far enough behind the car in front is safe and polite; while correcting her husband’s “funny” English, she did not miss the opportunity to tease him; supported him in the MBA program at the University of Manitoba. They had their child in 2007.
Sylvia was very close to her mother. She learned many traditional Shandong dishes from her mother: hand-making unique fish dumplings, noodles, and various Chinese steam buns all from scratch. The fish dumplings they made were second to none, according to her husband and so many friends.
In 2008, at the age of 37, Sylvia lost her mother. Though devastated, and grieving deeply, she continued to carry on for her family, while looking after her elderly Father and a 7-month-old child.
Sylvia shared a very close bond with her son. Unfortunately, she passed away suddenly in the summer of 2025 after battling numerous cancers for almost two years. She is survived by her husband and her son, who struggled to cope with the loss of his mother during his last year at high school.
Kui-Lan Shao
Kui-Lan Shao was born in Shandong China, in 1931. During the Chinese civil war, she and her parents had to give up everything and leave their hometown to Shanghai and then fled to Hongkong in 1949. In 1951, the Shao family decided to relocate to Keelung, Taiwan, where they established and ran a fishing business for a few decades. Kui-Lan got married to Yean-Wen Yu in Taipei in 1955. They raised three children: Un-Hui, Chih-Ping, and Sylvia Hsin-Ping. After her mother, Chih Wang, passed away at the age of 90 in 1993, Kui-Lan, her husband and daughter moved to North Vancouver in 1994.
Kui-Lan is remembered as a kind, respectful, and generous person. In 2007, Kui-Lan donated $40,000 CAD to build an elementary school named after her father, Wen Ting in Hebei China. Unfortunately, she passed away at home in the summer of 2008 after battling cancer for a few years.
Through this fund, we hope that the memory of these two incredible women will live on and continue to help others.
