RIP, our friend Dan Chan

I want to make a public tribute to a family friend, Dan Chan, who passed away last night. Dan was one of the guiding forces behind the Wellington Chinese community, a former chairman of the Seyip Association here, and a true leader who bridged the gap between cultures in his years in New Zealand.
   I was one of the ushers at his wife’s funeral earlier this year at the Wellington Chinese Baptist Church, which wasn’t that long ago.
   Dan was 100, and I have a feeling he might even have been 101. (My aunt says he was 101.) He was still very alert the last time I saw him, and only had a bit of a problem walking. At 100, he had a better memory for faces and names than I do. He was still driving till recently.
   He is one of the subjects of a film about Wellington’s Chinese history and early Chinese business owners. As with many in those mid-century years, he worked in the service industry, owning a restaurant—I think on Molesworth Street.
   I pray for him and his family, and the decency, dignity and honour they always displayed in all their dealings.