Robert Hung-Ngai Ho (born 1932) is a

Chinese Canadian Chinese Canadians are Canadians of full or partial Chinese people, Chinese ancestry, which includes both naturalized Chinese immigrants and Canadian-born Chinese. They comprise a subgroup of East Asian Canadians which is a further subgroup of ...

-American philanthropist and former journalist.

Early life and career

Ho was born in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

in 1932 to one of the richest families in the then-British colony. Ho's grandfather, Robert Ho Tung, was a prominent businessman and philanthropist. Although born into a religiously Buddhist family, Ho did not become religious himself until adulthood. Ho graduated from

Colgate University Colgate University is a Private university, private college in Hamilton, New York, United States. The Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college was founded in 1819 as the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York ...

in 1956 with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree and from the

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

Graduate School of Journalism in 1958 with a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in journalism. He then worked for ''

The Pittsburgh Press ''The Pittsburgh Press'', formerly ''The Pittsburg Press'' and originally ''The Evening Penny Press'', was a major afternoon daily newspaper published in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for over a century, from 1884 to 1992. At the height of its popul ...

'',

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

, and Hong Kong's ''

Kung Sheung Daily News ''The Kung Sheung Daily News'' was a Chinese language newspaper published in Hong Kong under British colonial rule. It was owned indirectly by (), a former Republic of China general and son of Hong Kong tycoon Robert Ho Tung. It was a ...

'', then owned by the Hotung family.

Philanthropy

He moved to Canada in 1989, settling in

West Vancouver West Vancouver is a district municipality in the province of British Columbia, Canada. A member municipality of the Metro Vancouver Regional District, West Vancouver is situated on the north shore of Burrard Inlet to the northwest of the city ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. There he established the Tung Lin Kok Yuen Canada Society in 1994, named in honour of his grandmother, Lady Clara Hotung (born Cheung Lin Kok); the

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

Tung Lin Kok Yuen temple was consecrated in 1995. He further founded the Tung Lin Kok Yuen Canada Foundation in 2005 to fund Buddhist studies. In 2005, Ho launched the Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation, which encourages younger children to learn about Chinese culture. The following year, he donated $4 million to the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

to fund Buddhist studies programs and another $4 million to the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

(UBC) for the same purpose. In 2008,

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

renamed its Buddhist Studies Center in his honour after he donated $5 million. In 2009, Ho donated $15 million towards the establishment of a research centre at

Vancouver General Hospital Vancouver General Hospital (locally known as VGH, or Vancouver General) is a medical facility located in Vancouver, British Columbia. It is the largest facility in the Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre (VHHSC) group of medical facili ...

for the Vancouver Prostate Centre, the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility, and the Ovarian Cancer Research Initiative. As a result of his philanthropy, Ho received an honorary degree from

Hong Kong University The University of Hong Kong (HKU) is a public research university in Pokfulam, Hong Kong. It was founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese by the London Missionary Society and formally established as the University of ...

in 2009, from UBC in 2012 and from

Hong Kong Baptist University Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) is a public Liberal arts education, liberal arts university with a Christian ethics, Christian education heritage in Kowloon Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong. The university was established as Hong Kong Baptist ...

in 2015. He was also named Member of the

Order of British Columbia The Order of British Columbia is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Instituted in 1989 by Lieutenant Governor David Lam, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier Bill Vander Zalm, the order is administe ...

in 2013 and Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

in 2018 in recognition of his philanthropic work. In 2019, Ho donated $15 million to his alma mater Colgate University to establish the Robert Hung Ngai Ho Mind, Brain, and Behavior Initiative. He and his wife Greta also donated $10 million to

Lions Gate Hospital Lions Gate Hospital (LGH) is a 268-bed medical facility located in North Vancouver, British Columbia. The hospital is part of and operated by Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), the regional health authority for the North Shore. History The hospit ...

in North Vancouver to help build a

mental health Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...

centre.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ho, Robert Hung-Ngai Canadian businesspeople 1932 births Living people Canadian people of Chinese descent Cantonese people Canadian philanthropists Hong Kong emigrants to Canada Members of the Order of British Columbia Members of the Order of Canada Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism alumni Colgate University alumni Canadian Buddhists Canadian journalists People from West Vancouver