William Wong

William “Bill” Wong was born on April 12, 1930 in Canton, China. Growing up in China during that time was tough, and even more so during WWII. William’s baby sister died as an infant which left Bill an only child. At the turn of the twentieth century, Bill’s father, Chang Hsueh Huey came to the United States to work on the railroads in hopes for a better life. During this time, Chang became a citizen, which paved the way for Bill to migrate to America.

In 1952, at the age of 22, speaking very little English, Bill came to the U.S. in search of the American Dream. With no money to his name, Bill struggled and consistently worked two to three jobs to make “ends meet.” His dream was to become a doctor and, even though the odds were against him, he never stopped working hard to fulfill his dream. During these eight years, he learned English, and completed his undergraduate education.

In 1960, Bill began medical school at the California College of Podiatric Medicine in San Francisco. While in medical school, he earned the respect of his peers and mentors due to his extremely hard work ethic. In 1964, Bill graduated and became board certified both in Podiatric Medicine and Podiatric Surgery.

In 1968 Bill’s life changed forever when he met Doreen Lee. They met through mutual friends in Los Angeles. They fell in love and got married on March 9, 1969, settling down in a home in Downey, California.

Unfortunately, Bill’s life changed again in 1970 when he was diagnosed with Early Onset Parkinson’s Disease. However, this diagnosis did not hold Bill back professionally as he continued to be successful in life. With Doreen his CPA wife, they became medical practice owners, property investors, and formed a company with their close friends, called Abacus Leasing Company.

In 1972, Bill and Doreen’s older son Donald was born, and five years later, Robert was born. The growing family lived in their home in Downey with Bill’s mother, TT Wong, who was called “Ying Ying” by her grandkids. Ying Ying cared for the boys while Bill and Doreen built their practices.

In 1988, Bill retired after 23 years of practicing medicine. In his retirement years, he was active in both boys’ lives and was able to make up for time spent working so hard in his early years. He was proud to see both boys graduate from college (Don UCLA and Robert USC), get married to wonderful women (Cristina, Don’s wife, and Amy, Robert’s wife), and of course have 4 beautiful grandchildren (Kai, Leilani, Kekoa, and Belinda).

His grandchildren visited him every week where they would eat Chinese dinner together and always had kisses for their Grandpa, “Yeh Yeh.”

Bill’s kindness and generosity to others will always be remembered. In 2005 Bill and Doreen created the William and Doreen Wong Foundation to give back. They established an endowment for a scholarship at the California College of Podiatric Medicine and each year Bill and Doreen also give to numerous charities including: USC’s Parkinson’s Disease Research Center, National Parkinson Foundation, The American Parkinson Disease Association and the Michael J. Fox Parkinson’s Foundation.

Who would have guessed that the transcontinental trip to America in 1952 would have laid the foundation to numerous generations to follow? Bill’s impact on his family, friends, patients, and community will be felt forever.