John Shin-Han Hsu 徐新漢

John was born on September 25, 1939, in Serang, Indonesia. His ancestors were Hakka natives of Chiaoling, Kwangtung Province in China. He was the first son among the eight children of Tjie Kim-Sian (father) and Lee Siat-Moy (mother).

John lived in Indonesia until the age of 20. On Oct. 12, 1959, he and two siblings left Jakarta to study in Taiwan. In 1964, he graduated from the Department of Journalism at the National Chengchi University (N.C.C.U.) in Taipei. From this time onwards, he devoted his whole life to journalism, working as a news reporter for the Central Daily in Taipei, before immigrating with his family to Vancouver, Canada in the early 1970’s. He then served as Editor-in-chief of the New Republic Daily and the Vancouver World Journal for more than 30 years. In that time, he helped recruit and train numerous young journalists and was a pioneer of overseas Chinese news media. His keen interest in and unwavering support for the Chinese Canadian community will always be remembered.

Throughout his career, John wrote hundreds of in-depth news reports and weighty editorials, and made outstanding contributions to the political, economic, and cultural life of Canada’s multicultural society. A selection of these, written some 30 years ago, were submitted to the Central News Agency (C.N.A.) and published worldwide. They include “A Portrait of Cancer Fighting Hero Terry Fox” (a colossal Canadian figure of lasting impact, of course), “Water Jet Cuts Through Steel Plates as Thick as Four Inches”, and “Temperature Differences in the Deep Waters of Green Island Generate Electricity”. In 2013, he penned a book titled Portrait of My Father, a tribute to Tjie Kim-Sian, who’s work greatly advanced Indonesia’s historical literature. Throughout his life, John’s main endeavour was to carry on his father’s great love for their home country of China.

Even in retirement, John enthusiastically continued serving his community by working as general convener of the Western Canada Alumni Association of Taiwanese Universities, president of the Canadian Chinese Writers Association, president of the Overseas Students in Taiwan Alumni Association, Western Canada, president of the Western Canada National Chengchi University Alumni Association, adviser for the Overseas Community Affairs Council of R.O.C. and member of the standing committee, Chinese Nationalist League of Canada. His love for volunteerism is truly admirable!

John enjoyed life to the fullest through hobbies such as reading, writing, dancing and travelling. However, he was a biggest fan for singing! Weekend hot pot dinners at home were always followed by karaoke with friends and family. In fact, he could sing in quite a few languages, with Mandarin songs like Teresa Teng’s “The Moon Represents My Heart”, and Indonesian songs like “Ayo Mama” or “Bengawan Solo”, and one song he loved to sing the most was “Moon River”. On one memorable Alaskan cruise, he and daughter Jean sang “Unforgettable” together as a duo. John was so motivated by singing that he decided to join the Van Sing Choir in January 2011, and he continued to hum right until the very end of his life. The heavens have now gained an angel with such a beautiful voice!

Anyone who knew John will agree he had character, wit and vitality. He could be extremely charming when called for and had this unique ability to think on his feet, able to come up with a quick, witty observation about any unpleasant or embarrassing situation. His eloquent conversations made others admire him and immediately drew people to him. There would never be another person like him!

John is survived by daughter Jean, son-in-law Kenny, son Johnson, granddaughter Elizabeth with her husband Michael, grandson Christopher with his fiancé Mikaella, and grandson Cameron. He will be dearly missed by family, friends and colleagues.

A visitation for John will be held Friday, August 26, 2022 from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm at Glenhaven Memorial Chapel, 1835 E Hastings St, Vancouver, where the Celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, August 27, 2022 at 10 am. Cremation will follow at 1pm at West Coast Crematorium (it's located inside Forest Lawn Memorial Park).

The family wishes to acknowledge and thank the staff and volunteers at Salvation Army Rotary Hospice House, who assisted in the care for John. We are forever grateful for their wonderful work and their abiding kindness.

In lieu of flowers, please donate in memory of John Hsu to:

Salvation Army Rotary Hospice House, 6460 No. 4 Road, Richmond, B.C. V6Y 2S9 Canada

我們親愛的父親、外公徐新漢先生，於2022年8月5日，於加拿大卑詩省列治文市安詳辭世，享壽八十三歲。

徐新漢1939年9月25日生於印度尼西亞萬丹省西蘭市。祖先是中國廣東省蕉嶺縣的客家人。父親徐競先，母親李雪梅共育有八個孩子，他是家中長子，在印尼成長至二十歲， 1959年10月12日和兩位手足從雅加達啟程，前往台灣求學。他在1964年畢業於國立政治大學新聞系，從此投入新聞事業。早期在台北任職中央日報記者，七十年代初偕同妻子及兩子女移居加拿大溫哥華，並先後擔任新民國報和溫哥華世界日報總編輯，歷時30 多年。他早年提拔栽培眾多新聞人才，是海外新聞媒體先驅，對於加拿大華人社區的貢獻，將必為後人銘記。

在新聞生涯裡，徐先生撰寫過數百篇深入報導及評論，對加拿大多元社會的政治、經濟和文化發展貢獻卓著。他早年的多篇文章也經由中央通訊社 (C.N.A.) 發送海外各地發表，其中包括“抗癌英雄畫像泰利福斯”、“可切割4吋厚鋼板及深地開礦水箭”及“研發綠島深水溫差可發電” 等報導。2013 年，他的著作《父親畫像》出版，是對父親的致敬。徐父競先先生僑居印尼，對於當地歷史文學的推動不遺餘力。終其一生，徐新漢傳承了父親對祖國中國的忠忱與懷望。

在新聞專業之外，徐新漢熱心服務僑社，曾任台灣各大學加西校友聯合會總召集人、加拿大華文作家協會會長、加西留台僑生校友會會長、加西政大校友會會長、中華民國僑委會僑務顧問，和中國國民黨加拿大總支部常委。

徐先生從閱讀、寫作、舞蹈和旅行等愛好之中，盡情享受生活，此外，他具有一副清亮好歌喉！每逢周末在家吃完火鍋晚餐後，總要與好友和家人一起歡唱卡拉OＫ。他精通多種語言，國語歌曲譬如鄧麗君的《月亮代表我的心》、印尼歌曲《Ayo Mama》、《Bengawan Solo》，都是壓軸表演。他最喜歡的歌是《月河》（Moon River）。在一次阿拉斯加遊輪之旅上，和女兒珍珍合唱《Unforgettable》，靈動的合音令人難忘。對歌唱的熱愛，促使他在 2011 年 1 月加入溫馨合唱團（Van Sing Choir），並繼續高歌到生命的終點。現在，天堂多了一位聲音優美的天使！

認識徐先生的人都會同意，他的個性富有智慧和活力，洞察透徹、應對機敏，雄辯的口才讓人折服，總能化解尷尬，打破沈悶，並成為眾人焦點。世上再也難遇獨特如徐先生的人。

徐先生身後留下女兒珍珍、女婿胡健勳、兒子正山、外孫女 胡詠華、外孫婿Michael Fragione、外孫胡偉華和未婚妻Mikaella Gloria，以及外孫胡興華。家人、朋友和同事都會深深懷念他。