YIP Wing See (aka Cecil Yip) – “Cec” to his many friends – was the 32nd grandchild of Yip Sang 葉生. He was the eldest son of Yip Kew Sheck 葉求鑠 (1900-1963) and Chew Wai Ming 趙慧明 (1902-1972). He was born at 51 East Pender Street and was five when Yip Sang passed away.

Cecil was a good student. Like many other Chinatown kids, he went to Chinese school after regular school, for nine long years. He was a Cub, a Boy Scout, an Army Cadet, and a track and field all-star, graduating from King George High School in 1940. At the Wing Sang compound, he was surrounded by boys who were always ready for an impromptu game. Soccer was a family passion: including Quene Yip (1905-94), at least twenty-one Yips played for the Chinese Athletics over the years, including Cecil in 1946. He dreamed of using his athletic and scholastic skills for college and a career.

He was born the year before the 1923 Chinese Exclusion Act and his life was shaped by it. Canadian born, he was registered as an immigrant on June 11, 1924. He was 27 when he voted for the first time. Not one to take inequities quietly, he enjoyed testing the boundaries of where he was allowed to be and when. He loved telling stories of “breaking curfew”: enjoying Vancouver’s nightlife outside the bounds of Chinatown.

Cecil was a member of the Army Navy Air Force Legion Unit 280 (Chinatown), having served both in WWII and in 1941 with the Merchant Marines. The army judged his education and skills insufficient for promotion, yet he wore the uniform with honour and pride. He marched in every Remembrance Day parade, medals shining and shoes mirror bright. He loved sharing war stories with his friends.

A hard worker, Cecil took the blue-collar jobs he was able to get in canneries, mills, grocery stores and restaurants. He worked all over the province, from Bones Bay to Vancouver. He had exquisite taste: family associations invited him to select menus for multi-course banquets, balancing the colours, flavours, and textures.

From an early age, Cecil loved fishing – even a job at the cannery couldn’t dim his enthusiasm for fish. His happiest days were on the water, the cooler filled with beer and fried chicken. The BC Salmon Derby was an annual highlight, with Cecil twice taking home trophies.

Cecil died in 1989 and is buried at Ocean View Burial Park, Burnaby.