Maeching Li Kao
Maeching Li Kao | |
|---|---|
| 高李梅卿 | |
 | |
| Born | Li Maeching 李梅卿 February 20, 1920 Shanghai, China |
| Died | July 25, 2003 (aged 83) Winter Park, Florida, U.S. |
| Occupation | Social worker |
| Spouse | George Kao (m. 1946) |
| Relatives | Szeming Sze (brother-in-law) |
Maeching Li Kao (Chinese: 高李梅卿; pinyin: Gāo Lǐ Méiqīng; February 20, 1920 – July 25, 2003) was a Chinese-born American social worker and philanthropist, and wife of writer, editor, and translator George Kao.
Early life and education
Li Maeching was born in Shanghai, the daughter of banker Li Ming.[1][2] She attended St. Mary's Hall and St. John's University in Shanghai[3] and Wellesley College, before graduating from Barnard College in 1944.[4][5] She wrote "A Spool of Thread", "an authentic story of the effect of the Chinese War on a Shanghai university student",[6] for the Winter 1943 issue of Barnard Quarterly.[7] She also participated in fundraising events for United China Relief.[8]
Kao earned a Master of Social Work degree in 1964, from Catholic University of America.[9] Her master's thesis was titled "A Study of Eight Mothers who Were Readmitted to St. Elizabeths Hospital and Their Children who Were in Care with Child Welfare Division".[10]
Her older sister Bessie Li was a pianist before she married diplomat Szeming Sze.[2][11]
Career
During World War II and after, Li was on the staff of the China Institute,[12] assisting Chinese students who were unable to return home during wartime. In 1963, during graduate school, she worked part time at the Community Psychiatric Clinic in Bethesda, Maryland.[13] Later in life, she was an adoption specialist at the Montgomery County Department of Social Services in Maryland. In 1984, she wrote and published a cookbook on making Chinese food with a microwave oven.[9][14] Her husband's work meant that she lived in Carmel, California, Washington, D.C. and Hong Kong during her adult life, before retiring to Florida.[15]
Personal life and legacy
Maeching Li married writer, translator, and editor George Kao in 1946;[4][16] they had two sons, William and Jeffrey.[17] Kao became a United States citizen in 1951. She died from leukemia in 2003, aged 83 years, in Winter Park, Florida.[9] Rollins College in Florida has a Maeching Li and George Kao Fund for Chinese Studies, assisting students and faculty to travel to China,[18] and a George and Maeching Kao Chinese Language Award.[19][20]
References
- ^ United States Congress (February 4, 1954). Report. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 5.
- ^ a b "Li Ming, A Banker and Industrialist". The New York Times. 1966-10-22. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
- ^ Burstein, Miriam (1943-11-22). "She Goes to Barnard: Mae-Ching Li, Future Social Worker". Barnard Bulletin. p. 3. Retrieved 2021-11-03 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Troth is Announced of Miss Maeching Li". The New York Times. 1945-12-10. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
- ^ Barnard College, The Mortarboard Archived 2021-01-17 at the Wayback Machine (1944 yearbook): 42.
- ^ "'Quarterly' Out Friday". Barnard Bulletin. 77: 3. December 14, 1942.
- ^ Howard, Clare (January 11, 1943). "Quarterly Reviewed". Barnard Bulletin. 47: 2 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Two Junior Show Collections Bring Drive Grosses to $217". Barnard Bulletin. 1943-03-25. p. 1. Retrieved 2021-11-03 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c "Maeching Li Kao (obituary)". The Orlando Sentinel. 2003-08-01. pp. B6. Retrieved 2021-11-03.
- ^ Kao, Maeching Li (1964). A Study of Eight Mothers who Were Readmitted to St. Elizabeths Hospital and Their Children who Were in Care with Child Welfare Division. Catholic University of America.
- ^ "Dr. Szeming Sze Dies; Helped Found World Health Organization of U.N." The Buffalo News. November 10, 1998. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Maeching Li to Marry University Graduate". Columbia Missourian. 1945-12-28. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-11-17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Two Students Now Aid Clinic". Montgomery County Sentinel. 1963-10-10. p. 7. Retrieved 2025-11-17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Obituaries". The Washington Post. August 6, 2003.
- ^ Kao, George (1988). Cathay by the Bay: Glimpses of San Francisco's Chinatown in the Year 1950. Chinese University Press. ISBN 978-962-201-423-7.
- ^ "Maeching Li to Marry University Graduate". Columbia Missourian. 1945-12-28. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-11-17 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Holley, Joe (2008-03-07). "George Kao; Writer-Translator Helped Readers in China, U.S. Share Cultures". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 2024-05-18. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
- ^ Jankowiak, William R.; Moore, Robert L. (2016-11-28). Family Life in China. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-0-7456-8558-8.
- ^ "Asian Studies Program". Rollins College. Archived from the original on 2021-05-04. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
- ^ Zhang, Wenxian (December 4, 2015). "Rollins' China Connection". From the Rollins Archive. Archived from the original on 2021-09-19. Retrieved 2021-11-02.