Maeching Li Kao
Maeching Li Kao | |
|---|---|
| 高李梅卿 | |
| Born | Li Maeching 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 Lǐméiqīng; 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 Mae-ching 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 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 (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. 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. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Zhang, Wenxian (December 4, 2015). "Rollins' China Connection". From the Rollins Archive. Retrieved 2021-11-02.
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