The museum is saddened by the passing last week of Trustee Betty Wo, who served on the board for 31 years. As a member of the Education and Collections Committees, Betty was a calm, informed member of the body that steers the museum.

“Betty was the symbol of style and grace,” says deputy director Hathaway Jakobsen. “I will never forget how she welcomed me to the museum ‘ohana with open arms. We had a good long talk, during my first few weeks, and she vowed to support me personally and, of course, the museum’s fundraising efforts. Her opinion and ideas were invaluable.”

Mrs. Wo’s influence will continue to be felt at the museum and by the public—in 1993, eight years after she joined the museum’s board, Betty, with her husband Robert Ching Wo, the chairman of C.S. Wo & Sons, established the Wo Endowment Fund to support Chinese programs and activities.

This generous endowment fund makes it possible for the museum to provide world-class Chinese art and programming. Most recently it has supported expenses for such exhibitions as Chen Quilin: The Empty City, Art in a Time of Chaos: Masterworks from Six Dynasties China, and the current Yun-Fei Ji: The Intimate Universe.

Betty Wo (right) with her fellow museum trustee Cecilia Doo at the opening of "Qi Baishi: Modern Master" in 2014.

Betty Wo (right) with her fellow museum trustee Cecilia Doo at the opening of “Qi Baishi: Modern Master” in 2014.