Clarence Moy's Obituary
Clarence Moy, a resident of San Mateo, beloved husband, father, grandfather and great grandfather, passed away peacefully in his sleep on Sunday, October 11, 2015 in his 100th year.Born June 9, 1916 to Chuck Wing Moy and Bertha Wong in Portland, Oregon, he graduated from Lincoln High School and left Portland for a lifetime of service, adventure and family.Among the oldest grandsons of Moy Back Hin, a prominent Chinese-American businessman and Honorary Consul of China in Oregon, Clarence was sent off to China in 1934 to attend universities in Canton and Nanking. Upon returning to the US, he was at the University of Hawaii for a year before receiving a scholarship to complete his Bachelor of Journalism degree at the University of Missouri.Following his graduation, Clarence worked briefly in San Francisco and then returned to the then Territory of Hawaii where he worked for the Territorial Department of Institutions as a social worker. A lifelong student, Clarence continued to take classes at U. of Hawaii while working.Having witnessed the attack on Pearl Harbor the previous December, Clarence enlisted in the US Army in November 1942 and was back on the mainland by the end of the year to serve in the American and Asiatic-Pacific Theaters.Already proficient in Cantonese and Mandarin, Clarence received training in Japanese and Russian.While charged with administrating and supervising the work of the translation unit, Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, Office of Strategic Services, China Theater, Sergeant Clarence Moy’s performance was awarded with the Certificate of Merit and Bronze Star Medal.After the war, Clarence joined the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) upon its establishment in 1947. His work took him all over the Pacific and back to the US on many tours of duty. Upon his early retirement in 1972 to pursue other interests, he left at the highest civilian rank.While with the CIA, Clarence took a leave of absence to pursue a graduate degree. In June 1951, Clarence received his Master of Arts degree from Harvard University.Together for over 60 years, Clarence met Kimwah Teo in Hong Kong and married in October 1955 in Japan. Their love of travel took them to many exotic locations including the Taj Mahal in India, the Great Pyramids in Egypt, and the Terracotta Warriors in China. They also traveled by trailer across the United States multiple times with kids in tow.Having retired from his first career, he and Kimwah, moved to Eugene, Oregon to run a Chinese deli restaurant next to the University of Oregon. This new life was an adventure in the hard work of small business. Still, he found time to take occasional classes at the university, and enjoy fishing and crabbing on the Oregon coast with Kimwah on the weekends.In 1985, Clarence and Kimwah moved to sunny Cape Coral, Florida for their second retirement. During their ten-year sojourn, they enjoyed their new home on a canal full of fish and other creatures, many new friendships and all the fruits a tropical climate could produce.Returning to the west coast in 1995, they moved to San Mateo where they spent many wonderful times with family and friends from all over the world, good food, and joyful conversation.Altruistic by nature, Clarence helped numerous family members, friends and strangers. Among many acts of kindness, he and Kimwah were instrumental in assisting friends and relatives to legally immigrate to the US, gave guidance on handling government bureaucracy, provided lodging and helped them keep their refrigerators full.Throughout his life, Clarence was a seeker of knowledge. He was an early adopter of the personal computer, laptop and iPad, and always sought to improve his skills through self-study. Not to forget his physical conditioning, Clarence was also a regular at the local 24 Hour Fitness into his mid-90s.We will miss both his quiet kindness and his witty conversation. An exceptional man, a treasure.A private memorial service will be held in November.As a WWII veteran, Clarence was a supporter of veterans charities. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to any of the following charities in his memory.Wounded Warriors Family Support – http://www.wwfs.org/ Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind – http://www.guidedog.org/ Fisher House Foundation – https://www.fisherhouse.org/
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