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Our Rich History And Tradition

Opportunities for a new life drew tens of thousands of Chinese immigrants to San Francisco in the latter half of the 1880's. Many of these immigrants worked on the building of the transcontinental railroad and many settled in San Francisco's historic Chinatown. As other hardworking immigrants from Europe, Asia, and the Pacific, the Chinese came to find work and sustenance they could send back to families in their homelands. But the way the Chinese lived set them apart from the others into their own "Chinatown." Invisible walls propped up by prejudice and clannish preferences created virtual isolation for the Chinese.

In 1894, the Paulist Fathers, a young society of Catholic priests, founded to do missionary work in North America, was asked to assume the pastoral duties at St. Mary's Cathedral at California and Dupont Streets (now Grant Avenue). As the new century dawned, the Paulists encountered many challenges ministering to the needs of the people living on the edge of the infamous Barbary Coast. They recognized the need for social support and formal education to help the Chinese immigrants find better jobs, integrate into society, and protect their future. Upon the initiative of the pastor, Father Henry Stark, C.S.P., the Paulists initiated a mission in the heart of Chinatown. Father Stark added the direction of this mission to his other duties. He solicited the help of the Sisters of the Holy Souls to provide religious instruction, English lessons, sewing classes, and other social services.
In 1921 a more permanent home for St. Mary's Chinese Mission was made possible by a gift of $100,000 from Mrs. Bertha Welch, a parishioner at St. Mary's Cathedral. The only grammar school available to Chinese children was the public Oriental School, which did
not meet the needs perceived by the Paulists. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange were invited to open a school on the new site at Stockton and Clay Streets. That same year saw Dr. Chu Chew Shong, a renown herbalist and devout Catholic, establish a Chinese Language School. He was determined to use language as the key to helping youngsters preserve their culture and traditions. With the birth of the Day School and the Language School, St. Mary's Chinese Mission quickly became the premier educational institution in the Chinese community, offering unmatched quality and diversity in programming.

For the next seventy-five years, the "Mission," also known as St. Mary's Social Center, was home to thousands of youngsters who were either formally enrolled in one of the two schools or just came to enjoy the many social or athletic activities. Adults came for social and spiritual growth and to volunteer their skills. The schools grew in enrollment, experience, and excellence. Others tried to imitate but could never attain the recognition and prestige St. Mary's came to enjoy.

Teaching responsibilities were skillfully carried out with loving devotion by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Orange, who continue to this day to grace the Day School with their presence. Major contributions have also been made by the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception, the Precious Blood Sisters of Hong Kong ,the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, and, most recently, by the Maryknoll Sisters. Their ministries have been re-enforced by generations of dedicated and extraordinarily competent lay teachers in both the Elementary and the Chinese Language Schools.

Dr. Chew, the first principal of the Language School, became widely recognized as a pioneer educator. His successor as principal, the beloved late John Yehall Chin, himself a graduate of the Elementary School, won City-wide election to the San Francisco Community College Board and papal knighthood for distinguished services to St. Mary's and the Chinese community for over sixty years. Both he and his close colleague, Ms. Helen Jow, also a graduate of St. Mary's were awarded the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Medal, one of the highest honors of the Catholic Church, for the quality and depth of their commitment to St. Mary's.

As time passed, other graduates, solidly schooled in academics, citizenship, and Christian values, began to dot the Bay Area landscape. Gordon J. Lau, Esq., became county supervisor and chairman of the precedent-setting San Francisco-Shanghai Sister City Committee. Heather Fong rose to the rank of Deputy Police Chief, the highest-ranking Asian woman in American law enforcement. Edward A. Chow, M.D., Past President of the San Francisco Medical Society, became the longest tenured member of the San Francisco Health Commission. He is nationally known for his management of the Chinese Community Health Plan. Richard Yuen is Assistant Dean for Asian Student Activities at Stanford University. Dr. Lorraine Chew is Professor of Chinese Studies at San Francisco State University. Laurence Yep is a prize-winning author of children's books. Kelvin Quan, Esq., is Chief Counsel for the Alameda Health Alliance. The list goes on and on of solid productive citizens, each one a credit to St. Mary's accomplishments.

In 1940 John Yehall Chin organized the St. Mary's Chinese Girls' Drum and Bell Corps. In their colorful classical Chinese costumes, they have become a symbol of the Chinese community at Bay Area parades and celebrations. The rhythm of their drums and glockenspiels have won them countless trophies and recognitions, including a trip to Washington, D.C. to represent the City of San Francisco at John F. Kennedy's presidential inaugural parade.

St. Mary's athletic programs started with a bang when the boys' basketball team, the aptly named "Saints," fought their way to national championships in the 1940's. Willy "Woo-Woo" Wong went on to play for the University of San Francisco's championship team in the National Invitational Tournament. Helen Lum became a top-ranking amateur women's tennis star and was named to the Prep Hall of Fame. In 1956 as a starting guard for the Wildcats of Saint Ignatius Prep, Thomas "Spikey" Yep made the All-City High School Basketball Team. Percy Chu took over as director of the City's Chinese Recreation Center and continued his skillful coaching of St. Mary's basketballers. More recent boys'and girls' teams from the fifth through eighth grades have taken one championship after another in City-wide C.Y.O. competition in volleyball, track and field, basketball and baseball. Many of St. Mary's graduates continue to enter varsity-level competition in San Francisco's high schools.

But scholastic achievements by students most objectively measure the strength of any academic program. Here we are proud to say that graduates from St. Mary's Day School are eagerly sought by high schools throughout the City for their enthusiastic industry, intelligence, and deportment. In 1998 one student took City-wide first place honors with a perfect score in the difficult entrance examination at the prestigious Lowell High School. In 2001 over half of the graduating class, nearly everyone who applied, was accepted at Lowell. Despite the fact that most of St. Mary's students are first or second generation immigrants, head-to-head competition on Scholastic Aptitude Tests find our classes consistently placing in the top tiers nationally. In City-wide challenge examinations for verbal skills taught in our Chinese Language School, our students again consistently pass with high-flying colors.

On October 17, 1989 San Francisco was rocked by the Great Loma Prieta Earthquake. St. Mary's sustained only minor damage that was easily repaired. In the aftermath, however, new seismic safety laws were passed which placed our seventy-five year old home into a category known as "un-reinforced masonry buildings." Retrofitting or vacancy was mandated. Because of the number of children involved, we fell into an even tougher category of retrofitting which would cost between 4.0 to 5.0 million dollars. At this level of capital expenditure, the Americans with Disabilities Act would apply. With other new building codes, our useable floor space would be depleted by another twenty-five percent. Rehabilitating a seventy-five year-old building at these costs hardly seemed prudent. Yet we could not abandon our mission.

Thus the St. Mary's of today is looking excitedly forward to completing a massive, successful fund drive and constructing a state-of-the-art, more expansive complex on its new property at Kearny and Jackson Streets. Meanwhile, we are housed in temporary quarters at 910 Broadway near Mason Street, where our teaching, our services, and our life continue through a wide array of activities.

Do visit our new site and watch the new St. Mary's rise or come see us at Broadway and spend some happy times with us.