Family Documentary

In June 2021, I interviewed my paternal great-grandfather, or 太爷爷 in Chinese, about the family’s immigration story to the U.S. from Taiwan. He immigrated to the U.S. due to his job at a joint U.S.-Taiwan military base, where he was the head of food operations. After the U.S. decided to establish diplomatic relations with China, the military base shut down. 太爷爷 was granted U.S. permanent residency. He decided to take on the opportunity of immigrating to a new country in hopes of providing his family with a better life. 

My great-grandfather had a friend who lived in Seattle at that time. Since he didn’t know anything about the U.S., he thought it’d be the best to settle in Seattle first after he immigrated to the U.S. with my great-grandmother. 

My great-grandparents worked part-time in another Chinese restaurant first to learn about operating a food service in the U.S. Eventually they opened a small restaurant of their own called Big John’s on 103 Cherry Street in Pioneer Square. They worked hard, day and night, to serve casual Chinese American food to many customers during 1981 to 1987. 

All my family immigrated to the U.S. in the following years and lived in Seattle for a short while. Thanks to my great-grandparents, most of my family have the opportunity to reside in the U.S. and pursue their dreams. 

In my spare time, I edited the interview footage, added the captions in English with my mom' help, and eventually created a short documentary about my family's immigration story to the U.S. 

At our family's Thanksgiving gathering in San Francisco in 2021, I presented the video for the whole family as a surprise. In less than 6 months, 太爷爷 's health had declined and he was diagnosed with dementia. He didn't remember having the interview with me but as he looked at the video, he said "That's me! That's me talking on TV!"

My great-grandmother, 太婆婆, is not a person with many words, but she held my hand closely as she watched the immigration story of our family. My family was touched and reminded of the hardship and struggles my great-grandparents went through. We are deeply grateful for them to provide us a better opportunity to live in the U.S. .