Ding-Wen Hsu

Ding-Wen Hsu
Born1948 (age 76–77)
Taiwan
Occupation(s)Businesswoman and community leader
SpouseTai-Dan Hsu

Ding-Wen Hsu (born 1948) is a Taiwanese businesswoman in Denver, Colorado. She is the co-founder and current Director of Federal Facility Management Division of Pacific Western Technologies.[1] She is one of the co-founders of the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival, one of the largest Asian festivals in the Rocky Mountains.[2]

Biography

Ding-Wen Hsu was born in Taiwan in 1948.[2]

Hsu arrived in the US in 1976 with her husband Tai-Dan Hsu, who attended graduate school at the University of Iowa.[3] Her husband received a job as hydrologist, and the family moved to Colorado in 1978.[2][4]

Hsu became a US citizen in 1981.[2]

Hsu co-founded Pacific Western Technologies, Ltd. with her husband in 1987.[2]

Advocacy

When Hsu arrived in Colorado, she felt invisible.[citation needed] Colorado has a history of anti-Asian sentiment, embodied in the anti-Chinese riot of 1880. Hsu recognized the small enclaves of different Asian cultures, and wanted to host an event outside of just the Chinese American community.[5]

Hsu, John Chin and Howie Solow created the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival and held the first event in August 2001.[6] This became the largest Asian festival in the Rocky Mountain area.[2] They started the event with a grant for $1000 from the city of Denver.[4] The organizers anticipated attendance of 3,000 people, and were shocked when over 15,000 people and mayor Wellington Webb attended.[5]

Hsu is a national fellow of the Asian Pacific American Women's Leadership Institute.[2]

Personal life

Hsu is married to Tai-Dan Hsu.[citation needed]

Recognition

Representative Ed Perlmutter gave a tribute to Hsu in the Colorado House of Representatives in 2007.[7]

In 2011, Hsu was honored as one of the Asian American Heroes of Colorado by the Asian Chamber of Congress.[8]

Hsu was inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame in 2012.[2]

Regis University awarded the Civis Princeps award to Ding-Wen Hsu, an award for outstanding citizens of Colorado.[9]

References

  1. ^ "Leadership". PWT.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Ding-Wen Hsu". Colorado Women's Hall of Fame.
  3. ^ "Spotlight on Ding-Wen Hsu" (PDF). New American Economy.
  4. ^ a b "Immigrant to Denver Founds Dragon Boat Festival that Attracts 120,000 Attendees Annually". New American Economy.
  5. ^ a b Chuang, Tamara (July 26, 2019). "Dragon boat racing, with its unlikely rise and massive Denver festival, is adapting to include everyone". Colorado Sun.
  6. ^ Asakawa, Gil. "Colorado Dragon Boat Festival: Connecting the community through culture and competition". Denver Center for the Performing Arts.
  7. ^ "Congressional Record - Extensions of Remarks" (PDF). Congress.
  8. ^ "2011 Asian American Heroes of Colorado". Colorado Asian Culture and Education Network.
  9. ^ Regis University. "Academic Catalog 2017-2018" (PDF).