NOEL CROUCHER arrived in Hong Kong in 1905 with nothing, not even an education. He was just 14 years old at the time. But the name of the man who once said much later in his life 'don't sit me next to those brainy people - I wouldn't know what to say' lives on in the highest academic circles.
Croucher's life may have started humbly, but by the time he died in 1980 he had amassed a fortune - more than GBP20 million ($231 million) - far more than even he was aware of.
Unusually for a British colonialist, Croucher, who rose from office boy for leading businessman Sir Paul Chater to the first chairman of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, left his money where he wheeled and dealed so successfully, here in Hong Kong. Moreover, he bequeathed it to a worthy cause, of encouraging excellence in science, medicine and technology.
The Croucher Foundation, set up in 1979, has set the pace for the development of scientific research for the last quarter century, nurturing a whole generation of young scientists.
Every Hong Kong scientist knows of its work, and many have directly benefited from the $600 million it has already spent. There is also huge prestige now attached to the name. To be awarded a Croucher Senior Research Fellowship is the closest local equivalent to winning a Nobel Prize, and widely acclaimed internationally.
This week its profile was raised further. The foundation marked its silver jubilee by awarding $1 million to each of the eight publicly-funded tertiary institutions which are in turn naming a laboratory after the philanthropist.