Tung Chan's first day at work in a bank was memorable for two reasons: it was the start of a long and successful career and the first and only time he encountered racism in Canada.
'What is that China boy doing here?' asked a customer in a voice loud enough to be heard by everyone in the building. The elderly man - whom Chan later learned was the branch's biggest customer - demanded to know why Chan was there instead of working in a kitchen. The bank manager pulled the customer aside, whispered to him and then led him over to meet Chan.
'To his credit, even though the man had no choice at that point, he took my hand when I extended it,' says Chan, who would rise to become district vice-president of TD Bank and head of its Asian operations on the west coast.
It's a story that Hong Kong-born Chan has had many opportunities to retell. He is now executive director of Success, Vancouver's most prominent immigration resettlement services organisation.
Although his family grew up in a household that had no running water or electricity, Chan's father, a school principal, valued education and encouraged his three children to get degrees. His sister was sent to the United States to study and his brother went to Britain but, 'when it came time for me to go to school, there was nothing left', says Chan.
'Then one day, my father ran into an old friend of his on the street who told him to send me to Holland. He told my father he was quite prominent and could get me into university.'