IN MEMORY OF RICHARD EU

Mags Dillon

Laos ’10-‘13 Executive Director

We mourn the loss of Dr. Richard Eu Keng Mun, who passed away at home in Singapore on September 7, 2022 at the age of 99. Richard animated the values of Princeton in Asia – from the difficult undergraduate WWII years rooming with the only other Asian student on Princeton’s campus, Japanese student Ken Ikeda – into his last decade. He quietly reached out to people who were different, welcoming them into his family, and helping them thrive; he built bridges with people, businesses, and institutions.

Born into a large, dynastic Chinese family, Richard was uniquely soft-spoken, kind and very effective behind the scenes. He selflessly shunned the limelight, charitably leaving it to others, while quietly leading and building Eu Yan Sang, Lee Wah Bank, UOB Bank, Singapore Institute of Management, Community Chest, Princeton Alumni Club – and especially, deep personal relationships far beyond Asia.

Richard’s impact on PiA was broad and deep. As a champion for PiA in Singapore, he spearheaded strong partnerships with Ngee Ann Polytechnic in 1993, Temasek Polytechnic in 1995, and the Ministry of Education in 2008, all paving the way for 215 PiA Fellows to serve those host institutions, plus others elsewhere. He trailblazed PiA’s first Field Office at Ngee Ann Polytechnic in 1993, home to PiA in Asia for well over a decade. These deep, long relationships were pivotal to PiA’s efforts to develop a thriving program across Southeast Asia.

His grandfather, Eu Kong, named his company Eu Yan Sang in 1879, Yan Sang meaning “caring for mankind” (from the Cantonese). His goal was to help suffering tin miners addicted to opium. Richard continued to champion this vision his whole life by serving others. Positive ripples radiated everywhere, sometimes as fairy tales: his youngest son Geoffrey and his Princeton roommate’s daughter Emi married just a few months after meeting, during her first visit to Singapore!

Our PiA family sends its deepest condolences to the worldwide Eu family, including his daughter Helena Eu, longtime Director of PiA Singapore Ltd.

– Jon Wonnell, Taiwan ’81-‘83 and PiA Emeritus Trustee