Name/Title
Yu Chen - Plein Air - Oak Center TowersDescription
"I'm old, but it's OK. You enjoy yourself," says this energetic 78 year old. Born in Shanghai, she started learning English in third grade. She still puts her skills in service to others as the official translator at Oak Center Towers, where she also helps with the weekly market and monthly newsletter.
A chemical engineer, Ms. Chen spent 35 years working in China. Her only daughter, with her mother's English lessons and family's financial help, later earned a degree in Electrical Engineering in the U.S. Ms. Chen and her husband joined her in New Jersey, but a cousin and warm weather lured them to Oakland in 2001. She still enjoys travelling, taking regular trips with her daughter.
Ms. Chen, who learned just a little art in her childhood, insists she's not an artist. She advises, "Tell people even if you don't know how to do color, any person can do it. No matter whether you're an artist or not." She enjoys painting flowers and animals and her favorite medium is watercolor. And the important lesson she's learned in life: "If you want something, you can get it. Just try, even in the hardest times."
