You undoubtedly are looking at me, wondering who is this man standing before you with gray hair, some 26 years older than Yi Lan. Well, I am Bob McQuiston, a retired lawyer from Philadelphia Pennsylvania, here today with my wife Missy to remember and pay tribute to the memory of our dear dear friend, Yi Lan. And thank you Dai for the honor you have given me of sharing some of my personal remembrances.

My remembrance begins almost 14 years ago in 1991 when contacts at Temple University Law School advised that a young Chinese lawyer would soon be arriving in Philadelphia to study for his masters degree. They inquired whether I would be willing to serve as his local host. When I reviewed Dais distinguished record, I could see that he was an extraordinary young man and readily agreed.

During our first meeting I learned from Dai that he was married and that his wife was studying at Lehigh University for her PhD in electrical engineering. Since Lehigh is one of the premier universities in the United States in engineering, I knew his wife had to be an extremely intelligent young lady.

Shortly thereafter Missy and I invited Dai and his wife to come to our house for dinner. Since we were old enough to be their parents, we were worried that they would find spending an evening with us to be one gigantic bore. In addition, since we had never entertained anyone from China, we were unsure what to expect. Would his wife be able to communicate with us in English? Would she be quiet and shy, deferring to her husband? And the greatest fear of all what food would they likely enjoy?

After considerable discussion, we decided to provide them with a traditional American experience and hope for the best. But I must confess, as the hour of their arrival drew closer, we became apprehensive.

I can remember as if it were yesterday hearing their car pull into our driveway and awaiting the knock at the door. When we opened the door we saw at Dais side an attractive young lady with one of the widest and most welcoming smiles we had ever seen. She came into the house speaking perfect English and immediately put us at ease with her charm and warmth. It was obvious that our concerns were unfounded for she had no problem whatsoever adapting to our curious American dinner-party customs. Yi Lan, as we all now know, was an extremely posed self-confident young lady, comfortable in almost any situation. And it was that evening that we were first introduced to her infectious giggle.which we grew to love. What a marvelous time we had together!

By the end of the evening, we were determined to see as much of Yi Lan & Dai as we could. And their family circle of friends grew as we introduced them to our parents, brother and assorted cousins. I particularly remember how lovingly Yi Lan treated my father when we later visited his life-care facility to celebrate his 90th birthday with balloons and cake.

It was with considerable sadness that we bid them good-by when they left Pennsylvania to move to Phoenix. But we promised to stay in touch and it is a promise the four of us managed to keep. We continued with periodic visits, telephone conversations and, of course, e-mail exchanges.

And despite the differences in age I want you to know that we had fun. My wife and I will never forget the day Yi Lan led us on a hike no, more accurately it was one heck of a strenuous climb up Camelback Mountain. Yi Lan bounded ahead with unlimited energy, giggling while she watched us trying to keep up. But Missy and I eventually did make it to the top where the four of us took in the wondrous view up there. And, oh, the night when, with tender patience, she attempted to teach the older generation from Philadelphia karaoke singing. Unfortunately, I think this was one of her few failures!!

A particular warm memory was when Yi Lan honored us by bringing her mother and father to visit us in Philadelphia. It was in November, shortly before Halloween. After making the rounds of the usual tourist sites we returned to our home where we gathered around a table carving pumpkins with all sorts of strange and crazy faces. The blending of generations and cultures was a wonderful sight. And, of course, Yi Lan giggled the entire time turning what could have been an ordinary evening into one full of laughter and good cheer.

With her boundless energy, keen determination, warmth and good nature she appeared to cram 30 hours of activity into each 24-hour day. She was always there ready to undertake new adventures from tennis to hiking to swimming to skiing to aerobics to traveling to such far-away destinations as London. Her warmth and charm easily extended across the boundaries of countries and cultures. Yi Lan was determined to make every day count.

While I will never understand why she was chosen to depart this earth at such an early age, I am comforted by the knowledge that she managed to do more in her 43 years than many who live into their 80s or 90s do during their entire lifetimes.

May you rest in peace, dear Yi Lan. And may you continue to bring smiles to the faces of those around you with that infectious giggle. As one of your friends wrote: I am sure heaven is now a brighter place because of your arrival.