He was born in Hong Kong and raised in Shanghai. In 1947 at age 20, he came to America on business for his father and stayed to continue his education at Princeton. We knew him as Tommy Teng. He majored in chemistry and belonged to Cannon.
Tom was proficient in seven languages. He received a master’s degree in synthetic fiber textiles in 1952 from Lowell Technological Institute, an MBA from Wake Forest in 1979, and a Ph.D. in business administration from Kennedy Western University in 1992. He worked for a variety of companies before founding an import-export company, Dunn Enterprises, in 1980.
A convert from Buddhism, he showed his Christian love in many ways, including helping newly arrived Chinese in Winston-Salem. He retired in 1997, but continued substitute teaching ESL and Chinese as long as his health permitted.
Tom loved to paint. In 2003, he published an art history book, My Favorite Moravian Churches . In 2007, he completed his autobiography, Spring River Runs East . He was a Toastmasters International member for 45 years.
Our sympathy goes to his wife, Beth; five sons; nine grandchildren; one great-grandchild; and seven surviving siblings.