Louis Lee was born in 1921 to Chinese parents living in Honolulu, Hawaii. He was one of 13 children* and became multi-lingual while working at the family grocery store in Chinatown. His language skills came in handy later on, when he got a job as a Pan Am customer service representative.
During the 1940s and 1950s, Louis and his wife Lucille had a total of eight children, six boys and two girls. I don’t know the birth order, so I’ll list their names alphabetically:
- Dean
- Licius
- Louann
- Maycevene
- Philmund
- Rytwin
- Taoward
- Worldster (who became an ophthalmologist)
Here are the name explanations I’ve found so far: Maycevene was born on May 7th (1946), Rytwin’s name was based on the phrase “right will win,” Taoward’s name was based on the phrase “going toward a goal,” and Worldster was born in late 1943 when the book One World by Wendell Willkie was popular.
*Louis’s siblings were named Anna, Daisy, Edith, Elizabeth, Elsie, Grace, James, Joseph, Lillian, Pansy, Violet, and William.
Sources:
- Louis H. T. Lee Obituary
- “Obituaries.” Honolulu Star-Bulletin 4 Apr. 2004.
- “What’s in a Name, Hmm?” Honolulu Advertiser 13 Feb. 1961: 15.
Image: Adapted from the cover of One World
The birth order of Louis Lee’s Children are:
Worldster
Maycevene
Louann
Taoward
Rytwin
Licius
Philmund
Dean
Taoward means in the direction of the Tao (meaning path or way) by the addition of the suffix “ward” like leeward or windward. It comes from the philosophy Taoism.
Thank you for the birth order and for the correct definition of your name, Taoward!