Home Run Taiwan

Unlimited Progress: To the Next 50 Years and Beyond

Half a century ago, CTBC started life as a small business with 19 people;

it has since grown into a multinational with some 27,000 employees.

In that time, it has changed Taiwan’s financial history.

So, the question is: what’s the best way to mark CTBC’s 50th birthday?

Instead of over-the-top celebrations, let’s reflect and give thanks together.

Although the challenge is difficult, the runners keep moving forward through the tunnels of the Suhua Highway.

Rounding the northeast coast, runners feel the beauty of this land with their feet.

A s a show of gratitude to the countless people who helped CTBC, formerly known as Chinatrust, become Taiwan’s leading financial institution, and to demonstrate our commitment to moving boldly forward, we chose to circumnavigate the entire island on foot.

This is how Taiwan’s first-of-its-kind 200-hour, 1,000-km non-stop marathon relay was born. Both CTBC staff and members of the public came together for the 9-day, 8-night non-stop round-Taiwan marathon relay. Before the marathon, CTBC Holding Chairman Wen-Long Yen shared some encouragement, telling the runners to be courageous and, with reverence in their hearts, to step firmly forward, just as CTBC had done to get where it is today.

The marathon’s route was rich in beauty but also obstacles. Armed with only a smile and two feet, the runners had little choice but to strive forward and welcome challenges, just as our predecessors had done to ensure CTBC survived and flourished.

A High-Five Every 10 km, Passing on Faith

Even the way the batons were passed was inspiring. Every 10 km, the runners high-fived before sharing not only the baton but also a magical moment of comradery. These fellow runners, some of whom were strangers, instantly became like family.

Among the participants were many unexpected faces, such as “Finisher Father” Meng-Chin Li, who wheeled his daughter with cerebral palsy, as well as paraplegic dogs, the Fuyuan and Fengtian elementary schools’ little league squads, and the Donghe Elementary School tug-of-war team—all bringing their own inspiring stories to the event.

200 Hours Non-Stop, Going Back to the Beginning

CTBC takes pride in promoting social welfare, and the heart-warming stories we heard during the marathon only strengthened our resolve. Along the way, local residents offered their own enthusiastic support; from grandmothers selling watermelons to farmers plowing their fields, everyone dropped what they were doing to cheer on the runners. Even the conductors of passing trains chimed in with their whistles! It is this support that powers CTBC. So, to the people of our motherland, thank you: We are family.

But why hold a 9-day, 8-night non-stop round-Taiwan marathon relay in the first place? And where is CTBC heading in the next 50 years? At the 1,000-km mark, the answers were clear. Each previous step had been a demonstration of CTBC’s genuine care; from our employees to our customers to people we have yet to meet, we’re really just one big family.

In rounding the entire island, we encountered many obstacles. However, these were merely milestones marking the starting line of a new journey. At CTBC, we remain dedicated to our beliefs as we forge ahead in innovation.

Embracing their dreams, the runners start the 9-day, 8-night round-Taiwan journey.

The Complete Story of the Round-Taiwan Marathon Relay

Yesterday

and Today

Relay of 200 Hours VS History of 50 Years

People ran day and night in the 1,000-km marathon;

Vespa riders raced through rain and wind to drum up business.

On different dates and in different locations,

they shared the same determination.

CTBC’s brilliant stories span time and space.

With dawn approaching, the runners get ready for the next stage.

Runners warm up in sync, preparing for their late-night leg of the marathon relay.

ALL WARMED UP >< READY FOR ACTION

With no predecessors, we are the pioneers,

fearlessly welcoming the unknown future.

An always innovative and never yielding spirit is embedded in CTBC’s DNA. Rather than letting potential difficulties dictate our direction, we seek to do what no one else has. We pledge that every event we host will be aimed at fostering a new social movement and creating new values that improve our community. With Home Run Taiwan, we embraced this land that we grew up in while also exploring new possibilities.

Fearlessly Facing Down Challenges

As CTBC turned 50, there was no need to mention how the company has grown from 19 employees to 27,000. We chose to skip elaborate festivities and focus instead on the love we have for Taiwan, by inviting everyone on our quest to have a unique mark in Taiwan’s history.

After countless discussions, we decided on a “non-stop” concept that would be brought to life with a non-stop 9-day, 8-night, 200-hour marathon relay around Taiwan. This was a quest that no one had ever dared attempt, but CTBC has always fearlessly faced down monumental goals and knew just what to do.

Passion, Enthusiasm, and a Love of Running

And, so, the determined runners were off. For 1,000 km over nine days and eight nights, they refused to stop until they had passed the baton on, sparking camaraderie among every participant and onlooker. Of course, to shoot for the moon, you need to warm up first. This unprecedented event was carefully planned, with factors like weather, transportation, and security all considered. Finally, after much discussion and numerous practice runs, we were ready.

The logistics were taken care of and a campaign ad celebrating Taiwan had been broadcasting for months, all in anticipation of the blast of the starting pistol.

Whether keen to explore our homeland with baton in hand or to passionately cheer runners on, we were all ready to set off on the marathon and embrace our family around Taiwan.

With dawn approaching, the runners get ready for the next stage.

With smiles and other encouragement, staff get runners motivated before their departure.

Participants warm up outside Shoukatiemayi Station—an invigorating sight in the morning mist.

In the 1960s,

Taiwan was well poised for a promising future.

Inspired by leaders, the torch was lit.

Taiwan would have its own world-class bank.

A photograph of Chen-Fu Koo and Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. is displayed in the CTBC Museum at CTBC Financial Park.

When the government first initiated land reform, Taiwan’s social and economic climate changed dramatically, with the privatization of large state-owned firms such as Taiwan Cement Corp., Taiwan Pulp and Paper Corp., and other industrial and mining companies. Private enterprises grew rapidly, while securities trading was active but chaotic. To provide these securities with a market for centralized trading, Chen-Fu Koo established the Taiwan Stock Exchange, also launching China Securities Investment Corp. around the same time.

Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr., who was already conducting business on Wall Street, came home to support his uncle, Chen-Fu Koo.

Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. reminisced: “After I graduated from university, I took a job in banking, thinking I would be financially set for the rest of my life. Yet it did not sit right with me to utilize all I had learned in order to work for foreigners. So I thought of returning to Taiwan to open a world-class bank.” The uncle and nephew teamed up and soon found themselves writing a new page in Taiwan’s financial history.

In addition to sharing their financial expertise, both also provided less tangible leadership: Chen-Fu Koo established a culture at CTBC based on the belief that “modesty leads to harmony, honesty builds credibility” while Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. led employees with his motto of “honest business and cordial service.”

STARTING PISTOL >< FULL SPEED AHEAD

A journey of a thousand miles

begins with a single step.

CTBC Holding Chairman Wen-Long Yen, sixth left, and distinguished guests kick off the Home Run Taiwan marathon.

 Friends from abroad join local participants in the run—a great opportunity to experience the beauty of Taiwan.

Early on the morning of Oct. 1, 2016, at CTBC Financial Park in Taipei’s Nangang District, many CTBC employees and their family members gathered, all dressed up to celebrate CTBC’s 50th birthday and to cheer for the start of Home Run Taiwan.

Everyone in the square got their bodies moving to warm up amid the high spirits and anticipation for the journey. To ensure that Home Run Taiwan, with its unprecedented scale and difficulty, was completed smoothly, CTBC mobilized a large amount of staff and resources, inspired by their shared love for Taiwan. By running through the streets of the many towns and villages along the route, these places would become much more than mere names on a map.

Runners from Over 10 Countries Experience Taiwan’s Beauty Firsthand

Approximately 1,600 runners signed up for the 200-hour non-stop round-Taiwan marathon relay. The first leg was run not only by CTBC staff and the general public but also business executives and representatives to Taiwan from more than 10 countries, including Italy, Spain, the Czech Republic, Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, mainland China, and Peru, experiencing the beauty of Taiwan. For them, the event was an unrivaled opportunity to see the island’s natural beauty up close.

At the kickoff ceremony, starting pistols were fired by 12 distinguished guests, among them CTBC Holding Chairman Wen-Long Yen, Sports Administration Director-General Jow-Fei Ho, and Taipei Mayor Wen-Je Ko. As the shots rang out, CTBC employees and their fellow participants took off, excitedly declaring “Here we go!”—ready to run to every corner of Taiwan and conquer every challenge faced along the way.

Thousands of people gather at CTBC Financial Park to support the unprecedented marathon.

Members of the CTBC family cheer on the beaming runners.

The participants set off boldly without regard for the weather or the time of day.

Racing alongside the famously fast Puyuma Express gives the runners some extra motivation.

The only way to move forward is to do so,

and the best defense is a good offense.

Becoming a bank had been the goal of CTBC’s earliest staff. Although China Securities Investment Corp. being reorganized as China Investment and Trust Co., Ltd. was progress, legal restrictions kept slowing us down. How could we break through?

Spurred by Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. and his famous quote, “Funding is a company’s lifeblood,” the company sprinted ahead. Employees hopped on Vespa scooters and called on potential customers regardless of the weather. This was a difficult but memorable time for senior CTBC employees, and also established an excellent foundation for future business.

CTBC staff members were particularly skilled at hitting the pavement to establish connections. Indeed, at that time, making such new connections was the most critical task for promoting the business. This campaign of knocking on doors to meet potential clients one by one—or “sweeping the streets,” as they say in Chinese—was a classic example of the CTBC spirit.

It was with similar boldness that CTBC released Taiwan’s first credit card in 1974. To promote business around the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology, salespeople visited shops within a 10-km radius and, after much hard work, secured deals with a great many of them. In the coming years, relying on perseverance, planning, and team spirit, CTBC staff developed new, unique tactics. Finally, following decades of blood, sweat, and tears, CTBC was restructured as a commercial bank in 1992. This was the first step of a new journey.

Members of the business promotion team, established in 1972, used Vespas to venture out and stir up business.

Taiwan’s first credit card was launched in 1974.

MUTUAL SUPPORT >< FAMILY SPIRIT

If you want to go fast, go alone;

if you want to go far, go together.

Among those who got up early for the Home Run Taiwan starting ceremony were Sheng-An Tsai and Ellen Chang, a husband-and-wife team and both experienced CTBC staff. “It’s the company’s 50th birthday,” they said. “We have to participate. It’s like celebrating a family member’s birthday!” From the workplace to home life, the CTBC family is characterized by joyous memories and gratitude.

The comradery was infectious throughout the entire relay. Running in the 49th leg was Yu-Hsuan Chen from Taiwan Life Insurance Co., Ltd., who brought her friend, Chiao-Pin Lin, in tow. At 4:30 a.m., he cycled from Kaohsiung to the starting point on the South-Link Highway. He ran his entire 10-km leg while carrying his bike and with a broad smile, inspiring every other runner.

The 100th baton carrier, Hsing-Chuan Wu, had among the most inspirational stories of all the participants. A strong runner for 30 years, he had been diagnosed with cancer eight years previously. His wife had also passed away from cancer, bringing the family to the brink of collapse. But Wu had promised his wife that he would take good care of their children. He forced himself to get active again, believing that heaven had spared his life so that he could use it to make meaningful accomplishments. Indeed, Wu, a former marathon runner, was not one to give up easily. He started running again right after his chemotherapy was completed. He even joked that he couldn’t go three days without running. As a cancer survivor, he understood the pain of other patients. He started helping organize activities to encourage such patients to exercise and fight cancer, rallying them to run together and cheer each other along a path of survival.

The “We are family” motto is emblazoned on many pieces of gear, lending a familial warmth to the run.

Professional runner Chung-Jen Chen’s wife pushes a pram during her leg of the relay.

The runners create their own cheers to push each other on. Scenes like this were common throughout the nine days and eight nights.

Runners in high spirits encourage each other with smiles and laughter.

Carrying his bicycle the entire relay leg after getting up early and riding it to the starting point, Chiao-Pin Lin proves an inspiration for other participants.

Cancer survivor and longtime running enthusiast Hsing-Chuan Wu is inspirational, too, with his appearance a reminder of the importance of never giving up.

Run Even if You Fall

Approaching the northeast coast, runner Chia-Hui Huang tripped on a drain cover while passing through a tunnel. It was a shock for Huang—over her three years of running, she had never fallen before. With her arm and knee bleeding, Huang was helped out of the tunnel by teammates. But that wasn’t all she wrote. With only 1.5 km left, Huang was going to finish what she had started. “I never even thought of giving up,” she said later.

“The fall was loud and it hurt. But, luckily, my teammates came fast and I wasn’t injured too badly, so I kept running,” Huang recalled. “Relay races are great. You can run fast on your own, but you can run far only as a team. I am honored.”

“I played a couple games with the chairman

—it was like we were buddies!”

Chairman Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. poses with colleagues after a “Pine Meeting.”

Chairman Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. raises a toast to his colleagues.

AGAINST THE WIND >< TRANSFORMATION AND CHALLENGES

In the early morning,

with heavy rain falling and a gale blowing,

the runners came face to face with the “demon king”

of the marathon: a punishing uphill section

lasting 10 draining kilometers.

Fifteen days before the marathon, a powerful typhoon had devastated mountainous areas in eastern Taiwan. This made things even tougher.

The hardest part of the route was the Suhua Highway, a narrow coastal road characterized by numerous uphill climbs and heavy truck traffic. This was a challenge runners both looked forward to and feared. The South-Link Highway, cushioned in the mountains and with many falling rocks, was another testing experience awaiting participants. Mountain roads are grueling enough during the day—but at night?

However, challenges are made to be overcome. Running uphill at night near Ruisui Township was the 30th baton holder Kwong-Pui Chui, a Hong Kong athlete who had come to Taiwan especially for the challenge. But many far less experienced runners also came to the starting point in the windy and rainy night to face the unimaginable.

Endlessly Uphill, Up Up Up

Before training for Home Run Taiwan, the 47th baton holder, Sean Li, had never run 10 km. So, of course, he had also never imagined facing the “demon king,” the 10-km uphill Shouka segment of the South-Link Highway, much less doing so in the rain. But that was the position Li found himself in as he and six teammates stepped through puddles in a downpour at 5 a.m. With the rain pelting down and stinging their faces, they could barely open their eyes and could only follow guide lights in the dark. But he was here, and there would be no giving up. Soon, a chant was started, and everyone quickly joined in: “Endlessly uphill, up, up, up!” The chant resonated through the mountains and the team finally reached the end of the leg, with not a single one of them having given up and taken a ride in the support vehicle.

Such a positive attitude could be seen throughout the entire relay. For nine days, the runners crossed mountains and braved pitch-black dark, heavy rain, and sweltering heat as they pushed themselves to their physical limits. No matter how tired, they all reached the finish line—and with a smile on their face. Perhaps the challenge of the marathon was motivating them now to reach new goals—to aim higher and run farther. A stronger self could well be the best gift to come from this journey.

In early morning rain, on the harsh uphill segment of the South-Link Highway, the runners near their physical limits but continue pressing forward.

Some people run from the rain, but the participants run to chase it!

The Suhua Highway, with its many climbs, is a dangerous road that few have run, but its beauty is incomparable.

Relenting neither to the winding road nor the hot sun, the runners egg on each other to push through the hardship.

The runners move forward fearlessly, even through rock-strewn sections of road.

The only constant is change.

In 1992, as the company is restructured as a commercial bank, all employees present their signatures and fingerprints to represent their united spirit.

CTBC has always challenged itself, and in its restructuring from a securities and investment company to a commercial bank, it has welcomed competition. As Founder Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. once said: “Scale size makes a bank competitive.” After its restructuring, CTBC’s assets were only a quarter of those of Taiwan’s three major commercial banks (First Bank, Hua Nan Bank, and Chang Hwa Bank). At that time, the “BT Plan” (Beat Three) was launched, with the aim of surpassing each one of them.

Of course, banking is complex and drastically different from the securities and investment field. Separating retail and institutional financial business was a prime example of this distinction. Organizational structures, processes, and policies were comprehensively reformed. During this major transition, corporate culture played a stabilizing role, administered under CTBC’s belief that the only thing that does not change is change itself.

It was not all smooth sailing for CTBC. Overseas structured debt as well as the credit and debit card storm of 2016 put CTBC in crisis mode, and the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers in 2008 dealt a heavy blow to the global financial market. But CTBC stood strong. The key was that the entire organization worked as one, with the management team and employees sticking to their posts. The spirit of CTBC—refusal to yield—paid off, leading to today’s success.

PASSING ON THE BATON >< ADVANCING THE MISSION

The road is long, and the only way to persist is to remember that

family is waiting to meet us at the finish line.

After warming up, runners-to-be lined up and cheered on as baton holders came in at the end of their leg. Approaching runners shouted in joy right until the handover point. Here, roles were switched in an instant as the batons were passed from one person to another. The new baton holder would then take off, moving forward to complete Home Run Taiwan.

Only three CTBC employees—I-Hao Li, Yan-Lin Liu, and I-Sheng Lin—ran with the 51st baton from Fangshan Township in Pingtung County. But this just made them more determined: “We have to finish and pass the baton on!” From being strangers to joking that their lives depended on each other, the three bonded quickly, having never run a marathon before and not expecting that their first would be under the blistering sun of southern Taiwan. They stayed in high spirits nonetheless, laughing about “running in an oven” and sweating it out to make it to the finish line.

The participants cheer each other on, keeping morale high and progress quick.

The 10 km are over! Runners give each other high fives at a baton handover point.

Although with varying attitudes toward road running, the runners push forward all with the same confident smile.

After a tutu started being passed on among runners as a joke, getting it back to Taipei soon became a sacred mission.

Wearing the tutu passed on from the previous baton holder, a runner gets ready to set off.

Seeing people waiting ahead of them, the runners thought of those who had come before them through the mountainous wilderness. They felt a profound sense of their place in Taiwan, knowing they were in the middle of a historic event.

Starting in the 36th leg, runners passed on more than a baton: they also handed over a tutu. Originally included just for fun, after people suggested that it be worn all the way back to Taipei, the silly piece of attire soon became as honored as a soldier’s sash. Other people bore the national flag, carrying the weight of history, while others carried banners bearing their own slogans of encouragement. Each runner had their own dream, yet everyone felt a stimulating synchronicity moving forward—and doing so while inheriting and carrying on the energy, belief, and blessings of the runners before them.

Long Live the Running Spirit

The round-Taiwan relay attracted many skilled runners, the oldest of whom was 65-year-old Yao-Chang Hsieh, who had already completed over 50 running events. With a red bandana over his gray hair, Hsieh—much older than most other participants—wanted to keep running after completing his 10-km relay and to go on to set foot in every city in Taiwan.

‘Now and in the future,

no bank can master the flow of money

without mastering information technology.’

Staff put in extra time in the office. Working hard and surpassing oneself is the goal of all CTBC personnel.

After CTBC was restructured, it was necessary to digitalize its operations, thus electronic banking and e-commerce systems were established. President Jeffrey J.L. Koo Jr. then believed that, “now and in the future, no bank can master the flow of money without mastering information technology.” Subsequently, the challenges of system conversion were overcome, and product development and customer service were advanced.

CTBC Bank Chairman Chao-Chin Tung said: “Because a solid foundation was built for its information systems, CTBC can do business abroad. Understanding the industry, adjusting organizational structure, and decentralizing risk helped us survive the 2008 global financial crisis.”

Indeed, innovation and change are central to CTBC’s core values. “There are no patents for financial products. To stay in the lead, you’ve got to innovate.” And, as CTBC Holding President Daniel Wu pointed out, exclusive technology increases your lead. CTBC’s smart biometrics include finger vein identification-based cardless ATM withdrawals, interactive welcoming walls, and facial recognition—virtually all Taiwan firsts. However, as CTBC Bank President James Chen emphasized, “digitalization is just a tool.” In the end, he added, the ultimate aim of it all is better service.

Crossing over into the insurance sector is another crucial prong in CTBC’s business strategy. In 2011, CTBC Holding acquired the Taiwanese subsidiary of U.S. insurance giant MetLife. Then, in 2014, it completed its acquisition of the local life insurance operations of Manulife. The following year, Taiwan Life formally joined CTBC Holding, bringing dual-brand synergy.

CTBC continues to move forward with vitality, creating a better tomorrow for customers and families.

Guardian and Encourager >< SERVICE AND CONVICTION

Carefree because you are here.

Persisting because of your moral support.

Employees wait late at night to welcome the runners with flashing lights.

To run with concentration, you run by yourself, but to run with confidence, you run with a team. Seemingly lonely runners have a group following them—a professional team working hard to ensure they can focus on going fast without worrying about anything else.

This marathon around Taiwan was long and complex. It required pre-planning, supplies, mobile support crews, an administrative command center, and a video team. On average, more than 10 runners were on the road for each leg. However, at the same time, there would be some 100 employees nearby to ensure everything went safely and smoothly.

The heavy responsibilities of providing administrative support, logistical assistance, and supplies extended around the clock and were broken up among staff into three shifts a day. Each leg also had a professional leader, a lead vehicle out in front, and a safety vehicle bringing up the rear. To provide water and calories, a station was set up every 2 to 3 km, with a few exceptions. For example, the Suhua Highway was too narrow for supply stations to be set up safely. But employees found a solution. Instead of the runners coming to the supplies, the supplies came to them every 3 km via fully stocked scooters.

Visibility at night was poor, particularly on the segments that had no street lights. Employees put up lights that could be seen by and guide runners even at long distances. When approaching handover points, the runners would hear people cheering them on. In the dark of night, the homecoming-like feeling inspired many tired runners, giving them the power to make it briskly to the end of the leg.

Quietly waiting at their posts, employees provided care where needed. After all, being there every step of the way is how CTBC employees handle their everyday work.

A staff member hands out supplies to keep participants hydrated and energized.

Runners have their racing bibs pinned to their clothes as the time to take off approaches.

A staff member hands out supplies to keep participants hydrated and energized.

A staffer gives runners some friendly care and encouragement.

Slowest Pioneer

Behind the vehicle at the front of the pack was 53-year-old Wen-Chang Hsu, leading runners at 6 to 7 kph on easy stretches and at 4 to 5 kph uphill. Keeping such a slow and steady pace is surprisingly tiring, as it requires tremendous focus. Hsu drove eight hours a day for each of the event’s nine days. Even when his rear end got sore, he needed to keep his eyes on the road.

With his tanned skin and sunglasses, Hsu, a runner himself, cut a dashing figure.

“I want to run too,” he said. “But my job this time is to protect the runners.”

‘At CTBC,

service is an ideology,

conviction, and force of its own.’

The CTBC toll-free customer service hotline is deep in people’s hearts. The figure is an image advertisement from the year of 2000.

Operating 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, 080-024-365 is CTBC’s customer service line—one that is both toll free and widely known. Lily Tung, vice president of CTBC’s customer service department, witnessed this now-legendary service first come into being. Quoting Charles L.F. Lo, the so-called “godfather of credit cards,” she said: “At CTBC, service is an ideology, a conviction, and a force of its own.”

The hotline has been involved in countless moving stories over the years. One involves a CTBC credit card user who was locked up for a crime and disowned by his family. After he finished serving his term, he found himself broke and alone on the outside, with his family uninformed about his release. Terrifically, he remembered 080-024-365 and called, hoping that customer service could help get in touch with his family. It did, and his family—moved by the call—buried the hatchet.

“What else can I do for the customer?” is the question every CTBC customer service member asks themselves. Whether dealing with someone broken down by the side of the road at night, penniless abroad, or seriously injured, we go the extra mile to make the best arrangements possible.

The service we provide to our corporate clients has the same reputation. CTBC has withstood the turmoil of numerous financial storms, maintaining steady business throughout. We never close our umbrella, even on the rainiest of days. In addition to staunch financial professionalism, CTBC’s painstakingly constructed international financial platform provides enterprises with the support they need to stand tall and steady on the world stage. Because of this insistence on customer service, CTBC has become the kind of helping hand that every client dreams of.

The Finish Line is Also the Starting Line

The runners had set out nine days earlier,

unable to foresee what kind of landscapes and danger

would be encountered.

Yue-Hua Wu, a mother fighting cancer, runs to the finish line to roars from the crowd.

On the afternoon of Oct. 9, 2016, a large crowd braved the wind and rain to gather in CTBC Financial Park—the Home Run Taiwan finish line—to welcome the runners on the relay’s 100th and final leg. This day was also CTBC’s Family Day. The square was filled with runners and family, all excited and cheering.

Many in attendance teared up as a video of the run was played, showing participants cross the dangerous Suhua Highway and make steep climbs in the dark and rain in order to pass on the baton.

Ending the 1,000-km, 200-hour relay, the batons in the symbolic 100th leg were carried by ultra-marathoners, cancer patients and survivors, and CTBC colleagues who, like CTBC itself, were welcoming their 50th birthday that year. CTBC employee Lin-Hsu Shih, among those turning 50, was in for a surprise at the finish line, where he saw someone he was not expecting: his wife. Having completed her “secret mission” of arriving clandestinely at the event, she passed the finishing medal to her overjoyed husband, making the moment truly unforgettable.

Carrying the national flag, the runners on the relay’s 100th and final leg raise their arms excitedly and high-five members of the crowd.

Nine CTBC runners, all of whom are the same age as the company, receive their finishing medals from family members.

Home Run Taiwan was just the beginning. Over nine days and eight nights, we traveled through and experienced this land both spiritually and physically, in the process learning first-hand how people cherish and celebrate life. In the future, CTBC will not stop such efforts to convey our genuine care for this land and its people. We are committed to working hard to see every smiling face light up with love.

Chairman Wen-Long Yen and CTBC’s management team brave the rain to congratulate the runners reaching the finish line to complete the relay’s 100th and final leg.

Old Photos, Good Memories

When CTBC moved its headquarters to Nangang District on the eastern side of Taipei, it held an event to gather and showcase old photos from the previous Xinyi location. Rummaging through his photo albums, Lin-Hsu Shih found his old wedding photos and realized that, coincidentally enough, they had been snapped in front of CTBC’s Xinyi headquarters. The family, now with an additional member, went back to the same location to take an updated photo. These past-and-present photos proved popular at the event, even winning a prize. Making the coincidence even more special is that Shih was not a CTBC employee at the time of the wedding photo. Recalling that time, he said that he had never expected he would end up as a member of the CTBC family, and that both he and his family cherished this wonderful fate.

Throughout its 50 years,

CTBC’s original goal of caring for society has not changed.

This kind of dedication must be echoed and emulated.

Looking back over the past half a century of effort, CTBC’s positive energy seems to be part of a cycle.

“Starting a cycle of love brings about change.” So were the words spoken in 1985 when Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. launched the “Light Up a Life” fundraising event. That year’s drive marked the first time a private enterprise in Taiwan had held a charity event to raise money for disadvantaged children, coming at a time when corporate social responsibility was a new concept all around. Over more than three decades since that first event, those first trickles of love have flowed into a river, with NT$1.8 billion raised and used to help 400,000 children.

Roger Kao, CTBC Holding Chief Administration Officer, remembers those early times well: “When Chairman Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. held company mobilization meetings, he would give only two commendations: one for senior staff and the other for outstanding volunteers.” Public welfare ran—and still runs—in the blood of CTBC staff.

In 2004, CTBC Charity Foundation was established. Continuing the care provided for disadvantaged children by “Light Up a Life,” the CTBC Poverty Alleviation Program was launched to help families escape poverty for good. Other new efforts include the Love for Kids and Taiwan Dream Project, which aim to give children the attention and assistance they need to accomplish their dreams. In addition, out of concern about the rising rate of drug use among children, the CTBC Anti-Drug Educational Foundation invests in related education and advocacy work. We have also strengthened the connection between education and employment through CTBC Business School, while the CTBC Foundation for Arts and Culture has enriched the cultural landscape. Looking closely, it becomes clear that these public welfare feats, as diverse as they may be, are actually deeply connected.

For 50 years, CTBC never slowed down; we passed countless milestones while remaining fearlessly forward-looking. Because of the many who have joined us on the way, we have changed. Love has brought our family together, making it bigger and better.

Around．Taking the Baton

They fought the wind; we take the baton forward.

We’ll continue forward for the next 50 years.

Looking back, through the sweat, cheers, and laughter,

with conviction we were fearless.

And we will continue, relentless and fearless, always striving.

Fifty years ago,

Taiwan had just transitioned from an agricultural society.

At the time, the gross national product per capita was approximately US$249.

By 2016, it was more than US$20,000.

For half a century, Taiwan’s economy has grown rapidly,

attracting worldwide attention.

Fifty years ago, Taiwan had just transitioned from an agricultural society.

At the time, the gross national product per capita was approximately US$249.

By 2016, it was more than US$20,000.

For half a century, Taiwan’s economy has grown rapidly,

attracting worldwide attention.

Every time CTBC has moved, it has done so along with Taiwanese society. In 1966, CTBC’s first incarnation, China Securities Investment Corp., was established on Guanqian Road in Taipei, alongside many financial companies, dubbed Taiwan’s Wall Street at the time.

In 1971, China Investment and Trust Co., Ltd., with fewer than 100 employees, acquired offices at No. 7, Qingdao West Road. Soon after, the government’s Ten Major Construction Projects push triggered tremendous growth across all industries. In 1978, funds under CTBC exceeded NT$10 billion and moved to Chongqing South Road.

In the 1980s, Taiwan’s small enterprises started exporting globally at great scale. In Taipei, clusters of offices boasted the highest concentrations of wealth. In particular, an area from Dunhua North Road to Minsheng East Road, known as “Taipei’s most beautiful street,” became a popular location for offices. A modern office building at No. 122, Dunhua North Road was moved into in 1984.

In 1992, CTBC was restructured as a commercial bank. With great foresight, Chairman Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. then selected a plot in the Xinyi Planned Area, which at the time was undeveloped and still covered in weeds. In 1996, CTBC’s headquarters became the first financial institution in the Xinyi Planned Area, which became known as “Taipei’s Manhattan.”

Since taking off in the late 1980s, the information technology industry has become a key link in the global high-tech industry chain. In 2009, CTBC began building its new headquarters in Nangang Economic and Trade Park. In December 2014, CTBC Financial Park, designed based on the traditional Chinese four-sided “siheyuan” courtyard house, was completed, immediately becoming a local landmark.

1966

China Securities Investment Corp. (CSIC) was established, becoming the first private securities underwriter in the Taiwanese capital market. At the maiden meeting of the first board of directors, Chen-Fu Koo was elected chairman.

1971

Founders Chen-Fu Koo and Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. attend the opening ceremony for CITC.

1971

China Investment and Trust Co., Ltd. (CITC) moves to the YWCA Building on Qingdao West Road, and Minister Kwoh-Ting Li of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, center, cuts the ribbon.

1973

A ceremony is held to mark the handover between the new and former presidents, Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr., left, and Chu-kang Wang, right. Supervisor Yan Shen watches over the handover.

1976

The company’s chairman, directors, supervisors, and senior employees pose for a group photo during 10th anniversary celebrations.

1977

The first Chinese Women’s Golf Open is held, a landmark event in the sport’s promotion in Taiwan.

1978

Chongqing Building is completed and opened for use, with Chairman Chen-Fu Koo presiding over the ribbon-cutting ceremony.

1984

A celebration is held to mark the completion of the company’s new building on Dunhua North Road, with Taiwan Vice President Teng-Hui Lee giving a speech at the event.

1985

The first “Light Up a Life” fundraising event is held, beginning a program that will go on to become the longest-running charitable campaign in Taiwanese history.

1989

The funds under the company’s trust exceed NT$100 billion for the first time and, in the same year, the company purchases Monet’s famed work “La Berge à Argenteuil.”

1992

An office is opened in the Indonesian capital Jakarta as CTBC actively expands its overseas operations.

1992

Employees ink their signatures and seals to represent their united spirit as the company is restructured into a commercial bank.

1996

Chairman Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. is awarded a first-class diplomatic medal by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

1996

Thirty years after the company’s founding, construction of the new Xinyi headquarters is completed.

1997

The Hong Kong branch is established, increasing the number of overseas locations to 20.

1997

．The Indonesian subsidiary opens, becoming that country’s first Taiwanese-owned bank.

2002

A party is held to celebrate the establishment and listing of Chinatrust Financial Holding.

2002

The ribbon is cut for the opening of the Ho Chi Minh City branch.

2003

The Beijing office is launched, representing key progress into the mainland Chinese market.

2004

The Kowloon branch opens its doors, providing diverse financial services for customers from mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

2005

The Kowloon branch opens its doors, providing diverse financial services for customers from mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

2006

Now with more than 10,000 employees, Chinatrust celebrates its 40th anniversary.

2009

Ground is broken for the new Nangang corporate headquarters, with Taiwan Vice President Vincent Siew, left, and Chairman Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. presiding over the ceremony.

2011

Taiwan’s first innovative poverty-fighting model by a private enterprise—the Chinatrust Poverty Alleviation Program—is launched.

2011

Chinatrust acquires the local operations of U.S. insurer MetLife, crossing over into the insurance business.

2012

The Shanghai branch opens for business,

bringing to 67 the number of overseas branches.

2012

Chairman Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. poses with family members after being honored by the Japanese government with the Order of the Rising Sun.

2013

CTBC becomes the main sponsor of the Brothers baseball team, making it a key supporter of the sport in Taiwan.

2014

A banquet is held to celebrate the acquisition of Japan’s Tokyo Star Bank, Ltd.

2014

CTBC Financial Park is officially launched.

2015

The first CTBC Arts Festival is held, laying down roots for a better arts education.

2015

The CTBC Anti-Drug Educational Foundation is established—the first dedicated anti-drug education institution supported by a Taiwanese enterprise.

2015

The Women’s Golf Open is held for the fifth straight year, further cultivating talented up-and-comers and giving them a chance to excel on the international stage.

2016

CTBC celebrates the 50th anniversary of its founding, having become Taiwan’s most international financial institution.

2016

The 31st “Light Up a Life” fundraising event is held, continuing CTBC’s decades of effort helping disadvantaged children.

Caring for the World 

A Family of Love

Love knows no borders.

Care is universal. Family is wherever love is.

Ho Chi Minh City staff pose in a classroom during one of the branch’s activities aimed to provide help for local students in line with our “We are family” brand spirit.

Where is the CTBC’s future ? With his sharp eye for opportunity, CTBC Financial Holding Co., Ltd. (formerly known as Chinatrust) Founder Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. saw early on that expanding beyond borders was critical.

As Taiwan’s first “ambassador-at-large,” Koo’s international perspective has deeply influenced CTBC staff through the years. When Taiwan withdrew from the United Nations, Koo began using his personal time, money, and connections to promote Taiwan’s economic and trade diplomacy. He was even in the air enough to circle the globe 20 times in one year. This global vision that he was seeking to realize has ever since challenged CTBC to see the world as a mere blueprint—one that can be altered and improved.

“We are family” Spirit Crosses

Seas, Lets Love Take Root

CTBC’s “We are family” spirit and corporate culture extend beyond the borders of Taiwan, having been shared by our overseas branches for over 20 years. Shining examples in this regard are the Philippines and Indonesia subsidiaries, which are active in providing social care and promoting a culture of volunteering, thereby helping to revitalize local communities.

According to a 2011 survey, more than 60% of Filipino primary schoolchildren are illiterate and most public primary schools do not have libraries. To help the local children disadvantaged by these circumstances, our Philippine subsidiary worked with that the local National Book Store Foundation, Inc. to launch the “Better Readers, Brighter Future” campaign. The initiative strives to reach deep into remote areas via mobile libraries to reduce the problem of child illiteracy.

In November 2013, Typhoon Haiyan devastated the Philippines, killing more than 6,000 people and displacing tens of thousands more; all 683 employees of the Philippine branch were safe. Seeing the severity of the disaster and seeking to uphold the service spirit of treating others’ misfortune as one’s own, the workers donated NT$10 million to reconstruction efforts.

In 2012, the Indonesia subsidiary contributed roughly NT$15 million toward the second campus of Jakarta Taipei School, expanding its kindergarten and elementary school, improving accommodations for single teachers, recruiting exceptional teachers, and reducing turnover—all resulting in tangible benefits for students.

Fulfilling corporate social responsibility is a core value of CTBC. As our international development has increased, this genuinely caring corporate culture has spread to our overseas bases; “We are family” is not just a slogan but a belief we seek to put into practice every step of our journey in expanding across the globe.

Volunteers from the Philippines subsidiary tell stories to local children.

CTBC Bank’s U.S. subsidiary rises in the skyline. From the Americas to Asia, wherever CTBC expands to, our core values ensure that a genuine sense of corporate social responsibility takes root.

Starting the Cycle of Love

For the sake of a child’s smile,

we have always believed that love can bring about a bevy of changes.

Members of the Xinjie Elementary School youth baseball team in Nantou County toss their caps into the air, celebrating their love of the sport.

Spreading Light, Never Ceasing

1985

Taiwan’s first fundraising event by a private enterprise was launched.

2016

“Light Up a Life,” which has run for more than 30 years without interruption, is the longest-lasting charity fundraising campaign in Taiwanese history.

New York, 1960. Snow drifting down and Christmas trees lighting up. People look upward in awe as cheery holiday music plays, warming their hearts; how wonderful life is! The inspiration from this moving scene and what came after would, many years later, motivate CTBC Holding Founder Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. to reshape the social welfare landscape of Taiwan.

After experiencing the warmth of Christmas in Times Square, Koo returned home to a much different sight: Taiwanese children huddling through winter in poverty. He and his wife Mitzi Koo were deeply moved by the stark contrast. Later, after a Christmas party, Mrs. Koo looked at the mounds of leftover food. Rather than let it go to waste, she took the food and shared it with an orphanage near the Koos’ home. The kind act proved inspirational as well. Later, in 1985, when finally in a position to effect change, Koo launched the “Light Up a Life” for disadvantaged children.

This flame sparked by the Koo’s empathy was kept burning by CTBC Charity Foundation Chairman Jeffrey J.L. Koo Jr., who expressed his own determination to not only “have no hungry children in Taiwan” but also to “defeat Taiwan’s social problems.”

Spreading Love Further: Three Decades of Public Welfare

After 30 years of public welfare, the challenges are now more difficult. We see the destination, but how do we get there? CTBC is determined to constantly improve; indeed, over the decades our charitable and social efforts have evolved from direct donations to fundraising and collaborations, entering a new phase of public welfare provision.

Public welfare areas include charity, sports, arts, education, and anti-drug efforts. We feel compelled to step forward and provide the care that Taiwanese society needs. From offering direct help to making complex efforts involving sharing, equipping, and defending others, CTBC aims higher and higher for each of its campaigns, like a series of Christmas lights that shine ever brighter. Our sincere hope is that these lights will provide illumination far and wide across Taiwan.

Are You Brave Enough?

On a warm afternoon in May, the sun shined on the New Taipei Municipal Jian-shan Junior High School playground. More than 400 children peered at the “VIP” lying there. Curiosity filled the air. “Who dares jump over me?” The VIP speaking was internationally renowned dancer Fang-Yi Sheu. Watching her move, using her body to make “morphing hurdles,” they only dared to shyly step over her at first. However, with each successful step and encouragement from their teacher, they grew bold, even attempting fancy somersaults. As the class progressed, their bodies relaxed, expressions bloomed, and courage returned.

Encouraging Students to Dream

“Actually, I was pretty nervous. I was afraid they would step on me, but I had to encourage them to take the first step,” Sheu said. The “first step” is critical indeed. Many children in remote areas, potentially disadvantaged by their family circumstances and environment, do not dare to dream. That’s where the CTBC Foundation for Arts and Culture comes in, with various efforts such as inviting Sheu to meet these children and convey to them the power of “chasing your dreams.” When applying to the National Taiwan University of Arts, she scored relatively poor in ballet. However, she did not give up and continued pursuing her dreams, going on to become a renowned dancer. Sheu used this experience to explain the importance of perseverance to the children: “Imagination can paralyze us, causing us to step in place. Let’s build up the courage to step forward and break through.”

Crossing Urban and Rural

Boundaries to Enrich the Arts

CTBC started promoting arts and culture in remote areas in 2009. This included sponsoring the Paper Windmill 319 Rural Children’s Art Project—a partnership that has continued for nine years, with performances still being put on in 368 townships island-wide. “CTBC is an excellent brother and a friend. Go to it when you need help; it will always stand by your side,” Paperwindmill Arts and Educational Foundation CEO Yung-Feng Li said. “We are all true to each other. We believe that what we are doing is true public welfare.” For Paperwindmill, CTBC’s trust is the most important moral support that it receives and, according to Li, is vastly more important than monetary support. Li also believes that CTBC has set an excellent example for other businesses. “If all of them do this in 50 years, CTBC will have succeeded.”

(Above) A mascot hugs a child as part of an activity by the Paperwindmill Arts and Educational Foundation, which CTBC sponsors with the aim of broadening children’s artistic and cultural perspectives.

(Above) A mascot hugs a child as part of an activity by the Paperwindmill Arts and Educational Foundation, which CTBC sponsors with the aim of broadening children’s artistic and cultural perspectives.

Renowned dancer Fang-Yi Sheu leads students in creating “body art” as part of a lecture and workshop series organized by the CTBC Foundation for Arts and Culture.

Giving children a vision and helping to open up their creativity is a means of investing in their future. To open a “window to the world of art” for children, CTBC not only visited remote areas but invited children there to arts programs. For example, over two years, more than 3,000 students from remote areas traveled for the LOVE & ARTS charity performances at the CTBC Arts Festival. For 90% of these children, it was their first time setting foot inside a performance hall. Before each performance, teachers from Tainan Xinjia Elementary School gave the students an “arts prerequisite” course on theater etiquette, allowing children to approach arts and widen their perspective.

Every time children experience the beauty of art is a chance for change. Indeed, CTBC promotes the arts precisely in order to enable everyone to enrich and expand their mind. Allowing art to cross all boundaries and enter the hearts of children provides them the courage to have dreams—and to pursue them.

The CTBC Foundation for Arts and Culture has invited renowned artists such as, from left to right, Kenneth Hsien-Yung Pai, Fang-Yi Sheu, Yang-Tze Tong, and Hai-Min Wei to participate in the CTBC Arts Festival and its Masterclass series since 2015 to promote the organization’s vision of learning through the arts. These events have opened a “window to the world of art” for countless students.

The CTBC Foundation for Arts and Culture has invited renowned artists such as, from left to right, Kenneth Hsien-Yung Pai, Fang-Yi Sheu, Yang-Tze Tong, and Hai-Min Wei to participate in the CTBC Arts Festival and its Masterclass series since 2015 to promote the organization’s vision of learning through the arts. These events have opened a “window to the world of art” for countless students.

“Let’s build our dreams together”: This image was drawn by 20 disadvantaged students and community residents at the base of the Taiwan Dream Project in Zhongzhuang Community, Chiayi County.

CTBC Charity Foundation Chairman Jeffrey J.L. Koo Jr., center, and children engage in community farming together.

The first Dream-Building Base of the Taiwan Dream Project was formally launched in Dahu Community, in Changhua County’s Pitou Township.

Lighting the Way

“I miss mommy…” At 3’4” and 26.5 lbs, Cindy was clearly shorter than her fellow classmates. Her mother had left to work in the big city and entrusted Cindy to her grandmother in their home village. While the old granny was out collecting recyclables, Cindy often snuck to her old home to see if her mother had returned, but she was always left disappointed. A lonely heart was hidden away in Cindy’s tiny frame.

Cindy’s fortunes changed one day when, through “Light Up a Life,” which is supported by the CTBC Charity Foundation. With this campaign, Cindy has been provided with nutritious meals and educational services in school.

“Light Up a Life” represents the lighting of a lamp, thus bringing brightness and warmth and helping life flourish and spread.

The campaign reaches out to all the “Cindys” out there, and—with its clear vision and strategy—CTBC has further partnered with other social care organizations to make manifest its motto, “We see your need as our responsibility.”

A Second Home, Filling in For Family

CTBC learned that 36% of children in Taiwan’s remote villages do not go home after school. Instead, they wander around their village or stay at internet cafes. Many of them are accidently injured or harassed by strangers, and 50% of them take care of their own meals. No one knows what they eat, or if they even do. They are known as the “hidden disadvantaged.”

It was with these children in mind that, after countless visits throughout Taiwan, the Taiwan Dream Project was born.

One child helped by the initiative was Lily, who had been ostracized by her fellow female classmates because of her odor, oily hair, and dirty clothes. A volunteer discovered that Lily’s father suffered from video game addiction and ignored her basic needs. This girl had gone through puberty, but did not know she needed a bra. Even basic daily hygiene practices like brushing teeth and showering had been ignored.

“You can’t expect children to raise themselves,” Yun-Jin, a teacher at the project’s base, said with a sigh.

Another recipient of Taiwan Dream Project is Juan. After his parents’ divorce, Juan lived with his grandparents.

He had been nicknamed “wild horse” as he constantly disrupted class and bullied other students. After school, he was brought along with some other children to the project’s headquarters, where volunteers helped them with their homework and fed them. And at 7 p.m., when the other children had gone, this so-called wild horse returned, announcing: “There’s no one home. I don’t want to go home!” Hearing this broke project personnel Liu-Ru’s heart. She knew “the headquarters was this child’s second home,” and that it was more meaningful to Juan than his own family’s home.

Being loved changes a child. The Atayal indigenous community in Yilan County’s Nan’ao Township is an extremely poor one. Most parents from there need to travel far away for employment, leaving their children to grow up in a crude and limiting environment. Hsin-Mei, a native Atayal at the Taiwan Dream base, invited friends from diverse professions to share with the Nan’ao youth about how they built their careers and realized their dreams. Now, the children dare to dream: Doctor! Magician! Explorer! Hsin-Mei laughed: “Ask them tomorrow and it’s something new.”

Light Up a Lamp, Teach a Man to Fish

Ying-Tai Lung, renowned essayist and cultural critic, once said: “If one is willing to go the extra 3 miles past the surface and walk to the back side, they will peer into the farthest corners of society, discovering things they would never have otherwise.” This perspective is a key approach for CTBC. However, it is not enough to just come to the rescue. We believe in teaching a man to fish—in empowering these children to have control over their future.

Visitors sit in booths to experience a simulated one-on-one talk with a former drug user. CTBC Anti-Drug Educational Foundation exhibitions use high-tech interactive exhibits to show people the real face of drugs.

Who Can Stand on the Sidelines

in a Drug Abuse Epidemic

A figure ran into the emergency room clutching a 3-year-old child, hoping to pull the infant—who had accidentally ingested drugs—back from the brink of death. But it was too late. The young life did not get the chance to grow up, dying in the figure’s arms. “Clearly on drugs, the child’s mother stared blankly, just sitting there. It was shocking.” That figure, a foreign volunteer at the time, was CTBC Anti-Drug Educational Foundation Chairman Jeffrey J.L. Koo Jr. The pain of failing the child still lives in his heart today, fueling CTBC’s investment in anti-drug education.

Parents who abuse illicit drugs harm children far more than many think. Koo Jr., who has long invested in charity work, once wanted to hand a treat—a piece of candy—to a child abandoned by a drug-addicted mother. The child stared with eyes of fear, not daring to stretch out a hand to take the candy. “That was the most helpless expression I’ve ever seen—those eyes filled with distrust. I can never forget it.” Those eyes also further confirmed his convictions, and in August 2015, the CTBC Anti-Drug Educational Foundation was established to promote anti-drug education programs. By educating about and fighting drugs, people could better understand the true dangers.

A Perfumer, Replicating

the Stench of Drugs

Ever smelled ketamine? “This stinks! Gross!”

What will you become on drugs? “Old and ugly! Terrifying!”

You have to know drugs to fight them, and it’s with this thinking that CTBC boldly launches anti-drug exhibitions. Through high-tech interactive activities, people are educated about illicit substances through smell, sight, hearing, and touch. Taiwan’s first Ketamine Odor Simulator, for example, enables visitors to recognize drugs with their noses. Being able to smell the smoke of ketamine or marijuana triggers curiosity among many visitors. There are also always a few who are concerned at first, asking: “Can you get addicted by smelling it?” They then give it a try after volunteers explain that the drugs’ smells are simply being reproduced with other harmless fragrances. To create the complex odors, CTBC asked a perfumer for help. The perfumer, with years of experience, was unreceptive at first, agreeing to assist only after being convinced that familiarizing people with these odors would help fight drugs. The perfumer then worked with a physician and, after four months of experimentation, the drugs’ smells were successfully reproduced.

CTBC’s special exhibitions also combine high-tech simulators that give visitors a chance to see how haggard-looking their own faces would become after years of illicit drug use. People can also step into the Life Story Kiosk, a room simulating intimate talks between rehabilitated users and visitors. The former users tell story after story of painful experiences. Also on hand is a realistic prison, allowing visitors to feel the powerlessness of being imprisoned for illegal drug use. From “no sense” to “five senses,” various topics are used to bring drug education up close to the public.

Children Should Have Hope

“If I had seen this earlier, maybe my son wouldn’t be in so much pain now,” said a woman surnamed Lin as she visited the exhibition in Hsinchu, failing to hide her heartache. In the past, Lin said, she had been busy with work and neglected her family. Her son became addicted to drugs in junior high school after trying them once out of curiosity. The drug use caused serious damage to his bladder, for which he is still receiving treatment today. “Drugs are a serious problem, but only a few people are brave enough to face it. If I bring up drugs to friends, the conversation stops. So the information we could gather was limited at first,” she said, adding that she hoped organizers would “hold more anti-drug exhibitions and spread this precious information to more people.”

In other corners of Taiwan, parents are just as concerned as Lin. CTBC has responded by taking its anti-drug education initiative on the road to school campuses nationwide, using 3D movie tour cars, skits, and other engaging methods to entertain children and, in the process, teach them to refuse drugs.

Of course, the war on drugs is a tough one, with many warning that it is thankless. And, the more you know about its difficulty and severity, the more terrifying it is. In 1971, U.S. President Richard Nixon announced that his government was launching a so-called “war on drugs,” with countless resources subsequently invested. After 47 years, this war—which spread from the U.S. to the rest of the world—has failed. But how can we accept this? How can we stand on the sidelines in Taiwan and do nothing?

A University’s Fate Rewritten

on a Single Sheet of Paper

In its turnaround from an about-to-close private school to a university ranked in Taiwan’s top 20 for performance two years in a row, this school’s story begins on a single sheet of A4 paper.

In March 2017, Dr. Lutfi, president of the East Java Higher School of Economics in Indonesia, visited CTBC Business School along with three board members to hear about its school–industry collaboration. East Java Higher School of Economics is ranked at the highest level of A by the Indonesian National Accreditation Agency for Higher Education; yet, they were willing to journey across the sea to learn how a Taiwanese university’s fate was rewritten.

How that happened goes back to that sheet of A4 paper, on which was written the school’s philosophy: “Promote public interest, and support the underprivileged and talented.” It was a philosophy that deeply moved Jeffrey J.L. Koo Jr., CTBC Charity Foundation Chairman and CTBC Business School Founder, and he immediately supported investing in the school to revitalize it and use its new incarnation to foster future international financiers.

Despite initial criticism for being sold to a consortium, the school’s subsequent reform and revitalization proved the decision to be the correct one. At the time, there were only three months left before the start of the new school year, and the period for regular recruitment had passed, meaning students could only be recruited independently. CTBC mobilized all employees at every level to pitch in and do what they could, with even CEO-level executives happily serving as lecturers. Touting school–industry collaboration, generous scholarships, and guaranteed employment for exceptional pupils, 150 students were admitted from over 400 applicants, 76 of whom met the national university admission criteria. All admitted students enrolled, making CTBC Business School a “model” university transformation for the Ministry of Education.

An Impossible Life has More Possibilities

Iwahara Yuma is a Taiwanese–Japanese student enrolled in the Department of Financial and Economic. His mother passed from cancer when he was just a child, and despite testing into high school, he had to drop out to make a living. But he continued his academic pursuits, slowly completing the evening program at Tainan First Senior High School while working part-time. He had assumed he would have to burn the candle at both ends with work and study in university but received a school scholarship that let him focus fully on his studies. “Suddenly, life had infinite possibility. Studying abroad no longer seemed so distant.”

Chien-Ping came from a single-parent family. Her mother was the only source of income for the family. Not wanting to be a burden on her mother, Chien-Ping gave up her dream of entering finance—until she saw a poster reading “Scholarship, Lighting Up Your Life,” announcing that the college offered tuition exemptions and subsidized living expenses. Chien-Ping’s life changed that day.

Many years of focusing on educational problems in remote areas have left a profound emotional impact on School Founder Jeffrey J.L. Koo Jr. Nearly all children raised in orphanages in Taiwan fail to obtain a university degree. That’s why the CTBC Charity Foundation now also provides scholarships, expanding its scope from “Love for Kids” to “Love for Youth” and giving disadvantaged young people with great potential a chance to change their lives through education.

Knowledge is Power

By helping disadvantaged students escape poverty, CTBC Business School’s goal is to cultivate over 100 international financiers each year. We hope in 10 years to see graduates in positions as CEOs and senior executives.

Transformed from a private school about to close down into a university ranked in the top 20 in terms of performance two years in a row, CTBC Business School has written a new page in the history of higher education in Taiwan.

With the goal of cultivating future international financiers, CTBC Business School has developed leading school–industry collaboration programs to allow students to dream boldly and then to chase those dreams.

Don’t Disappoint the Kids

Support Baseball

A player dives to be safe during the CTBC Black Panther Pennant National High School Baseball Game.

One SMS and a tinge of sympathy: how “sports charity” began. A few years ago, the Brothers baseball team announced its disbandment. Children who were receiving support from CTBC Charity Foundation and who were also Brothers supporters sent CTBC Charity Foundation Chairman Jeffrey J.L. Koo Jr. an SMS asking for help. “Baseball is like our parents,” they wrote. “We really can’t lose baseball, it’s become our greatest comfort in life. Every day, we come home looking forward to watching a game. We want the Brothers to stay.” The pure-heartedness of these children was moving and, reluctant to disappoint them, Koo Jr. had CTBC sponsor the team, thereby protecting the children’s dreams. After all, baseball is not just a sport.

CTBC Youth Baseball Project Hits a Home Run

“Coach, I want to play!” This is a common cry by children with a baseball dream, one that requires the help of many caring people to be fulfilled. With a passion for baseball, bus driver Hsin-Yung Cheng became a youth baseball coach on the remote island of Matsu, while coach Chun-Guang Chen of Dongguang Elementary School in Keelung used his wedding fund so children could play ball, becoming the “baseball godfather” for many children in new immigrant, disadvantaged, and single-parent families. These caring souls are important allies for the CTBC Youth Baseball Project.

In 2016, the project supported 25 youth baseball teams in remote areas, providing resources and professional training to give children there a chance to hit a home run on the field and in life. Without a dormitory, members of the Xinjie Elementary School baseball team could only sleep on the floor of their school’s auditorium. In winter, when they slept with jackets on and burrowed into their sleeping bags, getting up during the night to go to the bathroom was like torture. On one occasion, over half the 18-member team practiced with runny noses. Then, in 2014, the school joined the CTBC Youth Baseball Project. Thanks to a donation from a Taiwan Lottery winner, a real dormitory was built. In return for fulfilling their little dream of having a good night’s sleep, the children gave great on-field performances, going on to win the CTBC Youth Baseball Championship for the first time in 2016. Now they say with confidence: “I want to go pro!”

(Above) CTBC Park in Pingtung County opened in 2015. It is a highly equipped training base and has been a key part of CTBC’s push to have a system for cultivating new baseball talent take root in the community.

CTBC Black Panther Pennant:

Burning with Spirit

In addition to supporting youth baseball teams in remote areas, CTBC has become the CTBC Black Panther Pennant National High School Baseball Competition title sponser. The single elimination tournament gives players the chance to compete not only with each other but even with national champions. Every player puts in their all, spurred on by their shared competitive spirit and love of the sport.

Beyond competition itself, CTBC is also committed to sports charity. This extends not only to “take root downward” by cultivating new blood, but also “bear fruit upward” by helping excellent players go international. Sports, after all, is a solid platform for improving public welfare. Business contributions and star players encourage children to pursue their dreams, driving a circle of altruism that can have the additional benefit of allowing the world to learn more about Taiwan through these high-profile athletes.

Supporting Girl Power,

Valuing Self-discipline

From baseball to golf, our efforts to improve public welfare and promote sports have been wide ranging over the years. In fact, CTBC worked silently for 40 years to realize the dream of Taiwan hosting an international women’s golf tournament.

For nearly every exceptional athlete, success does not come easy—it requires immense toil. Golf player Teresa Lu, who is sponsored by CTBC, is a perfect example. At 19, she went alone to the U.S. and struggled for over four years without notching up a single victory. At 24, she moved to play on the Japanese circuit, still yet to taste what it was like to finish at the top of the leaderboard.

“Should I give up?” she asked herself during those difficult times.

“Golf is like life in a nutshell. Please don’t give up too soon. You have no idea what can happen.” Lu knows that golf is a silent chase, a lonely sport; you are your only enemy and can only keep on pushing yourself. In 2013, the eighth year of her career, she finally won her first championship. From there, Lu was able to stand on the international stage and “fulfill her dream” because of her firm faith. Now, each time she competes in the Japanese LPGA, the announcement of her name as she walks to the tee is applauded warmly.

(Above) CTBC-sponsored golf player Teresa Lu, Taiwan’s No. 1 ranked golfer and a star in Japan, has inspired countless people with her exceptional spirit.

Home by the Mountain

Building Support

Nangang CTBC Financial Park

‘Taiwan’s Rockefeller Center’

Every year, Nangang CTBC Financial Park’s Christmas tree lights up in a splash of radiant colors and a skating ring opens in the central square. The festive atmosphere and sounds of children laughing makes you feel like you’re in Rockefeller Center. There’s no way you could begin to imagine that just 10 years ago, this was a dark, foul-smelling place covered with fertilizer.

In Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr.’s heart, CTBC’s headquarters is a “home” fought for by everyone at the company. And Nangang was not the first time CTBC built on nothing in order for the family living in this home to have a better future. Over 20 years ago, CTBC constructed its headquarters in Xinyi District, selecting the location at a time when the weeds there “towered over people.” On the first day in that location, Jeffrey J.L. Koo Jr., then vice president, heard that “staff went to work excitedly but were also scared to go in because of wild dogs.” He had to ask security to chase away the dogs while also protecting the staff.

The headquarters in both Xinyi and Nangang have undergone extensive renovations since first being moved into. We cannot help but admire the tenacity and vision of Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. and Jeffrey J.L. Koo Jr.; looking at these structures, one can get a genuine sense of their love for their CTBC family. They wanted only the very best for their family. CTBC Financial Park, which took five years to build, broke through architectural stereotypes by integrating the traditional Chinese “siheyuan” house—a four-sided courtyard. Inspiration for the design also came from the Chinese character for mountain, “shan” (山 ), with its three podiums representing the closeness of father, mother, and child as well as—in our case—shareholder, customer, and employee. The open square in the center resembles the grain-sunning ground of a traditional courtyard home, bringing family members together.

Although Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. was unable to witness CTBC in its new home, we are sure the new headquarters would have pleased him. A walk through it reveals just how filled with life it is. “Circulum Formosa II,” the digital art installation in Building A, depicts the beauty of Taiwan’s flora and fauna through the four seasons. The love that Koo always conveyed remains alive and well in this family home.

ALWAYS GIVING LIGHT

In the 1960s, Wall Street had stood out along the New York skyline as a place where dreamers gathered in a competition to change the world. At the time, the majority of students who traveled abroad from Taiwan opted to stay in the U.S. upon graduation. Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr., on the other hand, chose to give up his promising Wall Street career based on a single comment from his mother: “Today’s Taiwan is in need of talent.” The remark prompted him to return to Taiwan, a country on the verge of introducing a capital market that would enable public trading. With his newly honed financial expertise, he assisted his uncle, Chen-Fu Koo, at the Taiwan Stock Exchange, and in 1966, the two jointly established Taiwan’s first securities investment firm, China Securities Investment Corp.

Helping Taiwan create new prospects had always been Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr.’s calling. Although he was born into a family of elites, his career in his home country had its share of trials and tribulations. Upon returning to Taiwan, he faced a forsaken land waiting to be cultivated, not the strong and well-developed country he had hoped to see. With just 19 employees and a heart full of ambition, he set out on a monumental endeavor, hoping that every move he took would turn out to be a trailblazing step toward success.

The financial sector is a highly regulated industry. After the reorganization of China Investment and Trust Co., Ltd. in 1971, Koo consistently made breakthroughs and improvements while serving as CTBC President, despite the difficulties and restrictions he faced along the way. A pioneer, he led his team in forging the path to success while achieving numerous milestones, which included popularizing the sales of Vespa scooters in Taiwan, making CTBC the first financial institution in Taiwan to take the initiative of visiting customers on-site, introducing Taiwan’s first-ever credit card, establishing the first customer service center of any banking institution in Taiwan, and creating an overall new benchmark in the development of financial services for Taiwan.

These proud achievements were the foundation that allowed CTBC to flourish into the global financial institution that it is today, with over 27,000 employees. The passion and patriotism that brought Koo back to Taiwan stayed with him throughout his career, serving as a faithful reminder for him to stand out from the crowd, to break through limitations in any environment, to create extraordinary values, and to discover new meanings that will continually define our era. At any stage of his life—whether it was when he was the young Koo, the Koo hailing from a privileged family, or even the Koo who had already achieved a successful career—he could have chosen the easy route and spent his days indulging in leisure. Instead, he invariably chose to move forward with purpose, no matter how arduous the path. In 1992, he restructured CTBC, Taiwan’s first investment corporation, transforming it into a commercial banking institution. Then in 2002, he further expanded CTBC into a financial holding company. His enthusiasm not only inspired his entire team, it revolutionized Taiwan’s financial industry.

Koo adamantly believed that he could help change the world beyond the business of finance. In 1985, he launched “Light Up a Life”: the first fundraising charity event of its kind initiated by a Taiwanese private enterprise specifically for disadvantaged children. More than 30 years later, it continues to bring people together for passionate and enthusiastic community outreach.

As Taiwan’s first ambassador-at-large, Koo served as representative on the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Business Advisory Council from 1995 to 2009. He often accompanied heads of state on their official visits abroad, cultivating close relations with countless foreign political and business leaders while also expanding Taiwan’s ties with the international community. He was widely known and praised for his tireless contributions to Taiwan’s social, industrial, commercial, and economic development. In 1971, when Taiwan withdrew from the United Nations, diplomatic relations with the international community suffered a major setback. Amid a daunting international dilemma, Koo stepped forward and used his own time, resources, and international contacts to promote economic and trade diplomacy. He made it his personal mission to safeguard Taiwan’s international status and reputation. His extraordinary commitment and efforts toward economic and trade diplomacy have made an indelible mark on history, and were recognized by the Taiwanese government through various honors including the First Class Diplomacy Award, the Second Class Order of Brilliant Star Medal, the Second Class Order of Propitious Clouds Medal, and the Economic Affairs Award. Internationally, his distinguished service was acknowledged by countless economic and trade organizations; foreign governments including those of Honduras, Paraguay, and Japan; Eisenhower Fellowships; the Confederation of Asia-Pacific Chambers of Commerce and Industry; and the Slovak Chamber of Commerce and Industry. For his fearless convictions and his courage to commit to social responsibility, Koo was eulogized as “the invisible wings that helped trade diplomacy take flight.”

A bronze memorial statue of CTBC Holding Founder Jeffrey L.S. Koo Sr. stands in the lobby of Building A of CTBC Financial Park in Nangang. In gratitude of his lifelong contributions, December 6—the day he passed—is celebrated as CTBC’s anniversary.

THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO WORKS HARD FOR THEIR FAMILY

As an expression of its gratitude, CTBC decided to celebrate its 50th birthday in 2016 a little differently. Rather than throw a lavish party, we held the Home Run Taiwan marathon, inviting people from all walks of life to participate in a round-the-clock relay around Taiwan to see our native land, feel the beauty of its people, and come together in love for Taiwan. For an uninterrupted 1,000 km and 200 hours, CTBC joined hands with everyone from employees to members of the public to write new records, just as CTBC’s innovation and persistence had done over the past 50 years.

In those five decades, CTBC faced many challenges. However, it was always able to move forward and set new benchmarks in the financial sector thanks to the dedication and support of many. We are especially grateful for our hard-working colleagues, who have striven not only to do their best for their own families but for the CTBC family and Taiwan. CTBC’s long-standing “family spirit” is built on the sweat of every colleague who has served the company over the years. It was this dedication that gave rise to the “We are family” brand spirit, as we seek to pass this passion on to our customers.

“We are family” is not only our corporate brand spirit but also the belief of every CTBC employee. We believe in loving our customers, employees, and shareholders in the same way we love our families, and in devoting ourselves to both our work and our families. With positive energy, we spread love and care to the places that need it, in the process inspiring many others to give back to society and creating a better future for Taiwan.

We continue to innovate and create a comprehensive international financial service platform. In this arena, CTBC’s success is thanks to the growth of the domestic economy as well as to the trust and support of the community, customers, and our selfless colleagues.

As Taiwan’s leading brand in the financial industry, CTBC bears great responsibility. We know this, and we will continue striving harder to better the situation of every family in Taiwan and to internationalize the Taiwanese financial industry. Looking forward after 50 years, we plan to uphold our core brand values of “caring, professional and trustworthy”.

LOVE CONQUERS ALL

Nineteen years ago, when I served as CTBC’s President, I pushed to develop the foundation of a new banking system. I led more than 20 of my senior executive VPs on a trip to the United States. Foraying into the wealth management business, we spent two years abroad learning, conducting market research, and organizing a plan for a wealth management team, obtaining Taiwan’s first wealth management license for CTBC. These efforts turned CTBC into Taiwan’s best performing commercial bank and most profitable bank. But one day, a customer’s comment struck my heart like a heavy hammer: “Your bank is very apathetic and only reeks of money. The only thing it cares about is profiting for the company and its shareholders.”

At the time, our business’s only focus was the beautiful numbers that danced across each financial statement. This customer’s remark prompted me to start thinking about shifting this money-focused mentality. Thereafter I decided to transform CTBC into a “Business of Love.” In 2004, I established the CTBC Charity Foundation as a way to encourage volunteer culture within businesses. In 2005, I put down a bid for public welfare lottery distribution rights. My original intention for this bid was to create a way to give back to the community. I insisted that every dollar earned from Taiwan Lottery ticket sales be utilized for charitable donations. We vowed to make Taiwan Lottery “the most important fishing rod” placed in the hands of disadvantaged communities.

My mentality was influenced by my grandmother’s passion for public welfare and helping those in need, as well as by the virtues and values my parents instilled in me. I firmly believe that our predecessors plant the seeds of intent, and that this intent is cultivated in subsequent generations and carried out. Five years ago, as we were dedicating ourselves to disadvantaged children in rural villages, news broke that the Brothers, one of Taiwan’s best professional baseball teams, was planning to disband. CTBC had always been an ardent supporter of professional baseball. In fact, we founded the professional baseball team CTBC Whales in 1996. Due to a game-fixing scandal that tarnished CTBC’s public image, we later decided it was in the company’s best interest to disband the team, but my support for local baseball remained. I realized that children from the most impoverished rural villages were the ones who put all their hopes and dreams into becoming professional baseball players. As one of Taiwan’s best professional baseball teams was about to call it quits, I received countless letters written by such children, sent via their coaches and teachers, describing how baseball was the only thing that gave them hope in their lives. We certainly could not stand by and watch their hopes and dreams vanish into thin air. And so it was that CTBC enthusiastically embraced professional baseball once again. We also created a well-rounded baseball program including the CTBC Youth Baseball Project, a youth baseball league that conducts the Black Panther Pennant National High School Baseball Game and sponsors young baseball players in Taichung. Now I can say with pride that any children who love to play baseball, and who are willing to work hard at it, have a chance to see how high they can soar.

I realize that it is extremely difficult for one group of people or one business entity to change the world, but if CTBC can lead the way for more like-minded people to join this lofty endeavor, our combined strength can change Taiwan, making this land a better place for us all. This was my thinking 19 years ago when I began our work in public welfare; now, all these years later, I believe we really have made a difference.

How has CTBC maintained its commitment over the years? We are constantly moved and inspired by the heroes we encounter, who work behind the scenes in our charity programs. The ones who pour their hearts into making our motherland a better place. We are always looking for like-minded partners in Taiwan, such as the volunteers or expert consultants in CTBC’s Poverty Alleviation Program; the baseball coaches, principals, and teachers who work the Baseball Youth Camp at CTBC Youth Baseball Project; or the village elders from the 20-plus rural Taiwanese communities that participate in CTBC’s Taiwan Dream Project. We are very lucky to be partnered with these amazing volunteers in an effort to give back to Taiwan. To all these partners, I would like to say: “You are the families of Taiwan’s disadvantaged children. You are all heroes of Taiwan.”

Taiwan is an endearing country that is brimming with love. I would like to make wishes for the coming years: I hope that CTBC embraces the future, moving full speed ahead, taking on more social responsibility, entering the most vulnerable and most neglected parts of our community, kindling love in the hearts of those we meet, changing the destinies of the weak and disadvantaged, lighting the path to their future, and finally forging “the circle of love.” We will continue to work hard and help one life improve the next. I truly believe that, in the end, only love conquers all.

Green Vests

Power of Love

Caring volunteers are easy to spot in their green CTBC vests.

What kind of power does the garment have?

Wear it and you’ll know!

At the end of each year, CTBC’s volunteers can be seen out on the streets raising funds for “Light Up a Life.” Recalling one of his first times receiving a donation on the street, CTBC Investments Chairman Thomas K.S. Chen said: “A certain power is generated whenever you put on that green vest to get involved in a volunteering event. It makes you want to keep going!”

Seeing a Different World

The power of the “green vest” comes from the way CTBC’s volunteers see and feel the world differently. Hui-Ching Wang, who has volunteered for 12 years, said: “We receive more than we give by learning from the children. All we give up to be with them is our time!” Providing academic counseling for elementary schoolchildren in northern Taiwan, she found that many see hardship earlier than the average person. “I see the toughness of life in them.” Wang, a cancer survivor, has never stopped caring for them, even during her treatment, when she could only be with them in spirit. Finally, with the support of colleagues and fellow volunteers, she overcame the disease and returned to volunteering.

“Being a volunteer makes life joyful and fulfilling. It also made me realize that love is sharing,” said Wen-Han Lin, also a volunteer academic counselor. During her six years of volunteering, what has moved her the most is seeing how children grow and change. Her father, who was the most supportive of her volunteer work, died recently. The pain drove home deeper the value of family. As a mother, she hopes to share this nurturing love with more “CTBC children.” She is active in English language and financial management volunteering, hoping to help more children.

The Shocking Importance of a Dollar

Becoming a financial management volunteer has given Yu-Jen Li a different perspective on money. Professionally, he has handled millions of dollars like nothing. But, he said, “visiting remote areas, I’ve realized even NT$1 or NT$2 is important to many of them.” He was struck by the reality of Taiwanese society, with many working hard to earn just NT$100 or NT$200 a day. “Without this perspective, I wouldn’t have wanted to give back.” Li hopes to teach correct financial concepts, planting the seeds to help more families in remote areas avoid hunger and poverty.

Turning each caring thought into action has become internalized within CTBC culture. Whether or not the green vests are being worn, CTBC employees naturally lend a helping hand. This sharing starts the flow and cycle of love, bringing light to more lives.

The green CTBC vest symbolizes our key cultural values.

“Once I put on the green vest, I don’t want to take it off!” says CTBC Investments Chairman Thomas K.S. Chen. Since becoming a volunteer, Chen has always enjoyed doing it.

Financial management volunteer Yu-Jen Li, back row first right, and colleagues pose with members of the Guanxi Elementary School youth baseball team. The volunteers travel to remote areas to teach locals about topics including financial planning.

Volunteer academic counselor Hui-Ching Wang assists a child during a CTBC event. Wang says she feels the toughness of life when volunteering with disadvantaged children.

THE PLACES, PEOPLE, AND THINGS

WE CARE ABOUT

Upholding Values

Caring for all is the ‘We are family’ spirit.

For CTBC’s 50th anniversary,

we honor people who protect our values.

We thank everyone who has made this land better.

DEDICATION

Yung-Hsuan Man

She couldn’t speak Chinese and she’s almost too short to reach the pedals,

but this Filipino nun became an expert driver.

She has now been in Taiwan for 30 years,

showing us that love is the best language.

A recipient of Taiwan’s 17th Medical Contribution Award, she was born in the Philippines in 1959. Having graduated from St. Augustine University, she worked as a pharmacist before taking vows as a nun. She came to Chiayi, Taiwan, in 1988 and now serves at Mindao Home in Puzi City.

In 1988, Yung-Hsuan Man—a Filipino nun who spoke no Chinese—followed her faith to Sacred Heart Home in Chiayi, Taiwan. Faced with 100 disabled children, some unable to function or communicate, she wept quietly, praying for the Lord’s help. She was 29.

In 2010, she served at Mindao Home. In the years between, she not only obtained a driver’s license but became familiar with local alleys, often rushing children through them to the ER.

She has now mastered Chinese and simple Taiwanese, and has even mastered the art of understanding children who are unable to speak. Many of the children she has cared for have died young. With each passing in these 30 years, Sister Man was in the morgue to dress the dead’s body and pray for their soul.

We all have times of weakness. When Sister Man does, she goes to the bedside of the late Father Min-Dao Pu, who formerly led the nuns, and composes herself by rearranging the sheets, building up courage before going back out, fully charged to charge forward.

She prays in church every day. It is solemn there, but it also gives her joy.

Asked if she will return to her native home when retired, she first laughed, saying that “nuns serve wherever we are sent.” Then, with a more serious tone: “You can ask me to leave Taiwan, but you can never have Taiwan leave my heart.”

CARE FOR THE LAND

Sheng-Yuan Huang and Fieldoffice Architects

With roots set in Yilan and having won numerous international architectural awards,

Sheng-Yuan Huang believes that if everyone is determined and helps out with the little things,

the combined result will be beyond expectations.

Sheng-Yuan Huang

With a bachelor’s degree in architecture from Tunghai University and a master’s degree in the same field from Yale University, Huang is head of Fieldoffice Architects. His works include Luodong Cultural Working House, Jinmei Plank Road, and other works in Yilan, all of which have helped evolve the county’s architectural style.

If not for the models on the table, you wouldn’t be able to tell that this is an architectural design company. All spaces are shared; they even eat lunch together on the balcony.

A person wearing slippers walked in. Nobody greeted him. It’s just another day. The man was Sheng-Yuan Huang, head of Fieldoffice Architects.

“Do you think you are an Yilan native?”

Born and raised in Taipei, Huang has lived in Yilan for 20 years, creating many widely praised architectural works. He said with a wry smile, “There was a problem when we first came to Yilan. Certain people would use that statement to criticize our group, a group of people who loved Yilan. I was hurt, but it’s been a while, and people no longer care.”

When the discussion turned to Yilan’s environmental planning, he looked serious. He believes that many people think that no matter what they do, they are collecting experience that is valuable. However, if people settle for gaining nothing but experience, they will never break free from their old ways of thinking.

“Everyone should believe they can always freely make contributions in the little things. Remember to build others up. Working together, you are unbelievably strong.”

Sheng-Yuan Huang is grateful for Yilan’s efforts to minimize regulations. People who cherish the wonder around them influence each other. “What’s still missing? What more can our team do?” He said that he will not leave this place. “Am I an Yilan native? If our team is still wondering, I have failed Yilan.”

ANIMAL CARE

Wen-Hsien Lin

Having just been saved from the hell of abandonment,

the puppies drag their wheels forward.

The lead rehabilitation doctor is heavily in debt.

This is a long and hard but rewarding road.

Wen-Hsien Lin Taking care of people by day and dogs by night, Lin joined forces with her husband, Yung-Ching Liu, to found the Taiwan Companion Animal Support Association (TCASA).

When paralyzed animals are brought to the vet, they are almost always euthanized. As a rehabilitation doctor for humans, Wen-Hsien Lin doesn’t think that way: “Let’s first care for them like people.”

Upon walking into the Taiwan Companion Animal Support Association (TCASA), you see workers busy caring for some of the group’s hundreds of disabled dogs, performing tasks like feeding them and cleaning up their incontinence.

Wen-Hsien Lin loves dogs, having grown up with them.

Fourteen years ago, seeing a pregnant dog wandering the suburbs with her previous litter of puppies moved her to start helping strays. “Dogs struggle to survive, but humans don’t understand their suffering. I started thinking: How I can help them?” She spent three years finding a space in the mountains of Taichung and built TCASA, which now rescues and cares for dogs abandoned due to paralysis.

When the first paralyzed dog began to walk again, Lin and her staff were deeply encouraged. “Saving people and dogs is the same to me. I use my experience caring for paralyzed patients to care for dogs. If you really have to compare, with patients I am rational, but with these dogs, there is extra affection involved.”

During the treatment process, some dogs that have closed themselves off after abandonment begin to trust again. Seeing the animals stumbling over to say hello is particularly moving for Lin. “The dogs are family. Euthanasia should not be the only option. We can be with them and care for them to live with dignity until they pass away.”

Cohesion

Donghe Elementary School’s

Tug-of-War Team

Getting a lot from a little over four years and winning the national championship.

Children in remote areas lack resources;

to see the rest of the world,

they have to hold on to this rope.

Donghe Elementary School’s Tug-of-War Team

The tug-of-war team of Donghe Elementary School in Miaoli County’s Nanzhuang Township was established 10 years ago at the school, which has fewer than 100 teachers and students combined. In the short time since, it has won four consecutive national championships and been invited to participate in a youth tournament in Japan.

In remote Donghe Village, an elementary school of fewer than 60 students has a group of short but strong children. During a typical warm-up session, they take turns doing squat jumps, stretching, and running—serious training.

Coach Tsung-Kai Lin created this tug-of-war team after growing fed up with watching students from the remote area struggle in class and be unable to experience a sense of achievement. He established the team hoping to motivate them to learn through sports.

Facing a lack of funding, he borrowed their first rope and acts as the team’s coach, teacher, driver, and caretaker. After extracurricular training, he has to drive the children back to their tribal villages up in the mountains in the dark. Although this is tiring, he believes that “the tougher the environment, the more important it is to point these children in the right direction, so their lives have a chance to shine.”

The coach and children worked hard, their hands often becoming bloody, scabbed, and calloused from the rope. However, with their solid training, they won a miraculous four consecutive national championships, beating many teams with better physiques and resources, and even competed abroad, letting them see the world.

In most sports, one moves forward to win. Only in tug-of-war do you not only move backwards but also need to work together, and not as an individual, in order to gain victory.

When the children disagree, Lin will “punish the whole team.” They have to run with a tug-of-war rope, 20 to 30 kg heavy and 33.5 m long. If they do not share the weight and run together, they tire quickly. They learn to unite and calm down no matter how unhappy they are.

The coach’s hope is to unearth his athletes’ potential. They put all their back into tugging, to pull in a chance at a better life. This energy, hope, and confidence extend to their families, tribes, and villages.

CHALLENGING YOURSELF

Ya-Ching Chuang

How can you play guitar with only one hand?

If you lost your feet, how could you run?

If ‘Iron Girl’ wants to do it, she’ll do it!

Ya-Ching Chuang Born in 1993, Chuang is a true inspiration. After a car accident in 2007, she was left with only her right hand—but she stood up using her willpower. In 2016, she stood on the track again with running blades.

Eleven years ago, a 14-year-old girl received burns in a car accident. She was severely disfigured, with damage to her sight and hearing. Her left hand and both feet were amputated. She underwent eight craniofacial reconstructions and 20 plastic surgeries, enduring intense pain from wound cleaning, skin grafting, and dressing changes. But, after eight years, she could walk and run again. Now 25, Ya-Ching Chuang is called by the well-earned moniker “Iron Girl.”

After being confined to a wheelchair for four years and watching her mother battle cancer, Chuang desperately wanted to stand up. With the aid of prosthetics, she was able to accompany her mother to the market. She no longer shielded herself from the curious looks. Slowly, Chuang started to want to be active again. She even wanted to run, climb, and play guitar. When only her right hand remained at the end of her four limbs and she could not retreat further, her courage came. “Whatever I want to do, I’ll do it!”

She wanted to play guitar with only her right hand, so a prosthetics company made her a hand like Captain Hook’s to pluck the strings while her right hand pressed the chords. She wanted to run, but amputees use 30% more energy to do so than the able-bodied people, so running blades were custom-made.

She took her first step leaning on her trainer, then another, and another. Finally, she let go, trotting forward. “It’s been eight years. I never thought I’d be back on the field.”

Rebirth is painful, but this Iron Girl holds tight to her free and strong will. “If I can do it, so can you. Only after I accepted my disability did I understand that everyone is one of a kind.”

Familial Love

Meng-Chin Li

My daughter wants to play outside like everyone else,

but she can’t.

No problem! I’ll be her feet.

Meng-Chin Li A retired professional soldier, Li is currently a kindergarten bus driver. Having raised three daughters as a single parent, he has in recent years participated in more than 20 races with his eldest daughter, who has cerebral palsy.

“Tzu-Yun is not a burden. She made me succeed!” Meng-Chin Li pushes a wheelchair with his eldest daughter, Tzu-Yun. But he doesn’t only push her down to the store—he takes her in marathons. Having once missed out on something important in life, he put on running shoes when offered a second chance. In the military for many years, Li missed out on time with family. After retiring, he suddenly realized that he had forgotten how to be a good father.

Tzu-Yun has cerebral palsy and struggles to move. Nevertheless, she is always looking out the window. Seeing his daughter’s longing eyes, the sense of loss in Li’s heart turned into guilt. “She can’t go out herself. I’ll take her.”

Initially, after carefully helping Tzu-Yun put on socks, shoes, a vest, and a hat, Li would push her in her wheelchair while jogging in alleyways near their home. Gradually, he started running with her on proper roads and even in running events. The exercise is just added value; the main purpose is taking Tzu-Yun to see the world. “You are my daughter. I am your hands and feet.”

They have run over 20 races together, from 5Ks to half-marathons to full marathons. With her father’s steps behind her, Tzu-Yun’s began to smile more as she sat in her wheelchair. She turned around to shout sometimes, responding to cheers along the way. Li laughed, “Now Tzu-Yun frowns when I run too little, or even when I’m too slow.”

Li and his daughter have numerous medals recording their running history, but her bright smile out in the sunlight is the prize he’s most proud of. For this smile, Li constantly urges himself to run just a little farther, because he knows, “The longer I live, the longer I can protect her.”

Publisher Wen-Long Yen

Chief Editor Roger Kao

Editor Sam Lin

Editorial Team CTBC Bank Public Relations & Public Welfare Division

PLANNING IMPLEMENTATION Idea Advertising & Event Management Ltd.

Image Implementation Dalu, Chia-Teng Hsu, Pei-Chin Lin, Yu-Shun Cho, Han-Chen Chen, Amber Choon-Ee Ho, Yuki Ao Ieong, Ju-Song Lee, Peace International Production Ltd.

Contact Telephone Number 886-2-3327-7777

Address No. 168, Jingmao Second Rd., Nangang Dist., Taipei City

Publication Date July 2018

All rights reserved Reproductions will be subject to prosecution