The Feng-Tang Family
Chiu-Lin Tang & Ben Feng, HK 2012
Jennifer Feng, HK 2024
The Kroks first met the Feng-Tang family in 2000 through Bill Kang’s family who were hosting the Kroks at the Taipei American School. Jenn Feng and Bill had both attended the school a few years apart. Their parents knew each other through their MIT and Harvard Business School networks and subsequent careers. During that visit, the Kroks met Ben and Chiu-Lin at the Kang’s apartment.
In 2001, the family first sponsored the Kroks concerts in Taipei to sing for various private companies and for charitable concerts arranged through the GFC Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Golden Friend Corporation owned by Chiu-Lin’s family.
From the very start, the entire family has been deeply involved in supporting the Kroks.
The family has joined many of our other Honorary Kroks in making the trip to Boston for our major reunions – here they are at our 70th Anniversary celebration in 2016.
The GFC Foundation concerts have become the mainstay of the Taiwan stay – including visiting orphanages, elementary schools, high schools and community centers. On a recent tour, they had a great time exploring both the cities and the mountains of Taiwan. They sang “Molihua,” a traditional Chinese ballad, with the children of the Liouguei High School Choir in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
The administration of the Taiwan portion of the tour has become a well-oiled machine with Chiu-Lin setting course and Cindy Lee (her chief of staff) working out all the logistics.
Jenn frequently fills the role of “boots on the ground”, moving around with the Kroks to make sure they find their way to their concerts and helping with housing, translating, receiving packages, banking, etc.
The Kroks of 2012 decided it was time to formally recognize Ben and Chiu-Lin’s extraordinary importance to the Kroks by inducting them into the realm of Honorary Kroks. The Kroks had dinner together with Ben and Chiu-Lin at a restaurant owned by Kelly Woo, a friend of Henry and Sasa Ho. At the end of the dinner, the Kroks serenaded the family, General Manager Dan Bruder made a speech about the special relationship they had together, and then Ben and Chiu-Lin were named Honorary Krokodiloes.
Per BA Sillah, Tour Manager of the Kroks of 2012:
“They took on their new roles with gusto; learning our traditional Johnny O’Connor lyrics and dance moves overnight by watching YouTube, and performed with us on our show the next day.”
You never know where the Kroks might pop up in Taiwan. During the 2014 tour, they had a flash performance at a Taipei shopping center that attracted a great crowd.
In 2024, with the Covid pandemic over and the Kroks back touring Asia, the Feng-Tang family hosted an incredible anniversary to celebrate 20 years of the Kroks touring Taiwan as their guests. It was a wonderful week together with nearly fifty of us assembled, including over 38 alumni, Honorary Kroks and family members and the twelve undergraduates.
The week convened in Taipei with a banquet at the Sheraton Grand Taipei Hotel including the alumni, the undergraduates, the Feng-Tang family and many friends made throughout the years. It was at this wonderful evening together that the Kroks announced that “Jenn Feng is a Krok” and made her an Honorary Krok in light of all the incredible work she and her staff, led by Cindy Lee, have done to keep the Kroks fully booked throughout Asia and having a great time. We sang the traditional Johnny O’Connor with her to officially sing her in!
The next morning the undergraduates shipped off to sing concerts throughout the country. In this link, the GFC Foundation describes their activities: For 20 consecutive years supporting national diplomacy, GFC invited the Harvard Krokodiloes to perform around Taiwan.
The alumni were treated to a private tour at the National Palace Museum, led by Sasa Ho, lunch at Din Tai Fun, a Krok favorite, and a trip to the top of Taipei 101. The day ended with a trip to one of Taipei’s famous night market. We departed out into the country visiting GFC’s original factory and training facility, the Wufeng Lin Family Garden (a traditional Taiwanese home), a day on the Sun Moon Lake and an excursion to make our own tea!
We all reconvened back in the Tamsui District of New Taipei for the final three days of the week to prepare for and then present the 20th Anniversary Concert at the Cloud Gate Theatre. Both the undergraduates and the alumni performed separately and together for over 400 people in attendance! It was a first rate concert and was professionally recorded and attended by the press! The banquet following was not to be missed!
This was also an “all hands-on-deck” reunion for the extended Feng family. Special shout out to Aaron Neal (Jennifer’s husband), who took on the major role of caring for the energetic Kenzo throughout the entire week, and Nancy (Aaron’s mother) who flew in from South Carolina. Aaron even broke his long standing rule that he opt out of social events when there are more than 3 Kroks in attendance – boy, did he go big this time! Also a big thank you to Jonathan Feng, seen below in the middle of the family, who was a great sport throughout the week.
The week was capped off with a barbecue at a the beautiful home of Henry and Sasa Ho!
From the collected recollections of Bill Kang, Ted Fienning, BA Sillah, Daniel Du Comb, Steve Dostart and Jenn Feng.
Biographies:
Ben’s family is from Shanghai and after graduating from Harvard Business School in 1975, he pursued a career in finance in Asia. Initially, he was at American Express (along with Bill’s father), then became the youngest VP to cover all of Asia at Citibank. He went on to become a venture capitalist investing in Taiwan’s many technology-focused companies and continues investing in new ventures that interest him.
Chiu-Lin’s family is from Fuzhou and moved to Taiwan many decades ago. Her father founded the Golden Friend Corporation (GFC) which is the sole distributor of Toshiba elevators and escalators in China and Taiwan. Their most famous installation is at Taipei 101.
Jennifer attended Bard College and then Teachers College at Columbia University focusing in bilingual and bicultural education. She has diverse work experiences in education and well as in the wine consulting and distribution businesses both in Asia and in the U.S.