Kenneth Li oral history
Date
2019-09-25Abstract
Kenneth Li was born in 1957 in Taipei, Taiwan where he grew up before moving to Hong Kong at the age of 14. After completing his high school in Hong Kong, he arrived to Houston in 1981 to study at Houston Baptist University. He began to work in a supermarket on Bellaire Boulevard with his uncle before launching his real estate company, Texas George Realty, in 1988. Mr. Li spent the next few decades working to expand Houston’s Chinatown by bringing in immigrants, investors, and tourists to the area. He was appointed to be the first Asian to serve on the city’s planning commission, and his company has been named one of the top Asian-owned businesses in Houston. Mr. Li also helped start the Asian Real Estate Association in America, was involved with the Asian Chamber of Commerce, and served as the chairman of the Chinese Community Center in Houston.
Description
This recording and transcript form part of a collection of oral history interviews conducted by the Chao Center for Asian Studies at Rice University. This collection includes audio recordings and transcripts of interviews with Asian Americans native to or living in Houston.