Roundup: March 11, 2015

Almansor Court – 700 S. Almansor, Alhambra, CA.
Social Hour: 5:00 PM
Dinner: 6:00 PM

Speaker: Brian Dervin Dillon, Ph.D. 
Subject: Behind Enemy Lines: Alice Chong in China, 1937-1945

Click here to view photos from the event.

Come hear the remarkable true story told by our own Dr. Brian Dillon, as he shares the historical account of a courageous woman during World War II, Alice Chong; who operated behind enemy lines in war torn China.

China had been fighting the Japanese for more than four years when America finally declared war in 1941. Two Americans had already become heroes to the Chinese: Minnie Vautrin and Clare Chennault. Vautrin stood alone, defending over 10,000 helpless women and children at the Ginling Girls School during the horrific Rape of Nanking in 1937-38. Chennault, beginning in 1937, helped China build and train its fledgling air force, and then created the Flying Tigers, perhaps the most famous aviators since the Lafayette Escadrille. What did these two people and institutions, so different from each other, have in common? Alice Chong.

Phi Beta Kappa and Fulbright Fellow, Dr. Brian Dillon, has been an archaeologist for the past 40 years, concentrating his work in California and Central America. He has published over 100 books, monographs and articles on archaeology and history. Alice Chong, who is the subject of his presentation, happens to have been his wife’s aunt. Due to his close relationship to the family, Dillon provides details of this intriguing woman’s life not available elsewhere. This should be a captivating talk.