102-year-old WWII vet who 'never wanted to be spotlighted' gets due from SF

Rev. Matthew Fong, a World War II veteran who was born and raised in San Francisco, rarely talks about his time in combat overseas as a teenager.

But during a routine visit to the San Francisco VA Medical Center earlier this month, which coincided with his 102nd birthday, he was recognized by The City for his service as an Army pilot flying Boeing B-17 bombers — and as a staunch community leader. San Francisco’s Veterans Affairs Commission presented Fong with his own Mayoral Certificate of Honor in recognition of Military Appreciation Month.

Carol Fong, Matthew’s daughter-in-law, told The Examiner that her father-in-law has politely declined past invitations from The City and from President Joe Biden to honor World War II veterans. The National World War II Museum estimates that only 119,550 Americans who served in World War II were still alive as of last year.

Carol described her father-in-law as “a very humble man.”

“He never wanted to be spotlighted,” she said. “That’s his whole life. That’s why he’s never talked about his work publicly in terms of the war, his contributions and all that, because it was tough.”

Matthew Fong’s grandfather and father immigrated to San Francisco from Toishan in the Guangdong province of China in 1905 and 1916, respectively. They were both merchants who had a variety of businesses in and outside of Chinatown, according to family members.

Fong’s premature birth made him one of the first incubator babies in The City, his son Jerome said. Fong attended San Francisco public schools and graduated from Lowell High School , later pursuing a degree in psychology at UC Berkeley. He was drafted into the U.S. Army Air Forces at age 18 and served in England for two years.

Bill Barnickel, a member of the Veterans Affairs Commission , put The City in contact with the Fong family. Barnickel, who regularly goes to the VA Medical Center, caught wind of the VA staff’s plan to celebrate Matthew Fong’s birthday and introduced himself.

Barnickel gave him a pin from the late Mayor Ed Lee as a gift in lieu of the challenge coins — small, medallion-shaped tokens typically given by an organization — he typically hands out. Barnickel then began making calls to the commission to set up Fong’s certification.

At the May 14 Veterans Affairs Commission meeting, Barnickel gifted Fong a B-17 hat and shirt and other memorabilia. He also bought his own hat for Fong to autograph.

“This is history right here, in a sense,” Barnickel said.

“I feel that this was apropos to acknowledge someone that’s made 102 years old,” he said. “I was honored, and I was glad that I was able to do that for the guy.”

At the beginning of the war, the Eighth Air Force capped the number of missions pilots were allowed to fly at 25.

“Psychologically, the impact of flying so much in a war zone would be too much for them if they flew more than that,” Jerome Fong said. By the end of the war, the Eighth Air Force required its pilots to complete 35 missions due to the growing number of casualties.

Matthew Fong completed 35 missions over Germany, where he served as a belly gunner bombing ball-bearing factories. He earned 10 air medals , which are given to U.S. personnel based on their heroic acts or commendable achievements while in flight.

“We’re very blessed that he came back without a scratch,” Jerome Fong said.

Matthew Fong obtained his psychology degree from UC Berkeley upon his return from the war. He later returned to the school to complete his graduate degree in social work, and earned his doctorate of ministry from Yale Divinity School in 1956. He eventually went back to Hong Kong, where he studied Cantonese and served as the associate director of the Hong Kong YMCA for 22 years.

In 1971, Fong moved back to San Francisco to be with his aging mom. He also started working for the nonprofit North East Medical Services . He also served as the executive director of the Chinatown YMCA. In 1978, he became the senior minister of the Chinese Congregational Church and served in the position until his retirement in 1987.

During that time, Fong was sent to Hong Kong for missionary work. He also kept connected with the YMCA as a member of the Chinatown branch’s fundraising committee.

“Leaders are not always the people that necessarily have to have the spotlight,” Carol Fong said. “He’s one of those kinds of leaders behind everything.”