Luk Lau Ying

The household workshop in 2nd floor of a building on No. 14 Ying Yeung Street had an area of about 560 sq. ft. One half of the area was used for setting up the workshop, with the other half for residence. The electroplating process was carried out in the kitchen, with a small portion reserved for cooking. The workshop had simple facilities including one table and a few tools such as cutters, grinders, hammers, pliers and drillers.  

In the 1960s, Luk Lau Ying would have tea at the Chinese restaurant every morning. After tea, she would take her children to school before getting back home to help around in the home workshop Wing Ming Craft Shop. Before noon, she would go to the market to shop groceries and prepare meals for her husband and his two employees. They would take some rest for one hour after lunch. Work resumed at 1 pm and ended at 6 pm when they had dinner. The employees (apprentices) get off from work at 6 pm, leaving her husband to work overtime at night. At first, the employees took the workshop as their lodge. 

To this day, Luk Lau Ying is unwilling to move out from Thirteen Streets because her apartment is spacious with high ceiling. Although the buildings appear to be old at the outside, residents could improve the interior by furnishing and decoration. Although there have been a slaughterhouse and the Towngas production plant nearby, she did not see them as problems. Some workers of the slaughterhouse lived in rental units at the 13 Streets, they were seen returning home in blood-stained clothes. The slaughterhouse started operation at 4 am or 5 am. When the workers killed pigs and cows with guns, the shootings could be heard from a distance. The noises from the slaughterhouse do not upset Luk Lau Ying because she could not hear clearly after an accident at her head. 

Luk Lau Ying and her husband ran a home worship on the 2nd floor. At the same time they also participated  in the matters of the mutual aid committee. The residents of the building had to walk past their doorway going up and down the stairway. It was therefore convenient for the residents to submit their share of electricity bill to Luk Lau Ying couple. They came to the residents to collect the money only when they did not pay their part on time. Later on they reminded the residents to pay the money by telephone. In fact most of the residents were willing to pay their share on time. Those who were unwilling to pay were people from the countryside who thought Luk Lau Ying were cheating them money. They were only willing to pay after Luk came to visit them and explained to them that the fee was collected for the building. 

Luk Lau Ying felt that the community environment in To Kwa Wan was not good for the upbringing of children. She had heard that children of some families had been taken away by the pork hawkers and vegetable hawkers for games without permission of their parents. However, she does not want to see the redevelopment of the 13 Streets. Luk Lau Ying was familiar with the living environment of the old building and the streets; and was well-acquainted with her neighbours. She does not want to change to a new environment.