中美文化中心前美方主任William F. Rope唁函

Dear Madame Wu and Ren Wanjie,

       My wife Priscilla and I were greatly distressed to learn today of the passing of your husband and father, Professor Ren Dong Lai. Our grief is great, and I know how immense his loss must be for the two of you. His death is also a great loss to the Hopkins-Nanjing Center, to Johns Hopkins and Nanjing University, and to the world of Sino-U.S. relations. Personally, I mourn the passing of a vibrant, warm, outgoing, and wonderful friend. Please accept our sincere condolences.

Ren Donglai was as fine a scholar of Chinese-American relations as I have known. His enthusiasm for the subject was contagious, and his knowledge was deep. His eye for important details essential to a true understanding of the interactions of the Chinese and American governments and peoples was keen. As one who participated in some of those interactions as a State Department official in the 1970’s and 1980’s, I loved our many opportunities to exchange views during my year at Hopkins-Nanjing. I loved seeing his bright eyes and smiling face and hearing the ideas that flowed from his lively, inquisitive mind. He was a serious and conscientious scholar; and as a teacher and lecturer he was superb. So many students benefited from his wisdom and teaching! So many more would have done so had he been able to live a longer and even fuller life!

No doubt you will hear similar sentiments from many who attend his memorial service and will hear more from his former students and colleagues as the days go by. I hope this, and the knowledge that he served his country well by contributing so much to the Sino-U.S. relationship, will be of some comfort as you undergo the difficult adjustment to his passing. I wish we could join you Saturday to hear all that will be said. I am at least happy that my wife and I were able to see Ren Donglai again – in very fine form – when we attended the Hopkins-Nanjing 25^th Anniversary Celebration last June.

 Many of us in America who were lucky enough to know your husband and father will think of him often and carry him in our hearts, as will you and so many others in China. Should either of you plan to visit Washington in the future, please contact us. We would love to extend hospitality to you and have you stay as guests in our home. In the meantime, please accept, again, our deepest sympathies.

                    Sincerely,

                         /S/

William F. Rope

American Co-Director

                                                                      Hopkins-Nanjing Center, 1995-1996