-Coming to Australia as a young adult Francis Lee graduated from Sydney University in the 1960s and later completed a masters degree at the University of New South Wales, winning the Senior Prize in Civil Engineering upon graduation. He went on to become a civil design engineer and later the environmental engineer for the New South Wales Public Works Department. Francis is also an official translator of the New South Wales government. In 1993, he followed his heart and assumed a fulltime position as a journalist, writer and broadcaster. He has since published two bilingual essay collections. Francis retired as the executive producer of the Chinese Cantonese group at SBS Radio--a national broadcaster--in March 2008. Francis made an attempt at entering politics, and found the process intriguing. He remained a firm believer to the end and has many observations to share with his readers. He is the founding chairman of the Asian Media Council of Australia, former vice president of Sydney Chinese Writer's Association and former president of the Australian Chinese Forum of Australia. He also holds other executive, honorary and advisory posts in several other community organizations. On Australia Day in 2004, Francis was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for outstanding service to the community---Publisher description.
