The door to Sun May Company is propped open as a member of the Seattle Chinese Community Girls Drill Team ties a bouquet of lavender to the memorial to Donnie Chin at its entrance. Photo by Theo Bickel
On Sunday, July 26, community members gathered in Canton Alley for a vigil remembering Donnie Chin, the Chinatown International District neighborhood protector who was killed in 2015 and whose murder remains unsolved.
The event — the 11th annual vigil commemorating Chin — was hosted by the Chin family and the International District Emergency Center.
Connie Chin, sister of the late Donnie Chin, greets and hugs attendees at the start of the 11th annual vigil. Photo by Theo BickelA crowd fills Canton Alley during the vigil honoring Donnie Chin. Photo by Theo BickelDean Wong, artist and close friend of the late Donnie Chin (left), speaks to the crowd. Photo by Theo BickelIncense burns as community reflects on Donnie Chin’s legacy. Photo by Theo BickelDuring the course of the vigil honoring Donnie Chin, community members cover the memorial outside Sun May Company in origami cranes. Photo by Theo BickelErin Shigaki, activist and artist, burns a gold leaf Joss paper in a pyre set up in Canton Alley. Joss paper, also known as incense papers, are papercrafts or sheets of paper made into burnt offerings common in Chinese ancestral worship. Photo by Theo BickelJamie Lee, board chair of the International District Emergency Center (IDEC), opens the program of the annual vigil. Photo by Theo BickelConnie Chin, sister of the late Donnie Chin, speaks to the crowd. Photo by Theo BickelDonnie Chin, recorded in a past video, speaks directly to the crowd about the International District Emergency Center. Photo by Theo BickelCanton Alley buzzes with activity as community gathered to remember Donnie Chin. Photo by Theo BickelDean Wong points to the Kong Yick Building, sharing personal stories of the International District Emergency Center that Donnie ran. Photo by Theo BickelMany members of the Seattle Fire Department came out to attend the 11th annual vigil honoring Chin. One member wore his shirt bearing the words “In loving memory of Donnie Chin.” Photo by Theo BickelOrigami paper cranes adorn the entrance to the Sun May Company in remembrance of Chin and his legacy. Photo by Theo Bickel
Theodore Kenzo Dante Bickel is a Seattle-based photographer who has contributed to the International Examiner since 2024. He uses visual storytelling to showcase the vitality of the Chinatown-International District and contemporary Asian American communities in Seattle. He is Shin-Nikkei Japanese American. Born in Portland, Oregon, he grew up in the wilds of southwest Washington state. Theo, or “Tay-o” as his friends call him, found himself putting down roots in the C-ID shortly after arriving in Seattle in 2013. He has spent over a decade working in C-ID community non-profits in development, community engagement, civil rights advocacy, and communications. Theo was one of seven Seattle-based Asian American photographers that published the photography exhibit “Through the Eyes of a Tiger” in May 2023. The photo exhibit blended holistic, not homogenous, views of the C-ID in a critical time of regrowth and development.
