Roy Mah was among the first Chinese-Canadians to volunteer to fight for Canada in World War II.

In 1953, Chinatown News – the magazine he founded, edited and published for 42 years – was the first and only English-language publication for Canadian-born Chinese.

He was invited by Prime Minister Trudeau to join the 30- member Canadian press corps on the first-ever state visit to China in 1974.

Mah organized the first public celebration of Chinese New Year in 1963.

He sat on the board of the Vancouver Sun Yat-Sen Garden Society when it planned and built the park in Chinatown.