Valerie Lee was born and educated in Vancouver, British Columbia. After her marriage, she moved to the United States where she has lived most of her life She is the great-granddaughter of Reverend Chan Yu Tan, who was ordained as a Minister of the Methodist Church in Canada in 1923. She fondly remembers learning how to recite her prayers in Cantonese when the Rev. Tan officiated at the Chinese United Church in the 1940s. Valerie has worked as a reporter for several newspapers, covering many topics, but always with a strong emphasis in writing cultural awareness pieces for the Chinese community. Valerie's articles have appeared in the Vancouver Chinatown News, Asian Week, Asian Pages, Face Magazine, and True Story Magazine. The subject of many of her writings is about life in Vancouver's Chinatown. Se is currently working on another book.