During the New Year’s dinner gathering of a few Taiwanese families in 1970, it was suggested that a formal Taiwanese organization should be established. The suggestion led to the creation of “Formosan Club of the Capital District of New York” (紐約州首府區台灣同鄉會) in 1971 with initial membership of about two dozen families. Mr. William Lee was elected the 1st president and a simple Club charter was adopted. It was registered with the New York State Department of State.
The activities sponsored by the Club during the 1970s were limited to social activities, such as annual spring and fall picnics, Thanksgiving’s dinner party, Lunar New Year’s dinner party, watching Taiwanese movies, sport and outdoor activities. The size of the Club membership gradually grew in a decade. Excluding RPI and SUNYA student members, the number of family members reached to 60 in 1982 according to the Membership Directory. The household heads were mostly in the middle ages of 30s-40s. It was an energetic and vibrant organization capable of hosting the two-day “East Coast Taiwanese Softball Tournament” for several years. The tournament was participated by dozen teams from far-away, including Toronto, Ottawa, Boston, Rochester, and Cherry Hills, NJ.
The Association changed its name to Taiwanese American Association of Capital District of New York Inc.” (TAA-CDNY) via a vote by the Board of Directors in 1984.
In 2004, as an effort by the members to establish tax exemption status with IRS (i.e. Section 501 (c)(3) status), a new organization was founded “Taiwanese American Cultural Society of the Capital District, Inc.” (TACS) (首府區台美文化促進會). The petition for Recognition of Exemption Status under Section 501(c)(3) of the IRS Code was approved by IRS in March 2005. Both organizations have coexisted as separate entities since then.
In 2014, TAA (紐約州首府區台灣同鄉會) formally changed its name to read as “Taiwanese American Association of Capital District of New York Inc.” (TAA-CDNY). TAA-CDNY is registered with NYS Department of State as a not-for-profit corporation, as defined in sections 102 and 201 of the New York Not-for-Profit Corporation Law.
In 2020, Kevin Wu was elected as the President of TAA-CDNY.