Tag: nonprofit

Jung Won Jung is a longtime volunteer of over 20 years for Korean American Family Service Center in Queens, New York. She began volunteering with KAFSC after seeing a brochure for the organization at her local post office, and ever since, she has worked to secure survivors both logistic, emotional, and practical support during their times of need. As an advocate, she meets with women and children survivors of domestic abuse, accompanies them to court, and files protection orders at the precinct offices. She has also led classes on computer literacy, a crucial skill in the step towards survivors’ self-sufficiency and independence.Nowadays, she tells us that much of her work has been in outreach, connecting with community members and local politicians to stress the urgency of KAFSC’s mission. Stressing that financial independence is key for survivors to remove themselves from abusive environments, Jung Won tells us that the work of the organization builds in their clients the courage to say, “I can do this.” 

Jeehae Fischer serves as the Executive Director of Korean American Family Service Center in Queens, New York. Beginning her career as a self-sufficiency coordinator, Jeehae describes that the work KAFSC does is multifaceted: coordinating transitional housing, emergency housing, case management, a 24/7 hotline, and job training programs, among countless other services. She urges us that during these particularly trying times, we must rely on friends and allies, who can lend their support through volunteering and sponsorships, to ensure the safety of our community’s most vulnerable constituents. “We’re Korean American,” she says, “we never give up, we are persistent.”

From the straw-thatched house of her childhood in Jeolla-nam-do, South Korea, to the bustling streets of Houston, Texas, Terry Sa Yoon’s life has been a testament to resilience and service. Arriving in the United States in 1970, her family was immediately thrown into harrowing circumstances following a parental health scare. Terry’s journey embodies the strength that one must grow into while transitioning to life in a new country, but also the grace of others which help us out of difficult times. Through the kindness of strangers and the support of her community, she found her calling in helping others and today works as a dedicated service coordinator at the non-profit Woori Juntos, paying it forward to make tangible differences in the lives of those in need.

Frank Nam would describe his youth in the Tri-state area as “Korean on the weekends and American on the weekdays.” After graduating from Rutgers as a history major, he never expected to land a job at MSNBC.com as a web developer; later moving on to Microsoft. He then spent the next 24 years in Seattle exploring different sectors within his career before being suddenly laid off during the 2001 recession, thus facing many emotional stressors throughout a year and a half of unemployment. He finally confronted himself and laid out two options – go back to NY or stay in Seattle to explore his passions instead of being what he thought a good Korean American Christian should be.