2018 Annual Meeting - an update
Ambassador Cho and Tom Byrne, President of The Korea Society, during the Q&A session.
This year over 120 people gathered at the offices of The Korea Society in Manhattan, a beautiful venue, where they were treated to an afternoon of talks and tributes. The first speaker was Ambassador Cho Tae-yul, the representative of the Korean Mission to the United Nations. Ambassador Cho spoke about U.S. and Korean relations and the path forward to achieving ‘our shared dream of denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula.’ The Ambassador's remarks, while optimistic, also pointed out the many obstacles and hurdles that remain.
(Click here to see a slide show from the meeting)
Ambassador Cho’s remarks were followed by a moving tribute to this year’s Kevin O’Donnell Distinguished Friend of Korea honoree – Mrs. Shim Jai Ok, a remarkable woman whose career has been devoted to promoting greater understanding and awareness between Americans and Koreans. Mrs. Shim had worked as a Peace Corps language teacher and administrator before joining the Korean-American Educational Commission (the Fulbright Program) where she interacted with and impacted the lives of thousands of teachers, researchers and scholars. Many of her admirers were in the audience – some having traveled quite a distance to see her and to thank her.
Another major component of our meeting was the Friends of Korea “Giving Back Initiative.” This year we recognized the work of two nonprofits in the New York area: CIDA and the Esther Ha Foundation. CIDA, which stands for Community Inclusion and Development Alliance, focuses on the promotion of self-determination and inclusion for individuals with disabilities. They focus on family support, education and workforce development. The Esther Ha Foundation implements programs that educate and provide community outreach in the area of mental health awareness, depression and suicide prevention. Both organizations serve the Korean-American community in the New York area and are relatively young organizations. We are delighted to have been able to provide some financial support to each and to recognize their commitment to helping their local communities.
We also took a few moments to honor Maura O’Donnell-McCarthy, who passed away unexpectedly this summer. Maura was a passionate supporter of global engagement and an active member of Friends of Korea. She will be missed by so many.
As you might expect, the events culminated in a wonderful dinner – this year hosted by the Consul General of the Republic of Korea in New York, Ambassador Park Hyo-Sung. It was a delightful ending to the wonderful day of celebration.
Some of the newest lifetime members of FoK attended the day's events. These were the “Youth Ambassadors” who have been sponsored by the Pacific Century Institute. We look forward to their continuing participation in FoK.
(Click here to see a slide show from the meeting)
Ambassador Cho’s remarks were followed by a moving tribute to this year’s Kevin O’Donnell Distinguished Friend of Korea honoree – Mrs. Shim Jai Ok, a remarkable woman whose career has been devoted to promoting greater understanding and awareness between Americans and Koreans. Mrs. Shim had worked as a Peace Corps language teacher and administrator before joining the Korean-American Educational Commission (the Fulbright Program) where she interacted with and impacted the lives of thousands of teachers, researchers and scholars. Many of her admirers were in the audience – some having traveled quite a distance to see her and to thank her.
Another major component of our meeting was the Friends of Korea “Giving Back Initiative.” This year we recognized the work of two nonprofits in the New York area: CIDA and the Esther Ha Foundation. CIDA, which stands for Community Inclusion and Development Alliance, focuses on the promotion of self-determination and inclusion for individuals with disabilities. They focus on family support, education and workforce development. The Esther Ha Foundation implements programs that educate and provide community outreach in the area of mental health awareness, depression and suicide prevention. Both organizations serve the Korean-American community in the New York area and are relatively young organizations. We are delighted to have been able to provide some financial support to each and to recognize their commitment to helping their local communities.
We also took a few moments to honor Maura O’Donnell-McCarthy, who passed away unexpectedly this summer. Maura was a passionate supporter of global engagement and an active member of Friends of Korea. She will be missed by so many.
As you might expect, the events culminated in a wonderful dinner – this year hosted by the Consul General of the Republic of Korea in New York, Ambassador Park Hyo-Sung. It was a delightful ending to the wonderful day of celebration.
Some of the newest lifetime members of FoK attended the day's events. These were the “Youth Ambassadors” who have been sponsored by the Pacific Century Institute. We look forward to their continuing participation in FoK.