The opening retreat from May 4th-6th, 2012 officially marked the beginning of the 2012 Community Leaders Program. Twelve eager participants came from different areas, different backgrounds, and different perspectives but all had one thing in common: they all wanted to be leaders.
They spent the weekend getting to know the history of APIs in the region, and the histories of each other, and what it means to be a community leader. They exchanged stories and experiences, shared laughs and tears. By the end of the retreat, a special bond has appeared, which will only grow stronger as they go through the rest of the program.
Please welcome the CLP Class of 2012!
Back row: Noah Jaffe, Stanley Wong, Kyle Gotchy, Phillip Bruan, Grant Wu, Kiwai Lai, Micah Bateman-Iino. Middle row: Melissa Atalig, Julie Kim, Jennifer Duong. Bottom row: Annia Yoshizumi, Kathy Nguyen
Julie Kim:
Julie Kim is a first generation American of Korean descent born in Seattle and raised in Mukilteo, Washington. She was the first in her family to attend college at the University of Washington and the first to earn her graduate degree from Seattle University School of Law. Julie loves to volunteer with Seattle Works and was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the Washington State Coalition for Language Access. In her spare time, she reads up on business and fashion news in the New York Times, hits the gym, and occasionally admits in public that her favorite childhood television show is and always will be “Star Trek: The Next Generation.”
Grant Wu:
Grant was born in Lexington, KY and raised in Troy, MI. The Midwest provided a unique experience for an Asian American but Grant didn’t wholly appreciate this until he started attending the University of Michigan. There, he became extremely involved with the campus community. Grant held officer positions in the Chinese Student Association, the United Asian American Organizations, and the Midwest Asian American Student Union. He strove to educate his fellow Asian American students about the social and political issues that have affected Asian Americans throughout history and encouraged them to become more engaged and active within the A/PIA community. Grant now holds a BSE in Computer Science and works for Microsoft as a software engineer. In his spare time, Grant, despite his parents’ best efforts, still plays a lot of video games. He also enjoys exercising and working on his various side projects.
Micah Bateman-Iino:
Micah Bateman-Iino was born and raised in Seattle, and is of Japanese and European descent. Having received a bachelor’s degree in international studies from the University of Washington (UW) in 2011, he is returning to the UW in 2012 to pursue a law degree. Micah was the 2012 Fellow with the Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs and ACLF, working in Olympia during the legislative session. In his spare time he enjoys exercise, the outdoors, music, and arts.
Annia Mieko Yoshizumi:
Annia Mieko Yoshizumi was born in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her father is a 3rd generation Japanese and her mother 1.5 generation Filipino-Spanish. Being the oldest of 4 kids, Annia is the first in her family to attend college. She attends the University of Washington pursuing studies in American Ethnic Studies and Diversity. Annia also works at The Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American experience as an interpretive lead and enjoys connecting with visitors who share their experiences and stories of Asian Pacific American history. In addition, she also works at the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity as a Diversity Advocate for Ethnic Cultural Center where she helps in creating programs dedicated to social justice and that advocate the underserved and marginalized communities on campus including students of color, LGBT, and student organizations. In her spare time she enjoys playing with her beloved puppy Momo.
Stanley Wong:
Stanley Wong was born in Seattle to a father from Hong Kong, and a mother from Guangzhou, China. He grew up in Kent where he graduated from Kentridge High School. Stanley then became heavily involved with student governance at Bellevue College when he worked as the Executive Director for the Office of Student Legislative Affairs. Following his second year at Bellevue College, Stanley transferred to the University of Washington, and is now expecting to graduate in the summer of 2013 with a B.A. in Political Science. He values truth and integrity. Stanley’s hobbies include basketball, chess, and video games.
Kiwai Lai:
Kiwai Lai is a person of mixed race, having a half Cherokee/half Scott-Irish mother and a Chinese father. Kiwai has a varied professional background having worked for three years as the Assistant Technical Director at the Youngstown Cultural Arts Center. He also has ten years of restaurant experience as a cook in many kitchens between here in Seattle and Helena, Montana, one of the places where he grew up. Kiwai is passionate about good times and great company. He has been a musician for nine years playing guitar and making dance electronica. Kiwai has volunteered for many events in the Delridge and Georgetown community, lending his skills as an Audio/Video Technician. He has also mentored youth from Evergreen High School as a Field Expert on senior projects involved with music production. Kiwai in his spare time enjoys being lazy, scheming, playing video games, reading music blogs, good food, and great company.
Kathy Nguyen:
Kathy Nguyen was born in Nha Trang, Vietnam and immigrated to the U.S. at the age of three. She is a recent grad from University of Washington majoring in Business Administration-marketing and management. Through her volunteer work with Asian Counseling Referral Service and Refugee Resettlement Office in college, she found passion in helping others and believes the CLP program will further help her commitment to help the community. In her spare time, she enjoys watching movies, baking, trying new restaurants, and running with her family dog, Lou.
Kyle Gotchy:
Kyle Gotchy is a mongrelized Northwest native son whose Nikkei family has tilled the Greater Seattle area for four generations. By training, he is an attorney who focuses on complex commercial litigation and health care regulatory affairs. By nature, he is interested in entrepreneurial ventures which identify and leverage existing community resources to provide social services. He also enjoys dark porters, used bookstores, and random feats of athleticism.
Jennifer Duong:
I was born in Vietnam, I have 11 living half siblings and I am the youngest child. I arrived to the United State with my mother, two sisters and one brother in the early 90s. I got my bachelors of arts in Social Works at the University of Washington and currently, I work for the Department of Veterans Affairs. Being the only one in the family to graduate high school and college meant that I have a lot of responsibilities and obligations to not just my family but also my community. I am passionate about immigration and refugee issues, social justice in general. Currently, I serve as a board member on the Vietnamese Friendship Association, a small non-profit organization that provides academic, leadership and advocacy programs. I like to consider myself as an optimistic person because I am a firm believer that things will get better. In my spare time, I like to experiment in the kitchen like baking and I enjoy outdoor activities.
Noah Shen Jaffe:
Noah Shen Jaffe was born and raised here in Seattle. He is half Chinese. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Williams College in Massachusetts and his Juris Doctor from the University of Washington School of Law, and now works as a law clerk for a judge at the Washington State Court of Appeals. Noah serves as a mentor to other minority law students and aspiring lawyers contemplating law school, and loves to play both soccer and basketball in his free time.
Phillip Angelo Bruan:
Phillip Angelo Bruan is currently a junior at Seattle University majoring in Political Science and minoring in Public Affairs & Administration. As he is of mixed heritage– his mother having been born in the Philippines and his father from Peru, Phillip is extremely passionate towards developing advocacy and leadership skills to help overlooked communities. Born and raised in Seattle’s Chinatown/International District, Phillip has a strong dedication to the neighborhood and is currently an economic development intern at the Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation & Development Authority. Over the last few years, he has also been involved with several social justice organizations including Global Visionaries, WAPI Community Services, and was chosen as a research fellow to do poverty alleviation research in Ghana. He enjoys spending time with his family, being a rookie foodie with his friends, and playing with his mini-Daschund, Maechay.
Melissa Atalig:
Melissa Atalig was born and raised in Garner, Iowa to a German mother and Chamorro father. She attended the University of Iowa and received her B.A. in Political Science and M.S. in Urban and Regional Planning. Melissa’s passions for civic engagement, community service, and social justice are deeply rooted in growing up in a household with parents who were politically active, volunteered their time within the community and demonstrated a true compassion for humanity. Currently, her work focuses on creating stronger communities by educating, empowering and engaging community members, and building ongoing dialogue about how individual actions can lead to large collective impacts. In her free time, she enjoys running, backpacking, climbing, traveling, and exploring new places.
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