The time has come for me to hand over the reins of KABA to the next talented leader: David Ko. This was my second time serving as KABA president. My first term was right out of law school as a first year associate when the promise of a career in legal practice seemed as bright as the potential of an organization like KABA to open doors to relationships with other like-minded people. Over ten years later, I decided to get involved with KABA again, because I wanted to harness the power of an organization to get things done on a larger scale. It has been a humbling experience, because organizations like KABA, which exist solely on the basis of volunteers, is only as strong as those who commit the time and energy to do the work. I can say that we got some things done, but there was certainly a lot more we could have done and we did the best we could.

I think the future of KABA lies in the hands of those young lawyers early in their professional careers. But, the "old-timers" must support KABA by mentoring these young attorneys, and together KABA can be the place where Korean American lawyers share their history and common experiences that are unique to our community. Being a lawyer comes with it, the responsibility to serve those in our community who need access to justice. I hope the desire to provide pro bono legal assistance and access to justice will always be central to KABA’s mission. After all, that is the reason KABA was founded in 1992, by a group of attorneys who started the first Korean pro bono legal clinic.

Please join me on February 23rd to celebrate KABA’s 20th anniversary and connect with old and new friends. This banquet is significant for many reasons, because primarily it marks the end of my presidency and the beginning of another leader whose vision for KABA will take us a step toward the next decade.

Please rsvp today and email Jessica Yu at jessnyu@gmail.com or me at boksulee@gmail.com to confirm your attendance.

Thank you for your support this year.