Elder Participants (Summer/Fall 2021)
Our third cohort of KSP elder participants are residents of nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and affordable housing communities, they are advocates for our communities elders, and community leaders. Our elder participants live primarily in Koreatown, Los Angeles. We interviewed them about their experiences in elder care residences and heard the rich and varied stories of their lives.
Dr. David Jeonghan Park
Elder Participant
Dr. David Jeonghan Park was born in South Korea and emigrated to South America in elementary school. Dr. Park lived in Asunción, Paraguay, during his elementary and middle school years and then immigrated to Buena Park when he was in high school. Dr. Park is the Director of Oncology at St. Jude Medical Center in Fullerton, California. He is also the father of Abbi-Hope Jihye Park, a KSP youth participant who attends the Orange County High School of the Arts.
David’s story →
Jane Kim
Elder Participant
Though her family originally hailed from North Korea, Jane Kim was born near Seoul, Korea, and came to Pomona, California, in junior high school when her father moved to the U.S. to study theology. As an undergraduate at UCLA, Jane became involved in community service at the Chinatown Service Center and the Korean Youth Center. She was the first Executive Director of the Korean Youth Center, a nonprofit organization that was founded in 1982, and eventually evolved into the multiethnic social service agency, the Koreatown Youth and Community Center.
Janes’S story →
Jennifer Wong, Ph.D.
Elder Participant
As the inaugural director of Wallis Annenberg GenSpace in Los Angeles, Dr. Wong spearheaded a vibrant community center challenging ageist stereotypes, forging partnerships across sectors to reshape the dialogue on aging and longevity. She is currently the Principal Consultant of JLW Consulting and Advisory LLC, leveraging her expertise in research, leadership, and policy to drive social impact. With a focus on health and aging, she has shaped rural health care and aging policy for prestigious institutions like the Washington Health Care Authority and Seattle & King County – Public Health while also advocating for social determinants of health, integrated care delivery, and community engagement. She also played a pivotal role in developing Governor Newsom’s Master Plan on Aging while assisting the California Department of Aging during the COVID-19 pandemic. She holds a Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from the University of Montana, a Master of Arts in Psychology from Sacramento State, and a Bachelor of Arts from the University of San Francisco.
Jennifer's story →
JungKoo Kang
Elder Participant
JungKoo Kang was born in Gyeongsangbuk-do, South Korea, and emigrated to Kansas in 1975 before settling with his family in Los Angeles, California. He worked in the apparel and manufacturing industry for several decades before becoming the President of the Korean Senior Citizens Association and the Samiljeol (March 1st) Memorial Project. He also created the Hanmi Silver Club, a travel and community service organization for older adults in Koreatown.
Jungkoo's story →
Michelle Park
Elder Participant
Michelle Park was born in Osaka, Japan, in 1940. As a Korean-Japanese woman, Michelle learned Korean after she emigrated to Hawaii in 1974. Being fluent in Japanese, one of her earliest jobs in America was at the airport in Hawaii. She asked to be transferred to Los Angeles to be closer to family and saw Koreatown grow from its earliest days, when there was only one Korean market, to the thriving neighborhood it is today. She lives in Wilshire Towers, an older adult residence in Koreatown.
Michelle's story →
Sye Jak and Yung Oh
Elder Participant
The Ohs arrived in the United States in the early 1970s from South Korea and lived in Los Angeles’s Koreatown for several years. Like many Korean American immigrants at the time, Mr. Oh held many positions, from being a busboy to working at a wig company to being a stockbroker and serving as the representative of a manufacturing company. He worked for over 50 years in the U.S. Mrs. Oh arrived in the U.S. when she was a college student. The Ohs discuss their lives as older adults in the U.S., happily retired in Concord, California, where they moved to enjoy time with their grandchildren.
Sye Jak and Yung's story →
Silvia Coss
Elder Participant
Silvia Coss immigrated to Los Angeles from Coahuila, Mexico, over 30 years ago. A single mother to two daughters born in the U.S., she has worked as a nanny and housekeeper. Silvia plays an active role in a KYCC community group, MUEC (Manos Unidos con Esperanza por la Comunidad — Uniting Hands with Hope for the Community), and became politically active during the pandemic, campaigning for local officials and providing resources and vaccination appointments for the community. She spoke candidly about the differences in elder care in the U.S. and Mexico, reminisced nostalgically about rancho life as a young girl, and talked about her wishes for growing older independently.
Silvia'S story →
Stella Pak
Elder Participant
Stella Pak arrived in Hawaii in 1976 from South Korea. She and her husband worked for nearly 40 years in the U.S., where her son and daughter were born. Despite raising her children to speak Korean and observe Korean values, she talked about her children’s eventual assimilation into American culture. Stella discussed being older and middle class in America, the lack of financial security without a decent pension, and the rise in anti-Asian violence from the 1992 civil unrest to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Stella'S story →