Song Kim: Let’s keep walking forward, together.
Song Kim is no stranger to the Y community and peacemaking work. A familiar face to many as a First Friend volunteer, and as the Volunteer Coordinator at Prude Inc., Song aims to promote Peace by building connections and community among groups of people.
“Peace to me, means fostering strong connections. It’s a relationship and it’s understanding among people [that are] embracing diversity and working collaboratively for a harmonious community,” says, Kim.
The act of fostering strong connections is evident in the work Song has done. As the volunteer coordinator for Prude Inc, Song helps to create various opportunities for people to engage in community-building activities including starting up the Cultural Ambassadors Program and Friday Dance, allowing newcomers to have ways to share their culture with other people in the community.
Song is especially proud of the Cultural Ambassadors Program. It is an opportunity for newcomers to be able to share and represent their culture with others through a presentation and Q & A, often followed by sharing in food from their specific countries and a comfortable, warm environment.
It has provided the opportunity for many to learn and even experience cultures different from their own and be inspired to share their own.
“It’s like a living dictionary or living culture,” shares Song as she reflects on the impact of the program. The Cultural Ambassadors Program has invited 27 ambassadors to represent 22 countries.
For Song, it ultimately comes down to ensuring that people have the opportunities to belong and work together, no matter if they are brand new to the community or have been here for years. There is always a way for everyone to get involved. The impact of those built connections continues to ripple.
Wanting to be able to connect and create community with other women, Song also started up a women’s hiking group that now has well over 500 women connecting with each other and with nature. Many new friendships have been formed in addition to many seeing improvements in their own mental health.
Song shared stories of several women who have found a sense of healing through connecting with each other and nature, noting that many have been able to come out of loneliness and isolation. She is now starting to see many of those same women get involved in their communities through volunteer work.
Song has inspired many and is also inspired by many. She highlights the team at Prude Inc. including Li Song, a 2018 Peace Medal Recipient and recent Red Triangle Award Recipient, as well Ralph Thomas and Christine Eruokwu as key people who have influenced and supported her.
When looking at the current global landscape, Song recognizes that there is a long way to go, but in that there are opportunities for people to help promote peace.
Recently, she had the opportunity to travel to El Salvador to volunteer and to see firsthand some of the issues many countries face both economically and ecologically.
Song is inspired more than ever to continue to take action for acts of peace and inspires others to do the same.
“[Philanthropy] plays a crucial role in promoting peace by supporting initiatives for those areas of social justice, empowering communities and create opportunities for those in need. It promotes what we want to do,” says Kim.
Song encourages everyone to get involved. We all have a part to play in promoting peace in our communities; “Everybody has something to do, everybody has something to share,” says Kim.
By starting even with one small step, Song believes that when we are take those steps together, it connects us and creates community. Whether it be donating time or money, there is power in acting together.
Kim finishes by saying, “everybody can do it…just start small [with] with something you can do…My motto and slogan is let’s keep walking forward together. Together is connection, together means [we] are ready to learn, ready to listen. That creates our community.”
Song Kim will be honored as the 2023 YMCA Peace Medal Recipient along with Cindy Floyd at the YMCA Peace Week Breakfast being held on Wednesday, November 15th at the Delta Hotel at 7:30am.
Tickets can be purchased on Eventbrite or for more information visit YMCA Peace Week.