GENERATION OF GIVING AWARD

Helen Song

Shortly after moving to New York City in 1991 and working at the Korea Society, Helen Song attended her very first KAFSC volunteers meeting at a church basement in the Upper West Side.  Hearing about the organization through a close friend, she was eager to get involved.  Helen had witnessed domestic violence in her Toronto Korean community while growing up.  It was a meaningful issue in her life.

Helen was immediately inspired by the work of KAFSC, and she has been involved ever since. After volunteering for many years, she joined the Board from 2003-2008. She worked with and learned from the incredible pioneering first-generation Board members, and she became responsible for finding much-needed funding from community donors, which has helped to propel KAFSC forward to where it is today. These years were also pivotal in creating lifelong friendships with other KAFSC volunteers and Board members. 

While KAFSC was Helen’s first step into philanthropy, she has continued to give back to communities that support the Asian arts, education, and peace, including White Wave Young Soon Kim Dance Company, Toronto REEL International Film Festival, Women Cross DMZ and Winsome Wishes for Kids.  

Sara Chan

Following in Helen’s footsteps, her daughter Sara became involved with KAFSC at an early age and has many childhood memories of going to the KAFSC galas and other events like the marches. Each year, Sara and her older sister Nicole were tasked with selling raffle tickets at the gala, and they would run around the banquet hall in Astoria, where the galas used to be hosted, eager to help out (and negotiate up how many tickets they could sell!). It was through these experiences that KAFSC’s mission became close to Sara’s heart and has continued her involvement to this day. 

Since graduating with a B.A. in Economics and Public Policy from the University of Chicago in 2020, Sara has worked as an Associate Portfolio Manager at BlackRock in New York City. At the firm, Sara has continued her passion for furthering diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. In 2022, she helped rebuild the Fixed Income platform’s DEI Junior Sub-Committee, planning and hosting over 15 events within the first year of inception to strengthen culture and retention for over 70+ juniors.