By Carlotta Mohamed
The Korean American Family Service Center hosted its ninth annual Volunteer Appreciation Party last week to celebrate the many volunteers for their dedication and commitment to the organization’s vision and mission.
More than 100 volunteers and supporters joined KAFSC Dec. 18 at Reception House — located at 167-17 Northern Blvd. in Flushing — where 53 volunteers received a President’s Volunteer Service Award (PVSA).
“We at the Korean American Family Service Center are so grateful for the community’s support for our mission to end and prevent domestic violence and sexual assault. Without volunteers, it would simply not be possible for us to serve the victims and survivors in our community,” said Saenam Kim, deputy director, of KAFSC. “This work is not something we can do alone- we need all community members to offer a helping hand, as well as act as an advocate when they witness violence happening in our neighbors’ homes. Each year, we recognize and celebrate with our volunteers that our efforts are making our community safer and happier, little by little.”
This year’s recipients included volunteers from the Harmony volunteer group, Hodori After School Program, Murang volunteer group, YCPT, and Rainbow House Shelter.
The PVSA was created to encourage volunteerism and is awarded to individuals based on the number of hours they have volunteered in the past. The different levels of recognition are Gold, Silver, and Bronze. This year, a very special volunteer of KAFSC received her Lifetime Award for volunteering more than 4,000 hours.
In addition to PVSA, KAFSC presented seven special awards for distinguished individuals and community partners who have supported KAFSC and have been an integral part of many programs.
The Community Service in Action Award was presented to the Korea Finance Society, Love Violin for Children, and Queens Community House.
The Special Recognition Award was presented to Tammy Cheng with the Teen Resource Center at Leadership School of Queens.
The Volunteer of the Year award was presented to two Harmony members, llryun Lim and Hyun Sook Joo.
The list of PVSA recipients (53 total volunteers) inlcudes:
Gold (five volunteers): Hyun Sook Joo; Ilryun Lim; Hye Suk Yoon; Tarannum Ahmed; Elijah Suh.
Silver (18 volunteers): Hyejin Han; Sui Jeong; Sung Rah; Lilian Cho; Eunsook Kim; Connie Lee; Jungsook Kang; Julie Kim; Grace Yoon; Michelle Heo; Ok Cheon Han; Eulhyang Hyun; Hyang Ran Chun; Sharon Cha S Lee; Jungwon Hong; Harry Sun; Jasmine Lee; Joon Park
Bronze (30 volunteers): Ok Nam Lee; Kioseob Kim; Yonghui Kim; Grace Park; Young Hee Choi; Hye Ran Choi; Soyeon Han; Misuk Choe; Gukhee Kim; Yeanjong Yoo; Sangme Lee; Nayoung Kim; Liz Hyeon; Abraham Bang; Subin Cho; Alfonso Garcia; Jicheol Ha; Andrew Hong; Janet Lee; Hyungee Min; Dahyun Elle Park; John Skiera; Sunghoon Yoon; Danyoung Kim; Neo Pi; Taegyu Ha; Matthew Hong; Nicholas Skiera; Alice La; Yuri Choi
Reach reporter Carlotta Mohamed by e-mail at cmoha
