Koreatown Storytelling Program is proud to present Legacies of Western Avenue (LOWA), a multimedia project that highlights the history of this iconic K-Town street, with insights from six Korean American store owners who shared about the history and changing landscape of Western Ave.

Last Saturday, April 5, KSP hosted an Oral History 101 training at the Felipe de Neve branch of the Los Angeles Public Library! KSP Audio Producer Tony Morales and KSP Youth Participant Timothy Lee were joined by youth students to discuss the purpose and importance of oral history, as well as to learn how to conduct their own oral history interviews.

This article by Lazar Johnson and Urja Parekh is part of a hyperlocal journalism project between Boyle Heights Beat and the Koreatown Storytelling Program. During the Eaton Fire, Koreatown educator Jeffrey Sapin was one of thousands of Altadena residents who lost their homes.

This article by Timothy Lee, with additional reporting from Isleen Lee, is part of a hyperlocal journalism project between Boyle Heights Beat and the Koreatown Storytelling Program. During the January Palisades and Eaton fires, hundreds of volunteers across Southern California flocked to support first responders and displaced people. Dr. Jorge Arvizu was one of the countless volunteers who rushed to help fire-struck Californians.

On Friday, March 7, Koreatown Storytelling Program wrapped up our 2024-2025 Traditional Healing Arts cohort with our annual Culmination party! It was an incredible night of celebrating our students and narrators who participated in this year’s oral history interviews.

On Tuesday, February 11, KSP had the opportunity to tour South Baylo University LA, a graduate school in Koreatown that offers full accreditation in acupuncture and East Asian Medicine. Dr. Jun Woo Kim gave our students an overview of traditional Eastern medicine theory, learning about the five elements, Qi, and Yin Yang.

On Tuesday, Feb. 4, KSP welcomed back our friends from Las Fotos Project for another portraiture workshop! LFP is an LA-based organization that works to mentor teenage girls and gender expansive youth through photography.

Earlier this month, KSP welcomed back our friend Cathy, who led another foodmaking workshop for us. Cathy has taught us how to cook many traditional Korean recipes in the past, including miyeokguk (seaweed soup) and kimchijeon (kimchi pancakes). This time around, she taught us how to make soondubu, or Korean soft tofu soup!

Happy Holidays from Koreatown Storytelling Program!

We celebrated the season, as well as our halfway mark in our Traditional Healing Arts cohort, with an end of year holiday party! Our students and friends of KSP gathered at the treehouse and shared some delicious Guatemalan tamales from Amalia’s Restaurant.

During the months of November and December, KSP held a two-part Flash Fiction Workshop led by Leah Wang. Leah is an English and Asian American Literature instructor at Marlborough School.

Last Saturday, KYCC held our first ever El Mercadito Mágico Traditional Healing Arts Festival. KYCC’s Prevention Education, Recovery Services, and Koreatown Storytelling Program staff and volunteers gathered with members of our Los Angeles community to learn diverse traditional healing practices. We welcomed local healing artists, who demonstrated different ways to take care of our bodies including acupuncture, plant-based medicine, and sound bath meditation.

On Tuesday October 8, KSP held our third workshop of the semester: History of Koreatown. KSP Program Director Katherine Kim gave a presentation about the history of this community, from the waves of Korean immigration to Los Angeles to the evolution of the area to become the multiethnic, and multilingual community it is today.

Volumes 3 and 4 of the Koreatown Storytelling Program Book are out now! These books are comprised of narratives from our 2021 Eldercare and 2023-24 Koreatown Organizing to Reduce Youth Opioid [Use], or KORYO, cohorts.

On Sep. 28, KSP kicked off our 2024-2025 cohort with an Indigenous botanical dyeing workshop at Harold A. Henry Park. Joel Garcia from Meztli Projects taught us all about indigenous dyeing methods using indigo, Black Walnut, and persimmon.

In August 2024, the KSP had the amazing opportunity to travel up north to Oakland, CA to document stories from Oakland’s very own Koreatown!

Meet Esther Kang, a researcher, educator, and Professor of Design Studies at the University of Wisconsin. Esther's journey through cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Dallas, and abroad in Perth, Australia, and Durban, South Africa, has shaped her understanding of race and equity in design.

Meet Laura Park, a hanbok business owner based in Los Angeles. Born to a family that operated a textile store in Seoul’s Gwangjang Market, Laura initially pursued a career as a translator before finding her true passion in business.

KSP is honored to be awarded a $25,000 Humanities For All Program Grant from California Humanities for its project entitled "Traditional Healing Arts in Koreatown." This project will involve interviewing, gathering, and archiving oral history narratives about acupuncturists, herbalists, shamans, botanicas, and curanderas from our primarily limited-income, immigrant community.