I Have Absolutely
No Regrets

 Interview by Cheyenne Kim

Where is your hometown, and when did you immigrate to the United States?
I was born in the North Gyeongsang Province of Korea. I initially immigrated to Kansas (U.S.) in 1975. [However,] I eventually settled in Los Angeles' Koreatown in 1976 after a friend found an apartment in the area. I worked in Koreatown until I retired. 

Can you tell me more about your immigration experience?
I immigrated to Kansas in 1975 by myself. My wife's older sister wed in South Korea to an American. Through her visa invitation, I was able to immigrate to the U.S. 

When I came to the U.S., I only had the address provided by her. It led me to a trailer home in the middle of nowhere. I only saw what appeared to be U.S. soldiers in the area; it turned out that my wife’s sister married a soldier. There weren't any Koreans in sight. There weren't a lot of job opportunities. I was barely conversational in English. 

I couldn't imagine myself adjusting to life in Kansas given these challenges. I felt like going back to South Korea was the answer. As I was looking at flights back to South Korea, I realized that flights to South Korea only departed from Los Angeles. They did not have flights to South Korea from New York City back then, as they do now. Los Angeles was the only option. So, I went to Los Angeles to catch my return flight to Korea. 

I left Kansas and arrived in Los Angeles. On the morning of my flight, I decided to go on a walk around my hotel. I serendipitously ran into an old friend of mine! We greeted one another with so much excitement and a firm handshake. I told my friend that I was only briefly in Los Angeles and planning to return to South Korea. He immediately retorted "You’re crazy." He couldn’t understand why I would waste my money and try so hard to return to South Korea while he had invested so much money to immigrate to the U.S. Thanks to that same friend, I got an apartment in Los Angeles [instead of moving back to South Korea]. That’s how I came to settle down in Los Angeles’ Koreatown in 1976.

Then did you immigrate with your family?
I initially immigrated to Kansas by myself. Then, once I found an apartment in Los Angeles, my wife and kids joined me in Los Angeles from South Korea. At the time, my eldest was 5 years old; my second child was 4 years old; and my youngest daughter was a 1-year-old. They all immigrated to the U.S. at a very young age, so it was a challenging time for [my wife and me]. 

When we sent our kids to school in the morning before going to work, we would have them wear the key to the apartment around their necks. When the kids were done with school, they returned to an empty home and took care of themselves until my wife and I were done with work. We were worried that we would get in trouble with the police [for allowing our children to stay by themselves at home while we were at work.] 

The apartment that my friend found for me kicked us out because of the kids. Fortunately, we found a place on 8th and Hobart that allowed children, but it was pretty old. The apartment building wasn't clean and was quite filthy [throughout the premises]. But that’s a long time ago — my children are all grown up now, and over 50 years old.

Have you seen the film, Minari?
Yes, I did see it. My immigration story is similar to that of Minari. I didn’t find it that entertaining. But still, I have to admit watching Minari reminded me of the struggles and challenges that I faced when I first immigrated to the U.S. It brought up a lot of memories. 

Did you have any particular dreams that you wanted to fulfill by immigrating to the United States?
I was solely focused on surviving. In the blur of doing so, I found myself focused on making a living and working every day. I didn't have the capacity to think about anything else. 

What kind of challenges did you face upon immigrating?
Upon immigrating to the U.S., I longed for South Korea for roughly five years. Homesickness made settling down more difficult. The desire to return to South Korea was extremely strong when my parents were still alive. Once my parents passed away, my siblings were the only ones in South Korea. As time went by, my daily thoughts about returning to Korea and missing my hometown gradually went away. Regardless, I was born and raised in South Korea; it is my culture and language. The ease of both brings a sense of longing and nostalgia for my native land. I don’t plan on returning to South Korea. There is a vast difference between yesteryear’s and South Korea's present-day. Everyone is leading busy lives. Friends I grew up with are now grandfathers themselves. It's been so long since I lived in South Korea; it's not like how I remember it. It seems like as I age, the loneliness grows with me. 

Are you an American citizen or a visa holder?
I am still a permanent resident. 

Do you want to become a citizen, or do you want to remain a permanent resident?
I’ve lived in the U.S. for roughly 45-46 years, but I am the only one out of nine to live in the U.S. Having eight siblings in Korea still causes me to long for it. But since I’m approaching my 80s now, I don’t feel the need to become a citizen. I'll just keep my permanent residency.

It sounds like you’ve led a very hardworking life.
Yes, I gave it my all because I had no choice. Immigrants from Korea now generally come with a high level of means, so they don’t struggle as much. But when I came in 1975, I didn’t know the language or culture. I had to work to the extent my body permitted.

When I was working at the sewing factory, I would see a lot of young Korean women crying in the bathroom. When I asked them why they were crying, they’d reply that they had gotten degrees from prestigious colleges in Korea but had no job prospects once they immigrated to the U.S. — their only options were to be waitresses at restaurants or workers at sewing factories. I really think the young college-educated Korean immigrants from that era had the toughest time when they came here and had to work very hard. 

Their situation was certainly challenging. At the end of the day, however, they did alright for themselves if you look at their legacy through their kids and the lives they were able to build. 

When you look at the kids of those immigrants, who grew up here, you see that they’re politicians, doctors, and engineers. They were able to be successful in any field. If you look at the kids that were raised by my generation, it looks like they’re all doing well. But I think the sacrifices of their parents had a lot to do with it.

How was your situation in South Korea before moving to the United States?
When I was in Korea, my family situation was good. We had our own house and we had a clothing company. I left for the U.S. when I was 30 years old. For that age in South Korea, my situation wasn't so bad. 

What are your thoughts on Koreatown?
Koreatown can be a little hectic, but it’s a convenient place to live for [Korean] seniors due to the many markets, hospitals, and pharmacies that are accessible to us. Back in 1976, when I first moved to Koreatown, there weren’t a lot of Korean people or Korean establishments like markets, but there was a lot of development in Koreatown over the following years. Back then, there were no Korean banks in the area — except for Hanmi Bank. The only Korean produce market was on Olympic Avenue. Now that market doesn’t exist anymore. There was another market on Western that popped up later that also doesn’t exist anymore. There were a few Korean restaurants back then, but they're all closed now, too. 

Back then, there weren’t many Korean or Korean-Chinese restaurants. Now, Koreatown has developed tremendously, and there’s far greater variety and quality available in terms of both food and culture. Back then, the quality of the jjajangmyeon (짜장면 — a Korean-Chinese black bean noodle dish) was so poor. But still, because there wasn’t a lot of Korean cuisine available at the time, we still ate it with gusto. But when I think about it now, the reason we enjoyed the food so much was because that was all that we had available. 

Where’s your favorite place in Koreatown?
I love where I’m living now. I live with my wife at my own place, not a senior apartment. 

How do you get around in Koreatown?
Approximately a year and a half ago, I let go of my driver’s license. I now walk or take the bus. I find that since I live near most places in Koreatown and everything I need is relatively close together, I can get around without much difficulty. If I need to go somewhere that’s a little too far to walk, I’d take the bus. 

Among the various jobs that you have held in the United States, which stands out to you?
Since immigrating to the U.S., I've worked all sorts of odd jobs. It wasn't easy. Now that I think about it, I was 30 years old back then. Now I'm 80 years old. 

I worked in the garment industry in a sewing factory. My time in the factory left the biggest impression. The factory specialized in women's clothing, but at the time, I really appreciated traditional, perhaps old-fashioned, styles. I managed the clothing store for 7-8 years. Despite the longevity, I couldn’t keep up with women’s fashion trends. The trends were moving quickly, and if you don't stay on top of the market, selling products or making a profit become increasingly difficult. In addition to the need of knowing what's in style, the costs of maintenance — property value and other fees — accumulate. Though
I had to close my business, I was able to make some return on my initial investment and years of work. 

Can you tell me more about your work in the Garment District?
At that time, the garment district in downtown L.A. wasn't bustling with activity and did not have a strong wholesale industry [as it does now]. It also grew more and more expensive to send clothing to Mexico. Do you know about the swap meet markets in downtown Los Angeles? The swap meets were important for business; it needed to be successful for the clothing to sell and for our business, then, to be successful. As swap meets were on the rise, our business did well. When they began to deflate and not do so well, we couldn’t do much business anymore. So we closed the shop.

How did you come to work in the downtown Los Angeles Garment District?
Before I immigrated to the United States, I learned how to sew because I had heard that having that skill could make it easier to find a job as an immigrant. So I attended a sewing school for several months before immigrating to the U.S. Otherwise, I don’t think I would have been able to find a job here. I was looking through a newspaper for jobs and saw that a sewing factory was looking for employees. So I went for an interview. During the interview, they asked me if I had sewing experience, and I told them that I did. I got hired. I went to work at the sewing factory and worked hard there for some time. The owner of the store was Jewish. He offered to give me some fabric and rent a storage space to me; he gave me the opportunity to run my own clothing store. So, that's how I got started in the clothing business.

What did a typical workday look like at the sewing factory?
I first received the shipment of merchandise every morning. I felt confident that I could earn a lot of money if I worked hard. We were paid by the rate
back then, so I worked diligently. 

What kind of people did you work with in downtown L.A.?
About a third of the workers there were Korean, and the remaining two-thirds were South American. There were no differences in the work that the Koreans and South Americans did. We worked together on the same tasks. 

Did the Korean and South American workers get along? Were there ever any conflicts?
No, there were never any conflicts. South Americans are very gentle and kind, so I remember the work environment being very peaceful and non-discriminatory. 

Do you still remain in contact with the people you worked with back then?
Most of the people I worked with back then have passed away by now. It's been about 20-30 years since I worked there, so no, I am not in contact with them.

Do you have any regrets about your work experience?
I have absolutely none. 

Did you enjoy your job?
Because I was only in my 30s at the time, I didn’t notice my struggle because of my youth. Now, looking back, I realize that I wouldn’t be able to work as hard as I did as a young man at this age. 

Do you think it’s important that the general public be more aware of the process that goes behind making their clothes?
Well, I think it depends on your personality. Your personality has to be very meticulous and patient. People who don’t have these qualities can’t perform our kind of work. Each stitch has to be done perfectly — after all, it’s fashion, so you have to be attentive to aesthetics. You have to be patient. 

What was the favorite thing you learned from your work?
I learned that whatever you do, you have to be patient. You can’t get anything done if you’re impatient. At first, I did manual labor because I had to make ends meet. Even still, patience proved to be the most important quality and lesson learned.

Can you tell me more about your volunteering experience?
I was the president of the Korean Seniors Association (KSA) two times, starting in about 2010 and for about 7 years. After that, I was the inaugural president of the March 3rd movement organization. I was also a board member of the Korean American Coalition after being invited by Executive Director Steve Kang. Initially, I was going to join my second child on their mission trips; he is a missionary, as he always dreamt. But with my old age, traveling across foreign countries seemed challenging and not the best idea. So, I looked for opportunities to be of service in my own neighborhood of Koreatown. I noticed that Korean seniors walked up and down Olympic and Western in L.A.'s Koreatown. This is when I realized I could serve Korean seniors who also had left their home-towns [in South Korea]. I found the office of the KSA and signed up. I began as a member and became very dedicated and committed to the work and community. I eventually assumed the role of the leader [president] of the KSA.

What kind of work did you do at the Korean Seniors Association?
Since a lot of Korean immigrant elders are not fluent in American English, we provide a service that helps them pay their rent and utility bills. I sought out volunteers who had expertise in this area and organized teams of volunteers that would regularly assist elders with these tasks. Later on, we also received support from the government.

How is the role of the president determined at the Korean Seniors Association?
So, I was president twice; once you serve, you can be re-elected for another term. There are about 7,000-8,000 people represented by the organization, and these people vote for the person who they think would be the best president. I was still popular after my first time, so I was elected for a second term. As for the March 3rd organization’s U.S.A. Chapter, they reached out to me to be the inaugural president once that branch got started, and I was the president for about four years.

What kind of work did you do with the March 3rd organization?
We raised awareness about Korea’s independence movement among Korean Americans — especially those who had grown up in the U.S. from an early age — since they may not know the Korean language well, much less Korea’s history. So, we explain to them how Korea became an independent nation again [after Japanese occupation], and we use demonstrations to assist with their learning as well.

What did you do to commemorate the March 3rd Movement this year, given the coronavirus pandemic?
We couldn’t do any live events due to the pandemic, but we did hold an essay competition for youth about the March 3rd Movement this year.

Do you have anything you’d like to add about your volunteer experience?
When I was the president of the March 3rd organization’s U.S.A. chapter, I supported Councilman David Ryu and other Korean American politicians. So whenever Korean Americans were running for office, I’d help campaign for them. I did that for multiple years, knocking on people’s doors in the neighborhood. I also helped Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas’s campaign a lot. 

I really do think that instead of going abroad for missionary work, it’s more meaningful to do service for the people living in this neighborhood. That’s why I got started with all this work. Everyone’s faith is different, so I don’t do missionary work, but I do try to ease people’s spirits through this community service. I still derive a lot of pride and purpose from the work I’ve done in the community. 

Even very famous older Korean celebrities would come to me for help, and when they published books about their immigrant experiences, some of them would even write about me. For two pages or so, they would talk about how I was able to help them adjust to life in the United States and express that they were grateful that they were able to be connected to President Kang and be able to settle down smoothly in Los Angeles. 

Did you find anything challenging about your community service work?
I would go out for about 4-5 hours a day to do community service. But since I’m a senior, it was a little tiring. Even until this year, I helped with campaigning, and I’m sure I’ll help out in upcoming elections as well. As I went around from apartment to apartment, some houses would have dogs that I had to be careful of, or sometimes the gate would be closed, so I would have to seek out the manager. But I do this work because I want to be of service to the Korean American community.

Do you have any lessons you’d like to share with the younger generations?
I don’t have anything in particular that I want to teach younger people. I think young Korean Americans who grew up in the U.S. saw their parents struggle, and they understand how much their parents sacrificed. There are still some cultural differences between Korean immigrants and Koreans born and raised in the U.S. because it seems like Koreans from Korea tend to look for ways to use others. However, it seems like Koreans in the U.S. don't have that tendency or characteristic. Generally, though, I think Korean Americans are very intelligent. 

In my own family, my grandchildren and children all speak Korean well. I think it’s important that young Korean Americans continue to stay rooted in the
Korean language and culture. In the same way, you have to learn English from an early age to become fluent. I think it’s the same for Koreans. I, myself, don’t speak English very well and usually have to pay attention to tone and context to be able to understand conversations in English. I really do think Korean Americans who were raised in households with their grandmothers and grandfathers speak Korean so well because they were able to have that positive influence from when they were little children. 

What are your thoughts on the anti-Asian violence that has become more prominent since the start of the pandemic?
It's been an adjustment because I can't leisurely, and at any moment, walk down the street to go out, meet friends, or even go to restaurants freely. I used to go to the local YMCA every day to exercise, but I haven’t been able to do that. It’s lonely to stay inside so much of the time and to have these constraints on what I can do. I also try not to go outside at night. I think I will get depressed from staying cooped up so long indoors.

What’s your daily routine these days?
These days, I just stay inside and watch TV, read some newspapers, and use my phone to watch YouTube and talk to my friends on KakaoTalk.

Have you ever experienced a pandemic or public health crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic?
No, I think this is a unique time. I can’t think of another time like this when the government got involved so deeply. But, I think there are also positive aspects to this current situation. In the past, I would needlessly go out and meet people and make a lot of phone calls, but now I only stay in contact with a select few people. 

Do you attend church these days?
I used to attend Oriental Mission Church, but I don’t go in person right now because there are no in-person services. But there is a church close to my home that is still holding services during the pandemic — about 200 people attend. I attend services there from time to time. 

I’ve also been vaccinated twice. Steve Kang at KYCC was able to register my wife and me for the vaccines.