For Senior Fellow Vandana Kumar (Class XXXIX), storytelling is integral to life. From the stories told to her by her maternal grandmother about protecting their property under the British Raj to her mother’s telling of the non-violent resistance formed in her...
Journey from Vietnam All of us are called to be of service to others, and in the best of worlds, our story—our own life—leads us to career choices that allow us to make that happen. This is my story, a story with messages of love, trauma, hope, resilience, and joy. I...
My Personal Story A Book of Life contains many chapters written by our experiences – I’ll give you a Spark Notes version of mine: We spent our winter vacations with my dadi (paternal grandma) in our ancestral home in a small village in rural India. With no...
Dear America, Do you see me? I am a daughter of a single mom who made tremendous sacrifices to bring my siblings and me from Vietnam to the United States so we could have better opportunities. My mom wanted to further her education but was pulled out of school after...
Letter To My Father Editor’s note: Steve Nakano shared this letter with his brothers and nephews, which opened up new learning and sharing among family members across generations. This holiday season, we invite you to consider what letter you would like to write...
What Does It Mean to Me to Be an Asian-American? I was asked to write a “Board Boast” when I joined the California Judges Association Executive Board. This was to be published in the association e-newsletter to help people know me better. I am currently...
Race Relations. It has been more than 30 years, but I remember the details clearly. I was in Southern California for a job interview at the Los Angeles Times. The paper had flown me in a day early and put me up at the Westin. I had been a columnist for the San Jose...
Last June, members of ALF Silicon Valley’s AAPI Caucus gathered for an evening of connecting and sharing stories. Gordon Yamate (Class XIX) hosted the group for a private tour of the San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art (ICA) for the purpose of being inspired...
