Acceptance speech: Freedom Award by Georgia Public Policy Foundation. 28 Jan 2020
Acceptance speech: Freedom Award by Georgia Public Policy Foundation. 28 Jan 2020
Thank you, I love you all!
Thank you, General Ellis, for your kind and warm introduction. I
am proud to receive such recognition from such a distinguished
person as you.
Thanks to Dr. Michael Youssef, for your prayers and warm
comments. I love to be praised! However, I am a little confused,
my pastor told me that I am a sinner at the Church buy now he
said that I am a fine man.
I want to recognize my heroes who fought for my life and
freedom; our Korean War veterans!
I want to thank Consul General Kim of Korea, for attending this
celebration and being present for this honor.
Korea is a beautiful country with full of kind and industrialized
people, and I strive to honor my heritage!
Mr. Nakamura, deputy CG of Japan is here with us, thank you!
Thanks to all of you for coming to my bragging party!
Thanks to Yoon-Chul Kim, the new president of Korean
American Association of Greater Atlanta.
I want to thank
Renasant Bank and Bartow Morgan,
Georgia Ports Authority-Jamie McCurry, Robert Morris, Bart Gobeil,
the McCamish Group-Oh we miss Hank!,
David Allman, Paul Kim, Frank Barron, Berry College, Steve
Briggs, and Joe Woodson of my company GBM, for your
sponsorships and support. GPPF is an excellent organization
for your investment!
I have an old friend came from Korea to celebrate with us. SW
Kim is here!
There are a few who believed in me and supported me all the
way, especially my family and my wife Kay who energized and
supported me all the way.
Thanks to Oz Nelson, Frank Blake, Senator David Perdue,
Bjay Pak, and all of you!
There are many others in my list to thank; the list goes very long,
longer than the Pharmacy receipt tape! … But Benita warned
me to keep it short!
Did you see the Freedom Award recipients in the program?
I never imagined I would be in the company of such great leaders.
I’m still not sure I deserve such recognition. But I know that my
mother, Pyunnim Park, would see this differently if she was still
alive.
She would shout loud to all of you: … “I knew that my son
would receive the Freedom Award.” Can you hear her voice?
She was my greatest cheerleader!
My God and my mother are believed in me through all my life
and stood beside me.
Thanks to GPPF Board, chair Rogers Wade, Kyle Wingfield,
who clearly selected me by an accident.
My nonprofit Good Neighboring Foundation will continue to print
patriots pocket cards, and print US Constitution books in 3
Asian languages and distribute it to Asian-American
communities throughout the U.S.
The Cato Institute inspired my team to start it. So, a special
thank-you to our keynote speaker, John Allison of Cato!
I want to thank to most of all, the United States of America, my
adopted nation!
I arrived the US in 1974 with $200 in my pocket and very little
English. Six hours after I landed, I started a job making $1.80 an
hour. The value of $1.80 was about 40 times more in Korea at
that time. It can happen only in America!
I started cleaning the floors of a steakhouse in Indianapolis.
Today, I own a company that employs 3,000 and cleans over 1
million toilets every day in over 25 major US cities. It can happen
only in America!
This great nation gave me all I needed to reach my “stupid” goal:
to pay $1 Million in annual income tax. It took me 17 years but It
can happen only in America!
A lot of people told me in my old days there is no free lunch in
America.
I made decision to work hard, to make sure the USA wouldn’t lose
money on me, and, America with my devotions, she would be
better in shape than the day I arrived.
Know this: This is my story, and a story of my fellow immigrants
from Asia. We may be perceived as foreigners because of our
Asian appearance. But we are making contributions in all sectors
of OUR beloved nation.
This is a story of America, the Land of Opportunity. Any
American can seize it. I call it if Sunny Can, Anyone can!
I’m honored to accept this award as a tool to help me influence
the lives of young Americans better.
I hope they, including these cadets at Youth Challenge academy,
sees me as someone qualified to tell them what to do and what to
not do to be successful.
This award will help me do a better job for sure. So help me God!
Thank you, and may God bless you all!
