For me, 1994 literally began with the ground shaking. In January, two months before the March 25, 1994 SCCLA Installation, the City of Los Angeles was rocked by a major earthquake centered three miles from my home in San Fernando Valley. Because the earthquake caused considerable damage to our house, it was a challenge to have simple repairs made so I could take over as president after Pam Chin ended her term. Because of the shortage of window glass, it took weeks to have our broken windows repaired. Major repairs had to be deferred until I had more time.
As it is every year, the March 25, 1994 installation was a noisy and bustling event. It was highlighted by the keynote address of now-U.S. District Judge Margaret Morrow, the first woman president of the State Bar. I had not planned on serving as SCCLA president until the following year. David Tseng, who was installed as president during March, 1993, resigned at the end of July, 1993 to accept a position with the Clinton administration in Washington, D.C.
Reflecting back on my term as president, I remember the year as a whirlwind of endless dinners, events and functions I attended on behalf of SCCLA. What stands out foremost in my mind were the two appearances I made for SCCLA at the Marco Polo Nights in 1993 and 1994. Most past presidents of SCCLA would probably consider Marco Polo Night to be the most dreaded event in their year.
A low point in my year as president was when SCCLA was in danger of losing its affiliation with the L.A. County Bar Association because of an insufficient number of concurrent members. I will always be grateful to Ben Chin for the hours he spent on the phone that summer persuading SCCLA members to join or re-new their membership in the L.A. County Bar while I was on a family vacation in Great Britain.
For me, a highlight of the year was having an abridged version of my SCCLA Newsletter President’s Message regarding the need for diversity on the bench printed in the editorial section of the Los Angeles Times during August, 1994. The message in its entirety was re-printed in Asian Week and the NAPABA newsletter. In the years since the L.A. Times publication, two or three times a year someone will ask me about it. The message was written as then-Governor Pete Wilson completed the final year of his first term. At that point in his administration he had not appointed many minorities to the state courts. Thankfully, by the time he left office, Governor Wilson elevated Owen Kwong and Art Lew to the Superior Court, appointed George Wu and Ruth Kwan to Municipal Court and elevated them to the Superior Court, and appointed Tomson Ong, Ramona See, and Debra Yang to the Municipal Court.
In the years leading up to my term as president, I had the opportunity to work with many able and talented people with tremendous leadership skills who are not past presidents. Dolly Gee, who was SCCLA president in 1992 during the riots following the verdicts in the Rodney King beating case, was an inspiration.
No president of an organization can serve its members without the support of the board members. During my year, I was blessed with energetic and dedicated members. In particular, I received tremendous help from Curtis Jung, who was then president-elect. |
