Ick-Whan Lee (left) receives Overseas Koreans Foundation grant
from Seattle Consulate General Hoon Sohn.

Much has been said about the history of the Chinese, Japanese and Filipino immigrants in the state of Washington, but rarely has anyone written about the plight of Koreans during the early years. Korean Americans were merely treated as numbers in history books, with no written record. Such was the case until Ick-Whan Lee came along and established the Korean American Historical Society in 1985.

Lee founded the Korean American Historical Society (KAHS) with the purpose of recording the experiences of Korean American immigrants, and tracing the footsteps of first generation Koreans who came in the late 1800s to early 1900s. KAHS publishes annual or bi-annual journals, called “Occasional Papers,” and can be accessed through the KAHS website. The latest journal published this year is volume 5.

Lee, who first came to the United States in 1965 as a student, has always been fascinated with history. “I happen to like history, even though I majored in a different subject at the University of Washington,” said Lee. He adds, “It occurred to me that the living experiences of the Korean immigrants in this country might be worthwhile recording.” Lee did not want to simply provide advocacy. Rather, he was interested in providing details and honest recording of the early Korean immigrant life in Washington State. But it is in his passion for Korean American history that often leads him to get involved in other projects benefiting Seattle’s Korean American community.

In the spirit of fostering the Korean American heritage, Lee established two schools: Seattle United Korean School in 1995, and Bellevue United Korean School in 1997. Both schools were set up to enable second generation Korean Americans to learn about their Korean culture and language. The Seattle United Korean School uses the facilities of Shoreline Christian School, while Bellevue United Korean School uses the facilities of Eastside Catholic High School. Both Korean schools operate on Friday and Saturday evenings, and boasts a combined enrollment of 450 students.

Ick-Whan Lee helped establish Pacific International Bank, which was just chartered last month after a yearlong preparation, and is currently a board member. He is a board member of Seattle’s Korean Community Counseling Center, an organization that provides social services and outreach to the Korean American community. Lee is also a successful businessman and president of Arkay International, an import-export business that was founded in 1981. For his hard work and dedication with Arkay International, Lee was honored with the Business/Professional of the Year award given by the Korean American Professional Society in 1996.

Buon Brown, community volunteer and former principal of Bellevue United Korean School, who nominated Lee for Asian Weekly’s Top Ten Contributors, said that Lee should have been recognized for all his efforts and community involvement a long time ago. “He’s a very dedicated and well-respected man. He’s always just behind-the-scenes, very quiet and humble, and not wanting to be noticed,” said Brown.

Lee and his wife QwiHee Lee have been good role models for the community and to their three grown children as well: Tina, a graduate of Northwestern Medical School in Chicago, and is currently a resident psychiatrist at UW Medical Center, Amy, a graduate of Amherst College in Massachusetts, and currently an associate at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, a finance company in New York City, and Benjamin, a graduate of Harvard, and is now a math graduate student at the University of Chicago. How was he able to raise three successful children? “We often had discussions at the dinner table or after watching a movie . . . very open-ended, more argumentative that consensual type.” Said Lee.

Lee looks forward to putting out the Korean American Historical Society’s journals or “Occasional Papers” until it reaches volume 10. “Then, I hopefully expect the activity will gain its own momentum.” Lee concludes.

The KAHS website can be accessed at www.kahs.org.