Laura Michalek leads the auction at EDI’s Inclusion Fusion benefit dinner

The Executive Development Institute (EDI) held its annual benefit dinner and auction, Inclusion Fusion, at Seattle’s SODO Park. Hosts for the benefit dinner were Dr. Sandra Madrid, from the University of Washington, Jenette Ramos, from The Boeing Company, and Mike Sotelo, from La Plaza International. More than 250 guests participated in the silent and live auctions, contributing more than $110,000 in total donations. Read the full story

Sam Mitsui (left) delivers the keynote address and Sen. Maria Cantwell delivers a speech

The Nisei Veterans Committee and the Japanese American community gathered to honor fallen heroes at the Annual NVC Memorial Day Program at Lake View Cemetery in Seattle, as they always have since 1946. WWII veteran Sam Mitsui provided the keynote address. Read the full story

Brent Watanabe (left), Hengda Li (middle), and Zhi Lin

The Artist Trust Fellowship recognizes Washington state artists of exceptional talent. Fellowship recipients each received a cash award of $7,500.

Of 409 fellowship applicants, 16 artists were awarded fellowships. Three of the fellows are Asian American. Read the full story

Award winners Hoan Do (right), Christine Chen (middle-right) and Julie Pham (middle-left) with Chen’s husband, Richard Velazquez

The Second Annual Verizon Wireless APA Heritage Bash was held at the Hard Rock Cafe in Seattle. The main feature of the event was the Asian Pacific American Community Roast Awards. Read the full story

By David Aguilar
The Associated Press

CHICAGO (AP) — Minority youth spend more than half their day consuming media content, a rate that’s 4.5 hours greater than their white counterparts, according to a Northwestern University report released last week. Read the full story

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Myanmar refugees who fled military persecution and settled in America are finding new struggles with limited education and a stifling language barrier. Read the full story

By Louise Watt
The Associated Press

BEIJING (AP) — China demanded that Vietnam stop “all invasive activities” after accusing it of illegally entering its waters and endangering Chinese fishermen’s lives in an escalating dispute over territory in the South China Sea. Read the full story

By Jack Broom
The Seattle Times

Tun Channareth

SEATTLE (AP) — One of his legs ends at the knee. The other, just below it.

It’s a disquieting sight, but Tun Channareth, of Cambodia, sitting in a wheelchair he made himself, would not want you to turn away.

“Some people understand my English,” he told a group of Seattle University students a few days ago. “Some people understand my body.”

Channareth’s speech, his body, and his passion convey a simple message: that land mines, many of which were placed in wars and conflicts decades ago, continue to kill and maim thousands of men, women, and children around the globe each year. Read the full story

The National Asian Pacific Center on Aging (NAPCA) has released “Southeast Asian Voices,” a collection of stories from community leaders and elders of Southeast Asian descent served by the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP). Read the full story

Shao Zhi Hurst

By Shao Zhi Hurst
For Northwest Asian Weekly

I arrived, straight from China, in the Northwest on a sunny mid-September morning six years ago.

My fiancée lived in Bellevue and worked in Seattle, so while I stayed at home practicing my English, I looked around for someone to talk with. The only neighbor who appeared not to have a full-time job, Lia, was 80 years old. I soon discovered that she led a full life.   Read the full story

By Irfan Shariff
Northwest Asian Weekly

From left to right, top to bottom: Sam Ung, Kim (wife), and daughters Dawn, Diane, and Darlene

Sam (Seng) Ung and Thomas McElroy have known each other for 15 years. They were neighbors in the same South Seattle neighborhood. Ung introduced himself to McElroy’s dog in Chinese. McElroy knew then, as his dog listened patiently to Ung, that this would be a long-lasting friendship. Read the full story

By Stacy Nguyen
Northwest Asian Weekly

Rich Cho

Last Monday, June 13, it was announced that Burmese American Rich Cho, 45, will take over as general manager (GM) of the Charlotte Bobcats, only the third GM in its history. Cho replaces Rod Higgins, who was promoted to the position of president of basketball operations. Cho will report to famed former NBA player Michael Jordan, who is the majority owner of the team.

“He has a unique set of skills that I don’t possess,” Higgins told the Charlotte Observer. “His analytical mind is a big plus for us. His legal background is a big plus for us.” Read the full story

By Tessa Sari
Northwest Asian Weekly

Robert Wang

Robert S. Wang is a career Foreign Service officer with more than two decades of experience in the U.S. Department of State. He is the deputy chief of mission at the Embassy of the United States in Beijing. He is currently serving as charge d’affaires, essentially acting as the U.S. Ambassador to China since Jon Huntsman, the former ambassador, left his post at the end of April for a presidential run. Read the full story

By Andrew Hamlin
Northwest Asian Weekly

A screen capture from “Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Pasts Lives”

Thailand’s Apichatpong Weerasethakul, who turns 40 in July, began making feature films 11 years ago in 2000. Working outside the Thai studio system, he quickly established himself as an artistic maverick, with films rich in light and spirit. Read the full story

Compiled by Stacy Nguyen
Northwest Asian Weekly

Sometimes, dads say and do the darnedest things, and Asian dads may be the reigning champs at finding new, unusual, and creative ways of embarrassing their kids. In honor of Father’s Day, we’ve compiled a batch of stories that will hopefully make you commiserate, squirm, laugh, and celebrate dads everywhere. Read the full story

Since Father’s Day is this Sunday, we thought it was only fitting to talk about relationships — the different kinds of relationships in our lives and why they matter. Read the full story