Friday, December 4, 2015
For many years, the Korean United Methodist Church (KUMC) and the City of Troy have forged a strong bond. Reverend David Kim of TroyHope Ministry – the English-speaking Ministry affiliated with the church – explained that each year the KUMC gives small gifts to City officials including the mayor and prominent leaders like the Superintendent of Schools. The church wishes to pay respect to the local government and community that has welcomed them to Troy.
Personal bonds are also forged between individual congregants and the church. Reverend Kim explains that many Asian Americans in the City and in Oakland County were adopted by non-Asian families. As these ethnic Asians become adults they wish “to find some kind of root” because they want to be “a part of a majority instead of a minority.” The Korean church offers a form of inclusion because the majority of the congregation is Asian American.
Moreover, Kim speaks of the expanding bond in a very unusual way. The church offers a six-week program called “First Drive” for 7 to 15 year olds. The program helps them understand the engineering mindset. Since many Asian Americans in Southeast Michigan are doctors and engineers, Kim wants to show children, regardless of race and ethnicity, that engineering is fun!
The KUMC and Troy have forged bonds that continue to grow in conventional and unconventional ways.
Photo: Interior of Korean United Methodist Church
Sources:
Image Source: Lance Luce, Korean United Methodist Church, Troy, N/A, LanceLuce.com
Kim, David. 2015. Phone conversation with Emily Blakowski, Troy, MI. November 27
TroyHope.org. Who We Are. Accessed November 26, 2015. https://www.troyhope.org/#/about-us.
To commemorate the City of Troy’s 60th Anniversary in 2015, we will publish a different story each day that highlights a person, discovery, or event that occurred locally, regionally, nationally, or even globally between 1955 and 2015 and that helped shape our lives and our community. We will try to post stories on important anniversary dates, but we also realize that dates are less critical than content and context. We will include the facts related to controversial stories, allowing our readers to form their own opinions. We invite you to read and comment on the stories. Your suggestions for topics are also welcome and can be posted on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/TroyHistoricVillage. You can also email stories or ideas to the 365 Story Editor at ed@thvmail.org.
