Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Ky.
Hi Jason, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I joined the Formosa Association of Student Culture Ambassadors aka known as FASCA in 2019. Prior to this, I had little connection to my Taiwanese heritage and never volunteered in my life. I was hesitant to join at first due to me not realizing the importance of learning my background and helping around in my community. At first, I barely showed up to any events as I saw them as a waste of my time, but soon I learned I would be mistaken. As I grew up though I started taking a more prevalent role in the runnings of the organization, sooner rather than later, I had over 250 hours of volunteer service. In 2021 I was voted as Vice President of the FASCA DFW chapter and was thrusted into new roles and responsibilities I never have been entrusted with; through this, I learned the basics of what it takes to run an organization of this size. With this newfound knowledge and experience, I was voted President in 2022. Now coming up on my 4th year in FASCA, I have climbed the ranks from being a basic member who occasionally showed up to meetings to now being the President of the DFW chapter.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Although the road hasn’t always been smooth, I have figured out new ways to get through it every time. For example, soon after I joined FASCA, COVID hit, and everyone was in lockdown. This prevented me from further exploring this unique organization and learning how to get over this obstacle. To meet up, we used apps such as Zoom and Google Meets. For many months we had to adapt and figure out how to create new events and spend time with our community without putting ourselves in harm’s way. After a while, we resolved these issues by filming ourselves, talking about our culture, and giving presentations on leadership skills. Through that, I learned that no matter what, there is always a way around the biggest obstacle. Another issue that we learned to overcome was the lack of direction. With everyone at home and little to no connection with each other, things got a little out of control. People were panicking and wondering about the future of FASCA. To say that we have never been through anything like this is an understatement. For a long time, we had separate events with no real meaning or leadership roles, everyone was confused about what was happening with this organization. But once again, we pulled through! Our groups slowly came together to make what we now know as FASCA DFW.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
FASCA is a beautiful blend of Taiwanese culture and community service. We use this platform to teach others about our native country and traditions from our land while also helping other communities in need. Our volunteers gain hours by attending these events and doing labor tasks such as putting up tables, giving out prizes, or educating passing people with random facts about us. We are mainly known for volunteering in all kinds of programs around DFW, including the Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce, Chinese clubs, Chinese Schools, Crow Museum, DAAYO, Coppell Library, the city of Coppell, the City of Richardson, local Church fundraising Carnival, Dragon Boat Festival, and various other communities. Over the past few summers, we even have volunteered in Oklahoma for China Camp, a camp to help adopted children from China understand their heritage! Despite all our physical accomplishments, the thing that we are most proud of is the members that participate in these events. FASCA is a big commitment, and not many can handle all events on top of their busy schedule. To see these kids take time out of their day to connect, learn, and teach with their peers makes all the hard work truly worth it. Even with our bright pink shirts, we still find ways to shine in our community through our work. FASCA DFW sets itself apart from other organizations by the levels of commitment and hard work put in by our kids. Without the efforts and many hours put in by the FASCA students, we wouldn’t be here today.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
As FASCA president, networking is a huge part of my job as it is an integral stage of getting volunteering opportunities to our members. Without networking the organization would be susceptible to loss of confidence from our sponsors and our members themselves. This is why networking is a huge skill I needed to achieve for the well-being of this chapter. My advice is to just get yourself out there no matter the consequences. Without being bold and reaching for opportunities, you will never know the max you can achieve. A mentor of mine in FASCA is the founder and main teacher of the DFW chapter Teacher Shu Lam. She has pushed me out of my comfort zone on multiple occasions and really helped with my confidence level as a leader and orator. Without that experience, I would not be able to achieve the amount of networking that I have accomplished so far.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.fascadallas.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fascadallas/
Image Credits
FASCA DFW
