Colorado Dragon Boat
Board of Directors
Colorado Dragon Boat Board of Directors meet on the third Tuesday of each month.
Janet Shih Hajek, Board Chair
Corporate Counsel, Agilent Technologies, Inc. Janet is an in-house trademark and copyright attorney with Agilent Technologies, Inc. Prior to joining CDB, Janet served on the board of directors for the Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center (APALRC) in Washington, D.C. as well as the boards of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) and the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of the Greater Washington, D.C. Area (APABA-DC, where she was president from 2005 – 2006). Janet is also an active volunteer at the Polaris at Ebert Elementary School in Denver. Janet has a law degree from The George Washington University Law School and an undergraduate degree from The American University in Washington, D.C. 
Andrew Ho, Board Secretary
Criminal Defense Attorney, Recht Kornfeld, P.C. Andrew is a criminal defense attorney at Recht Kornfeld P.C. Upon leaving the Public Defender's Office, Andrew wanted to find ways to contribute to the diverse communities in the metro Denver area. Andrew recently graduated from CDB's AAPI Emerging Leader Program in April 2018. After learning about the organization's mission from this program, he decided to help serve the AAPI community and promote cultural diversity in Colorado by joining the Board of Directors. Colorado Dragon Boat is important to Andrew because they provide a forum and voice for smaller communities, as well as opportunities to individuals who may have been overlooked in the past. This is his first year on the Dragon 5280 board and he serves on the Executive Committee as Secretary. 
David Chung
Title Clinical Instructor, Section of Hospitalist Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado SOM David grew up in the Midwest. After graduating from the University of Chicago with a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts, he moved to South Korea, where he lived and worked for about 15 years. He moved back to the United Stated in 2011 and ended up in Colorado in 2014, where he currently works for the Children’s Hospital Colorado as a pediatric hospitalist. Because of his passion for increasing multicultural awareness -in particular, of Asian culture - David was naturally drawn to the Dragon Boat Festival with its mission to build bridges of awareness, knowledge and understanding between the diverse Asian American Pacific Islander communities and the general public. In addition to his work with CDBF, he serves on the board of the Korean Academy of Colorado, the region’s oldest independent Korean language and cultural institution. David is married with two young children. 
Debbie Chen-Becker
Pediatrician, Children's Hospital Colorado Dr. Debbie Chen-Becker grew up in Cleveland and Columbus, OH. During her 4 years in St. Louis at Washington University School of Medicine, she served as Co-President for the local chapter of the American Medical Women’s Association as well as overseeing mentorship in the local chapter of the Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association. She and her husband moved to Denver in 2003, where she completed her pediatric residency at Children’s Hospital Colorado. She is currently a community pediatrician at Children’s Hospital Colorado. Debbie enjoys spending time with her three children and spends countless hours volunteering at their school. She is excited to be apart of the CDB board to help promote increasing cultural awareness in the greater Denver area. 
Alex Garcia
Attorney, Perkins Coie Alex Garcia first moved to Colorado in 2000 to attend the University of Colorado and received his law degree from the University of Denver. He and his family moved to the West Coast, but returned to Colorado in 2014. Alex is an attorney in Denver and represents clients in intellectual property matters. In addition to his work as an intellectual property attorney, Alex has an active pro bono practice, representing individuals and organizations with limited resources in a variety of business and dispute issues. He and his family live outside of Boulder and actively enjoy all of the outdoor opportunities that Colorado has to offer. 
Yangmee Lor
Regional Marketing Director, First Financial Security Yangmee is a Colorado Native and the first board member of Hmong descent. She is a Life Licensed business owner with First Financial Security helping families, individuals, and organizations attain financial peace of mind. Her passion is in the economic empowerment of women and families. She is also the Co-founder/Executive Director with MAI Speak Life - Give Hope, that is aimed to help build healthier identities in the Hmong community. She created the first intercultural guide for Adams County about the Hmong since Hmong is one of the top five languages spoken in the County. Recently, she completed the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS) National Leadership Academy. As a former Emerging Leaders Participant with Colorado Dragon Boat and APAICS alumni, she realized the need for an organization like this one to provide a voice and opportunities for the diverse AAPI community. She is a mom, wife, and the oldest child to a family of 13 children. Yangmee brings her innovative thinking, passion for making a positive impact, and love for her community to her first term as Board member with Colorado Dragon Boat. Kirk Matsuzaki
Manager, Walmart |
Elaine Yang, Board Vice Chair
PharmD Pharmacist and Community Volunteer Dr. Elaine Yang moved to Colorado with her family in 2012 from North Carolina. She received the Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and held positions with Winston-Salem Health Care and the Duke University Cancer Center. Dr. Yang was active in the North Carolina community with groups such as the Big Brother/Big Sisters and the Carolina Association of Pharmacy Students. Since arriving in Colorado, she has focused her time on raising her two young daughters, who both attend the International School of Denver in the Mandarin Chinese program, and has volunteered with non-profit organizations such as Operation Walk Denver, Dolls for Daughters, Kenzi’s Kids and the International School of Denver. 
Jeff Calhoon
Board Treasurer Auditor, Crowe LLP Jeff grew up in Pennsylvania and moved to Colorado in 2001 with his family. He is a certified public account and received a master of accountancy degree from the University of West Florida. Jeff provides audit and consulting services to organizations throughout the Rocky Mountain region. Over the past several years, Jeff has lived and worked in Australia for Crowe Horwath International and worked on numerous international projects in South America, Asia, Japan and Canada. He and his family live in Denver, love the outdoors and try at any opportunity to travel to a new country. 
April Greene-Apking
Attorney, 3iLaw April Greene Apking is an attorney with 3i Law. She works in the firm’s immigration and corporate practice areas. Prior to joining CBDF, April served on the Board of Directors for Youth on Record in Denver, Colorado. April also was a member of the Executive Committee for the Minoru Yasui Inn of Court, as well as a past member of the Colorado Women’s Bar Association. Recently, April has devoted time to judging various law school moot court competitions and elementary and middle school science competitions. April currently is co-chair for the Pomona High School Marching Band Festival and mentor to an undergraduate student through the program Law School Yes We Can. 
Asha Vasant
Global C-level Executive & Business Leader Asha comes from a family with a long history of successful business, and is currently part of a third-generation business house. After completing her studies in India and gaining significant work experience, she moved to Colorado. Currently, Asha is as an advisor and aids clients over a broad range of business enterprises, including start-ups. Asha is passionate about serving the community and society. Empowerment of women in the workplace is an issue close to her heart, and she works with several organizations who are active on this issue. She has been recently recognized by the Governor Hickenlooper for her contribution of bringing the Colorado and Indian community together. Last year she was recognized by the International Women Leadership Association for her outstanding leadership. She is also a member of the American Society of Women Accountants and the Women’s Vision Foundation. 
Khoi Huynh
Inside Sales Specialist, Comcast Cable & Board Member, Unidos Community Outreach Living here for the past 25 years, it’s been incredible to see dragon boat racing continue to grow and evolve into such a high-caliber, exhilarating team competition. Khoi started out like most, as a fan looking on from the shoreline, but quickly realized that he needed to be on the water racing. Now, much of his free time is spent either practicing and competing with the Phantom Dragons, or recruiting and training corporate teams for the sport like for Comcast. It’s been a fun and challenging experience, and he's found that people are naturally intrigued and in many cases lured by the sport. Five of his own children compete with him, plus another six future racers in the making. It’s a real honor for Khoi to part of this experience working with the Board and all of the great team captains. He is hopeful to be able to share his passion for the sport with many more to come. 
Evan Hung
Co-Founder and COO of Nikola Power Evan is a serial-entrepreneur with extensive experience in strategic leadership, business operations, product management, marketing, and building impactful teams. Most recently, he was the Co-Founder and COO of Nikola Power, a venture-backed energy tech startup — and was also the Co-Founder and CEO of Zipskee, a travel tech startup. Evan has led various verticals for multiple startups as well as Fortune 500 companies, including teams that generated over $180M in annual revenue. He is deeply involved with Conscious Leadership and is a mentor at Techstars, EforAll Longmont, and Greenhouse Scholars in Boulder. Evan is a Techstars alum, received his B.A. and M.S. from Wake Forest University, and is earning his M.B.A. from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.. 
Erin Pak
Director of Digital Marketing & Business Leader Erin was born in Kansas and raised in Littleton, Colorado. After acquiring a dual BA in International Business and Marketing she moved to parts of Asia to work for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. After her time with the Olympics, she pursued her MBA at the University of Colorado, Denver. While attending her master's program she saw a need for the Korean community and volunteered her services for event planning which later became her "profitable hobby". She mainly focused on cultural events, non-profit events, and on occasion planned weddings. After completing her MBA, she continued to grow professionally in her Marketing career from print media, social media, and watching the world of marketing evolve into a digital platform. As a result of her own desire to grow professionally, she is now the Director of Marketing focusing on digital marketing and automation platforms. Erin is committed to her community and is a servant leader in her church as well. Erin was nominated for Working Women of America in 2016, 2017, and 2019. She was also awarded the 40 Under 40 Award and continues to be an advocate for empowering women. When not being a career woman, Erin loves to spend time with her husband, 3 children, and 2 dogs. She loves to create experiences by traveling the world, trying new restaurants, and golfing. She enjoys crafting and volunteering numerous hours at her children's school. Erin saw an opportunity to use her skills and experiences to help grow Colorado Dragon Boat. She is excited to be a part of something that will not only impact the community but open the doors for future leaders! |
Thank you Perkins Coie LLC for sponsoring our 2020 Colorado Dragon Boat Board Retreat meal
