Dragon 5280 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 CDBF, 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 Dragon 5280'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. Dragon 5280 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 Dragon 5280 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. 
Erin Pak
Digital Marketing, Western Union Erin is currently in digital marketing for Western Union. She also runs her own events company and specializes in cultural events. Erin was nominated for Working Women of America in 2016 and 2017. She is currently an active member and a Sunday school teacher at Logo's Central Chapel. Erin has two undergraduate degrees in International Business and Marketing from Johnson and Wales University and an MBA from The University of Colorado. Erin is new to the board as of 2018. Erin saw an opportunity to use her skills and experiences to help grow Dragon 5280. She is excited to be a part of something that will not only impact the community close to her, but open up the doors for future generations. 
Ray Cho
Litigation Director, Ferrovial Services North America Ray is an in-house attorney with Ferrovial Services, a Spain-based multinational infrastructure company. He is returning to the board after previously serving from 2014 to 2018. A former Denverite, Ray is now resident in Austin, Texas but remains a strong supporter of the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival, the Colorado Dragon Film Festival, and the Emerging Leaders Program. He is also a previous board member of the Korean Academy of Colorado and the Colorado Asian Pacific American Bar association. Ray has law and masters degrees from Columbia University in New York, and an undergraduate degree from Claremont McKenna College in California. |
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. 
Nam Nguyen
Casino-Resort Hospitality Business Developer, Ameristar Nam is focused on outstanding customer service and supervision of the Asian Marketing Host team. After being born and raised in Vietnam, Nam came to the US with his parents and sister. He enjoys the community and environment that the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival has created over the last 18 years. Nam joined to board to better serve and support this great organization, and to show his three daughters how important it is to carry on the cultures from their ancestors. 
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. |
