SfK MB Academy Online Sessions (January - May 2021)

Since the COVID-19, SfK MB Academy has used the online communication platform a lot more actively.

The Business Management Training (BMT) was held for 16 weeks from August to December 2020.

The Post BMT has been held every month in 2021.

Open BMT was held on May 15 to make an introduction to potential participants.

These events are now being prepared through a collaborative effort. SS Kim is assisted by Caleb Yoo and BJ Kim. As they prepared the Open BMT, they are also preparing for the BMT 2021. I pray that their collaboration will be superior to the work done last year so that they may be encouraged and blessed.

Also, a lot of meetings have been held online on Zoom, including board meetings for SfK Life, SfK Korea, and Joybells America.  Many business meetings have also taken place through Zoom calls. 

The globalization has accelerated through active use of online communication during the pandemic. So the adoption of this online communication is not if anymore, but when. - Jeffrey

BAM Congress 2021 (April 28-30)

The previous BAM Congress was held in 2013. The next one was supposed to take place last year in 2020. As we all know, however, the COVID-19 made it impossible to do so. It was postponed to 2021. But, the face-to-face gathering could not happen, either.

So, the BAM Congress 2021 took place online from April 28-30.

This year's BAM Congress was a big success. Some numbers evidence it.

1. The number of countries represented: 75
2. The number of participants: 800 +
3. The number of speakers and presenters: 130

BAM Movement has become truly from everywhere to everywhere. It is not from the west to the rest.

SfK was one of the sponsors. I was on the investment panel. Also, I was on a fireside chat to talk about the achievements and challenges looking forward to the future along with Mats Tunehag of BAM Global, Craig of IBEX, and Courtney of Sinapis. 

Now so many people celebrated what God has done in the BAM ecosystem, are now more connected with each other, and are trying to start more initiatives creatively. May God continue holding our hands in this journey! - Jeffrey 

Trip to Los Angeles, CA (May 2021)

 In May, I made air travel to southern California. The primary purpose was to attend the in-person board meeting for SfK Life. Kristin was planning to travel together, but her sudden hip pain caused her to cancel the trip at the last minute.

The board meeting was a bit in limbo over the strategic session, but it was necessary to bring up the difficult issues, such as succession.

Also, I visited Cconma USA to take care of administrative issues related to Joybells America. Julie Magick drove from Phoenix, AZ to visit and meet up with people at Cconma USA, particularly with Alyse Kwon, Director of Marketing.

While I was in southern California, I met up with Young Shim and Grace Yoo. Both have been tremendously helpful in selling mango products. Grace brought Yonah Hong who has been helping sell dried mango products in southern California. Grace has an idea to make a steady B2B sale to Brystol Farm and secure a stable job for Yonah. We will see.

Also, I had a get-together with Kristin's second oldest brother Kwangku and Kristin's cousin, Jinsoo.

It was a short trip, but a very productive one despite the COVID-19 threats. Thankfully. - Jeffrey

Aging and Illness (May 2021)

 Well... We are getting old. Inevitably.

This natural phenomenon has become more apparent since we moved to Greer, SC.

I have been trying to recover from chronic pain in the upper hip and right leg, probably coming from the impingement in the spine, believed to have been originated from L5 and S1. Slowly and gradually I have been recovering for the past 14 months or so.

All of sudden, Kristin could not even step on her left foot. She had to see an orthopedic surgeon urgently, took an X-ray, an MRI, and several sessions of physical therapy. Also, she has been taking acupuncture.  This has happened all of a sudden for the past month or so in May and spilling over to June.

It was the first time that Kristin had to be sitting in a wheelchair. The Greer Memorial Hospital where we both took our MRIs was very nice and clean.

We are realizing that we are not as young as before anymore and we need to be more careful with the use of our body. We are not getting any younger. Oh well...

Kristin is scheduled to take an injection to her hip and I am scheduled to take several sessions of physical therapy. We pray that we will gain God's healing grace in our situation. - Jeffrey

Trip to New York (April 2021)

 After we settled down in Greer, SC in February, we made a road trip to New York in April. Kristin flew to Dallas and came directly to Newark where I picked her up to stay at a hotel in Fort Lee.

The primary purpose of the trip was to clean up and close the storage we have kept for more than 12 years since we left for Rwanda in 2009.

Pastor Harry Kim was visiting New York to spend time with his two sons. He invited me to a small apartment in Manhattan and cooked a nice meal. Jacob who served in C country was also there and we had fellowship together.

The storage did not have a lot of stuff, but I still found a lot more books than I anticipated. But, anything that could not fit into our Nissan Murano was discarded. Ji Bae came with a big SUV and took some, including an art piece made by Joyce. It is always a great joy to see him.

We had dinner with Jay Yoon's couple and Mrs. Choi. Mr. Choi passed away not too long before our visit after a 4-year long struggle with lung cancer. We had a good time given the situation.

I also had dinner with Mr. and Mrs. Hong, Sungeun. It is joyous to meet up with this couple who are humble and kind. Mrs. Hong has recovered a lot from a traumatic accident in Belize. 

Unfortunately, we could not meet up with Kristin's brothers due to our short stay.

I also met up with Pastor Jang of NJ Harvest Church and Senior Pastor Minson Ahn's couple separately. This church was helping out significantly with the sale of dried mango and palm sugar products. The time of fellowship with Pastor Ahn's couple always brings joy and insights to us.

Also, I spent time with Mr. Paul Lee who purchased a palette of dried mangoes and palm sugar to try out with his customers in the New York area. He agreed to function as the distribution center for the North East region. I sincerely hope that our relationship will expand over time. Praise the Lord!

On the way back to Greer, we stopped over in Philadelphia to worship at Jubilee Presbyterian Church. After the worship, we had fellowship with Pastor Steve Park and his wife Mona over dinner at a golf club. It was a joyous time. The church helped sell the mango and sugar products to the church congregation members. 

We also met a young couple, Danny Kim and his wife. Danny is a member of Jubilee Presbyterian Church and a professor at Wharton School of U Penn. He looked like a brilliant man and because of his strong interest in BAM, we spent a good amount of time at the church and later online again. I am not sure what the Lord has in store, but we will see.

We drove down further to stay overnight and continued driving the following day to return home. When this trip to clean up and close the storage in New York, we have gotten rid of two money-draining unnecessary expenses for the storage spaces. Praise the Lord! - Jeffrey

Trip to Asheille, NC (March 2021)

 During March, we made a day trip to Asheville, NC. It was a short drive from our home and it is one of the cool and trendy places. The altitude is high at 2,100 feet and the downtown was quite nice. We enjoyed our short getaway.

The Botanical Garden was closed but we still walked around in the garden.

Walking around the downtown was pleasant.

There are supposed to be a lot of sculptures, but we found only a few.

Before we headed back home, we had dinner.

It was a short but pleasant getaway. - Jeffrey

Trip to Colorado (January 2021)

 As the new year dawns, we were still staying at Amanda's house in Dallas, TX.

Meanwhile, the Colorado Sable tenant moved out in early January on our promise to forgive all delinquent rent. After they moved out, Keya sent us a video clip of the inside the property and it was a total mess!

We ended up renovating the entire townhome with a new carpet, new vanities, new painting, new shower in the master bedroom. 

We made a road trip in January to Colordao over two days and returned over two days. Thankfully, the weather was good and we stayed in two hotels for two weeks. 

Our trip had primarily two purposes. One was to clean up and close the storage that we have been making payment for the past 12 years. Two, we wanted to decide what to do with the Sable townhome.

The storage clean-up was not easy and we had to work for a few days. Eventually, however, we were able to choose what we wanted to keep and send a small U-Box to a new property in Greer, SC, which we were in the process of buying at that time. All others were given away or discarded.

We were considering staying at the Sable home until we figure out what to do and where to live next, but we ended up listing it for sale and it was sold in March.

We attended one online worship with LCC, but we had to say goodbye to our old friends. Our get-together with Eunice and Chuck was not as pleasant because the LCC was split over the leadership's handling of an alleged sexual assault case that happened a few years before. It was painful to see the friction and conflict that separated old friends. 

We had dinner also with other old friends, Rick, Mike, and James, but the fellowship was not as joyous as before. I pray that the Lord will be merciful with His healing power. - Jeffrey

More about Greer Life, SC (February, March, April, May 2021)

 While we generally stay home in Greer, SC, we try out the farmer's markets. But, overall, the scale is small and there is nothing much to explore.

We normally eat at home but have tried out several restaurants, including Tipsy Taco Mexican restaurant. 

We also dined out at Outback, Cheesecake Factory, Chili's, Korean Chinese Restaurant Great Wall. 

Soon after we arrived in Greer, the spring started. The cherry blossom signaled the spring season and we enjoyed the flowery trees all over the area.

 Overall, we are thankful for the opportunity to live in this place for now. - Jeffrey