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My name is Jamie Oblein and I am interviewing Okpun Wallick for the Houston Asian American Archives. So...um. where were you born? I born in Korea.

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What city or town did you grow up in? Yeah. Um... It's uh, Gunsan. And uh, It would be in state Cheonbuk, in South Korea. Um Can you describe it a little, like um is it like a city or a small town?

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Oh, it’s a very small town near the seashore, the Yellow Sea shore. Now they change the whole address of the town, uh, they change it from a little village, so I call it small town.

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Yeah… Before you came to the States did you attend college or university in Korea? Yeah I did go to college in Korea. Yeah. Um, what did you study?

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It was a special school. Uh, for fishery management. Um, what type of job did you have in Korea? Huh? Um, what type of job did you have when you were living in Korea?

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In Korea I did not have a really good job related to what I studied. Okay. But I had a, you know, internship at graduation time, and that was about it, but then I did

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not really have a, you know, good job. I was going from one job to another like secretary jobs. Um, okay. When did you come to the United States?

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It was 1988. November 4, I arrived in the United States. Why did you come to the States? Why did I come to the USA?

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Uh, because I met my husband who was in the Air Force, so I got married and came here. Where have you lived in the United States? Uh, I lived in about three different places, until now.

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I lived in Davenport, Iowa, Tucson, Arizona, and I living in this town from 2006 to now, about six years now. Um, why did you choose to move to where you are living now?

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My husband wanted to move next to his mother. What type of jobs have you had since you came to the States? Oh, I was willing to take any type of job, so I started as a busboy in a Chinese restaurant.

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Oh, really? Um, so did you work for Korean people or did you work for… That restaurant owner was Chinese immigrant. The place that you first moved, did it have a lot of Asian people? Oh yeah, there was. I was very surprised finding out there was a

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lot of Korean people and also there were Chinese immigrants. And then in Davenport, Iowa there was a uh some type of college, and there were lots of Korean students there.

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They all came to study. Do you think it was easier working for Chinese immigrants rather than an American? Did it help you adjust better? Well, uh, I don’t know.

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At that time, the only, that this job, was available and it was easy to get. I mean I knew a woman there who was a waitress and that’s how I got a job. She was one of

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my church members. She was a friend and helped me get the job. It was just an easy job to get. Uh when you came to the States what was the hardest adju—adjustment for you?

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The hardest adjustment? I have to... get used to the different culture. My most important, my most difficult was communication and, uh, understanding

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the culture. And and the food. Yeah. How did you adjust? Like, how did it become easier? How did I adjust? Okay.

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First of all, it was easy for me because I found right away that Korean society. I, uh, went to a Korean church and then I was doing church things with other Koreans and then another thing that really, really helped me adjust

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was going to school, at that college. I—I took classes, all the ESL classes; I attended. It was really helpful. It was useful.

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It helping a lot. Do you think it was the Korean church that helped you a lot to adjust? Yes. Yes. You know. Are you still involved in any Korean churches?

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Um right now, I go to with my whole family now, and, you know, to an American church. It does have a Korean ministry that I used to go, but I don't go anymore. I'm not there anymore.

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I am kinda in a—in a—a transition. I don’t know how to describe in detail but I feel like... I think I am still in transition. Yeah. Um, so do you know a lot of people outside of the Korean church?

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I mean, like, a lot of other Korean people? Or is that how you meet most of your Korean acquaintances? My acquaintances?

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Uh. No I find other meeting other people through my work and most of the Korean people that I know and associate with are from church. Yeah, so then also through

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the job. I have not gone—gone fully all the way to American people but I do hang out with Korean Americans. The local are Korean American.

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Uh, what job do you have right now? Uh, right now I am an ink technician. Which is you know the ink cartridges, printer containers? I fill them, so I call myself an ink technician.

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Um. Are you a U. S. citizen now? You know what? I am very lazy about that. I don't know what it is.

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I have my alien card. I got about nine years ago now. Ten years is come around now so I have to renew it, you know. Even though you don't have legal American citizenship, do you consider

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yourself now American, or do you still um associate more as Korean? Yeah I—I see myself as Korean American. I don’t see any threat to, uh, if I

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don't have citizenship or citizenship card, you know? I—I feel very comfortable with living with my alien status now, but I

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need to not be lazy. I should really get that citizenship now so I can do my duty as American such as voting and all that kind of stuff. Do you think the fact that you have an

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American husband, like, makes you feel more Americanized than say if you were married to a Korean? Um can—can you speak a little slowly for this one. I cannot really understand.

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Um, do you think that because you are married to an American it makes you feel more Americanized than if you were married to a Korean and living in the States? Uh, in a way. I, you mean... okay.

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I—I misunderstand what you saying. Because I’m married with American I have more—more benefits, more—more understand better, is that what

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you’re asking? Yes, that is what I am asking. Yeah in—in a way. Because my husband is American and he grew up here, then I can have a better understanding and better home.

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I—I understand better. I see that in some way, you know, but some people do very well. Even though the Korean couples living here, you know.

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Some do very well who is willing to learn and change themselves, but I see a lot of people who even though that who—who marry American, they stay the same way and then, you know, they don't do well.

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Because they—they just keeping themselves. I don't know, without learning, or like some people just holding onto Korean culture. Like—uh uh, for one instance, they watch

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Korean dramas all the time, and so even though they have no idea what’s going on. That’s why some of them you know. You know they—they hold onto the old culture.

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So do you still celebrate, like, any Korean holidays or anything? Or, like, do you maintain any of that? Do I still celebrate Korean, uh uh, holidays? Yes.

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Yeah I do. Mostly, uh, at church. Yeah, we do celebrate like, uh, Chuseok and Lunar New Years and stuff like that, but we, uh, we celebrate more like Thanksgiving or Christmas.

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So yeah, we don’t really you know put effort like that. We just do, you know, a little things. We eat like duck and meet and talk with each other and eat with each other. Uh, yeah, we do.

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So, um, do you have family still in Korea? Yeah all of my family is there. Have you been back to Korea, uh have you gone back to Korea? Yeah. I wish I could visit every year, but I don’t have the chance to go.

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Next year I would like to go. When was the last time you were able to go? Last visit was about three years ago when my mother died. Oh, um, so having gone back to Korea what has changed?

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Sorry? Can you say it again? Um, after you went back to Korea, like, what do you think has changed? Oh oh oh, a whole lot. A whole lot?

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Yeah. I mean huge changes. Last time I—I went to Korea it was like America. You know, all the highways, and you know. The highways and everything it was so different.

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I mean people living uh, good life now. You know when I was growing up, you know, people wanted to go to school, but you don’t have enough money to go to school, but it seems like these days it’s not an

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issue. It seems like they do so well, you know. And then even in the market place, it used to be, you know, open market like out—out in the streets. Now it’s just, the open markets are very

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well. Everything it all inside. It’s very good how they are doing now. Gunsan is by the seashore and in the old time they were all selling fish, and now all those buildings

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are—are so nice now. I was very you know happy to see, but yeah. Okay, um, do you have any children? Yeah, I have four children.

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How old are they? My oldest one is just 21, the second boy is 16, the girl is 15; she just turned 15 and the youngest is 12, a boy. Do they speak Korean? Uh, very—very little.

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Uh, do they eat Korean food or anything like that? Oh yeah, they love Korean food. How often do you feed them Korean food? We have probably three to four days a week.

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Wow Oh is that a lot? Yeah. So, do you wish they spoke Korean more or are you happy that they are more comfortable with English? Sorry.

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Say it again. Do you wish they spoke Korean more, or are you happy that they are so comfortable with English? Yeah I wish they… they spoke Korean more, you know. I wish I taught them more.

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Our daughter Karen, at church, church that teaches Korean language learned, but after we moved around from Davenport, Iowa, you know, we want to find Korean school, but maybe for that we

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should have gone back. Uh… are you, are you involved in any community organizations? Community organizations? Um, no.

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Uh, just my business association. I am doing my, uh, doing another part time job, but, uh, that business has a business association, so I am a part of a

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member of that association. So you’ve lived in three different places in the U. S. Davenport, Iowa, Phoenix, Arizona, and Houston. Out of those three is there one that you feel more comfortable

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with? Sorry? Out of the places that you’ve lived in since you've come to the U. S., which one has been the most comfortable for you to live in?

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The most comfortable to live in? Okay um, the different places I enjoyed very much but in the beginning is hard to adjust. But, uh, different place have, you know, different things I like.

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I enjoyed the different place. Davenport, Iowa people are more kind and more like country people, so we were like community. All the Korean community was like family. We help each other look

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for things there. We stayed together. It was good, but very cold, and, uh, Phoenix, Arizona is very hot. Yes. But very nice place to live.

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Lots of heat. Arizona is better, I think. Mostly I went through a lot in Arizona.

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I—I grew in that place. I liked living there, though. Are there—I kinda asked this earlier—but are there a lot of Korean people where you’re living now? Yes lots of Korean people. I—I see everywhere.

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So— OW Yeah I see a lot of people. I especially enjoy that the, uh, the grocery store H-mart. Have you been there right? Yes I’ve been there before.

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It’s a good store. Yeah. Uh, so you mentioned how other Korean people had, like, they only watched Korean dramas, and they only pay attention to Korea.

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So do you watch any of that? Even like a little bit? Uh yeah. I do watch Korean dramas with my—my children. Uh, with my children. Movies,

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you know that one popular drama with the grandpa and grandma, Go Home or something like that, that drama yeah we watched it, and then I don't watch that much drama or TV, but I do read

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a lot of books about Korea and yeah. Um, so you said that you had taken ESL classes and you also read a lot, is that what you had said? Yeah.

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That is what I said. I don’t have a lot of time to read, but sometimes I do, uh, I read Korean books you know. What was your question about ESL?

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Oh um, it was the same kind of thing, like you said you read Korean books, do you read a lot of Amer—English books? I read a lot of Korean books. But do you read a lot of English books?

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Hm. I enjoy reading books, to learn English. I read a lot about uh, my uh, work and the manual for work. When I work, I work by myself, myself so I can be able to

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listen, uh, I count on that you know what familiar you fixing. I—I read a lot of web things in English. So wait, you’re family is still in Korea, but have they ever come and visited you in the

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States? Well, they haven’t been able to come. They, they wish they could. I keep inviting them such as for the baby things, so hopefully they can come

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here soon. What did you do in Korea? During summer, what did you do in Korea? Can I ask you a question? Uhh, okay.

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I guess sure. What you doing in Korea during the summer? Were you doing a project or Um I, uh, it was a student conference and I was a... we just talked about different things and

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traveled different places, yeah. Um, so I guess going back to when you were in Korea, what's your, like, maiden name?

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Your full Korean name? Say it again please. Um, what's your maiden name, like what is your full Korean name? Maiden name is, family name is Kim, Kim Okpun. Kim Okpun. Um, you, do you… do you

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have siblings? Huh? Do you have siblings? Yeah. I have a lot. I have seven siblings. Do they have, did your family have like a naming tradition

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like any pattern they follow for the names they give their children? Like one middle name and then you change the other name. Yes. Yeah we do, for girls, we have pun.

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You know, my name, is Okpun ,right?. My sister's name, younger one, is Jipun and then the other young one is Napun and the other one is Supun. Supun? We have, uh uh, four girls and four boys.

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Wow. And I am the oldest one. Oh, you’re the oldest? Yeah. Okpun, Jipun, Napun and Sopun. Pun is the same.

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Um do the boys names have the same thing? Yeah they do. For the boys, my brother is Hwak. Hwakso is the oldest.

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I will tell you from oldest okay? Okay. Hwakso, Hwakyoon, Hwakwan, and Hwaksu. Okay. So, what did your parents do?

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What was their jobs? My parent’s jobs? Okay. My father, um, he was a truck driver. He was self-employed.

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He had a truck that he carried building materials for, you know, like lumber and stuff like that. He was a uh, truck driver. And then my mother, she was a homemaker.

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She was the one that very helpful in doing housework as job. As an extra job, because we were living next to the sea, the Yellow Sea, she go to the sea and then you know

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whatever the ocean or sea provide like clam, she catch it all, and she do very hard work. I guess that how she pay for school fees and whatever, you know, that stuff.

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Um so did you study fishing management because you lived close to the oceans? Yeah that is kinda true I think. You know, that area I was living, that school

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was, um, had lots of engineer for ships, you know the—the big ships. And then, what is it called, uh who is in charge of the ship?

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Is it a captain? Those boys that went to that school became engineer of the ship and then captains. Also that school had, uh, program for fishery, you know, who

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hatches the fishes, but I studied management. So I don’t know anything else. Wait, so you said you had a lot of siblings and that you were the oldest, so did you work a

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lot to help raise the younger siblings? Yes, not necessarily with money, but I did, uh, yeah. I feed them and made contribution

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you know a lot. I help get them ready and when go around. Yeah a lot of self. And then my dad of course want me to provide for them and help the family.

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But I—I had to go to school, but I had to stop between middle school and high school. I worked for the factory you know for about half a year. That is what I do.

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So, um, um, when you were young, like talking about celebrating holidays again, did your family do that a lot?

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Like, did they make it a big deal? Say it again. Um. Did your family celebrate holidays a lot, like when you were younger? Yes. uh huh. I—I have very good memories of New Year and

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Chuseok. Yeah, they were, probably biggest celebration was Chuseok and New Year. Yeah, um so what did you do to celebrate them? Well, uh, we, uh, favorite thing

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was when I was a kid was getting new clothes on New Years day. New Years day was one of those holidays. And then eating a lot of food—food that you normally don't—don’t eat every day.

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It was very fun. And seeing family members and eating with each other ,and greeting each other…. It was yeah, one thing, was that parents cooking all the food and getting fat off it .

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Um, is there anything that you really miss from Korea? Sorry, can you say it again? Um, is there something that you miss from Korea?

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Do I miss uh, what I used to do in Korea? Like do you miss anything? Yeah, of course. I miss a lot of things.

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Um, like, uh visiting family members and seeing my family members, you know that country life. I miss it a lot. Like uh, probably.

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I don't know. Most thing I miss, you know, in Korea how—how visiting each other and gathering in countryside you don’t need have to make an appointment for I want to see you. You can go door

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to door and you know, you know, visit each other. Yeah, stuff like that. And then uh, and looking outside, you know, looking outside and talking about different things, you know? And then I

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miss my, uh, grandpa and grandma. My grandma is still living. She’s about 95 year old, and yeah, I miss hearing them, and visiting

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them. Are there any special foods or anything that you miss? Special foods? Uh, right now, that whole Korean food, everything here. You know. So you can make anything here.

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We have most everything that we have in Korea. You know, the price is a little high, but… When I was pregnant with children I make food when from when I was little,

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those kind of salted fish, you know a lot of vegetables, and kimchi. I was craving a lot. You can eat anything here.

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Yeah, so is that a lot different from when you first came, is there, like, a bigger Korean presence in the States now than when you originally immigrated? Yeah. I guess so.

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Yeah. When I come, there was very little store in town. There was one Korean market was there, but price was high, but we did what we need you know. It was kimchi

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was always available there and all this stuff. You know, it’s not like it’s not there. So right now, food is not my worry. It’s always available

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Okay. Uh. When you lived in Korea did you only live in Gunsan? Did you visit anywhere else, or live anywhere else?

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Yeah I lived in Gunsan. I do not live anywhere else. There was once, I told you how I go between middle school and high school, I had one year I had to work in

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factory. Well that was one time that I was living out of my town, at a different town, Daegu. Where was it? Daegu. Oh Daegu.

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Uh huh. Daegu. It’s kinda south. Okay, um, of the Korean people you know in the States, did a lot of them come from like the

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same place as you or did they come from other parts of Korea? They all different parts of Korea. Is there a particular place that a lot of them are from or is it

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just really varied. Its very varied, but I’m kinda surprised how many, I—I met a lot of people from, uh, my place within my province, and a lot of

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people grew up in the Gunsan area in Cheonbuk. So, um. So… sorry…do you have any like

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funny experiences or any memorable experiences of culture shock, like um when you came to the States something that you just didn’t expect? Uh huh.

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Yeah, a lots of things. Hmm. Let me think…okay. I can come up with one of them. Yeah, um, okay.

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When I first come, my—my husband and I, visit our father in law house and we went with his sister. We were visiting my husband uh father in law and

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then his father’s wife had a—had a sister, and then she had a boyfriend. I think it was boyfriend. And we got together at a restaurant.

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I think it was a restaurant. I’m not quite remember, just a place. They started kissing in front of us, so—so I feel very awkward, very

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awkward. That was you now. I—I never see people do that. It wasn’t a small kiss. It was a real kiss.

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It was ridiculous. Are you more used to that now that you’ve been in the States more, or is it still something that you feel— Not really . No.

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Still awkward. I—I mean people have senses, you know. I think that was out of order. Yeah. I don’t think

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she was living a very good moral life, and then another thing I had was—was, on the airplane there was a stewardess. I thought her eye was very, very big, unusually

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big. I mean, I saw, I don’t know. I felt like at the time I never seen a women with you know that big eyes. I wasn’t very used to it.

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American people have big eye. That’s why I thought she had so big eyes . So before you had come to the States you hadn’t seen a lot of

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American people? Uh, before I had come to the states, I—I what? American people? Ask again. Had you seen a lot of American people, or were you just used

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to Korean people? Uh, at the time, I was work at on base a little while for selling, selling shoes. Uh huh.

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At the convenience store or something like that, you know. On base they have those, like uh, small market and store. I was working at the shoe store on base, so I was used to, I

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used to—I was used to the American from there, and then I, after that, I work at the um , the American soldiers come to place to the club or bar or whatever you wanna call.

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I worked at the, what’s it called, counter, the cashier, I worked as the cashier. Okay. So I see a lot of American people.

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Yeah I see a lot there. I work at the cashier and—and see them. A lot of people came there. So you learned a little English from—before you came to the States—through

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that, right? Through your jobs, right? Sorry I couldn’t hear you. Uh, so did you learn some English through like working on base and stuff?

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So when you came to the States you had a little bit of experience? Uh yes I did. But when I was in school, I was really good in English,

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actually. I, uh, learned English. I was best student in English. I work really hard to study English and I was—I was quick learner, and then after my, you know, job, with

00:36:03.310 - 00:36:22.260

American I speak some, you know. So your husband was an American soldier; so how did you meet him? When I was working as cashier at the bar. American bar. I would say it was American bar,

00:36:22.720 - 00:36:41.600

a lot of—a lot of American persons come. Um, so you said you learned English in school, how long did you learn English, like, how— how many grades did you learn it?

00:36:41.620 - 00:36:59.080

Okay. I started in middle school three years and three years of high school, so it was like at least six years. I don’t remember if I studied in college or not,

00:37:00.440 - 00:37:15.780

but I didn’t study much in college anyway . So—so yeah, middle school and high school. Even though you had learned the English in school, and you had practiced with your job, you said it was still difficult to communicate when you came

00:37:23.240 - 00:37:43.930

to the States? I didn’t understand your question. When you came to the States,

00:37:51.210 - 00:38:09.290

even though you had learned English for six years and

00:38:09.290 - 00:38:27.380

everything you said you still had a problem communicating, why do you think that was? Uh because I did not have any practical anything, you know like speaking or

00:38:27.800 - 00:38:44.860

listening, you know those kind of things. All we studied was written English. Oh really. Yeah, but uh like speaking or listening was the hardest part.

00:38:47.040 - 00:39:02.760

The most difficult area, part of English, I still have a hard time. You know, in Korea, like people learning English is a really big thing, right?

00:39:03.700 - 00:39:17.720

Do you agree with that? Do you think it’s important for Korean people to learn English as much as they think they need to? Uh sorry, can—can

00:39:17.970 - 00:39:33.160

you wait a second? Okay, okay say again. In Korea now, learning English is like very popular, it’s like what you need to do, do you

00:39:33.250 - 00:39:48.150

think that it’s really as necessary as Koreans make it to be or do you think— Uh, importance of learn speaking English? Yeah I—I think so.

00:39:48.260 - 00:40:01.430

I think it is very much so, you know. Most Korean people are very, um, used to—used to learn and love to learn.

00:40:02.370 - 00:40:20.000

And, you know, in Korea, these days how—how a lot of people are spending lots of money to learn English, you know. It’s—it’s crazy. Speaking English is—is very important

00:40:20.970 - 00:40:33.690

so they can have job and get money. So you said your kids hadn't learned Korean very well, but have they gone back to the States, I mean, to Korea.

00:40:34.200 - 00:40:47.740

Do they go back to Korea with you when you’ve gone? I’m sorry I didn’t catch you. Have your kids gone back to Korea with you? Only my oldest one.

00:40:48.960 - 00:41:05.200

I—I didn’t, they didn’t, I visited when she was three years old, but she not include in memory because she was too—too young. And then second time you now when I

00:41:05.530 - 00:41:23.830

went I only took my oldest one when my mother died; so only one so far has visited there. Do you know if they want to go to Korea? Oh oh yes. My children really want to go, but you know.

00:41:24.030 - 00:41:39.650

I wish, I wish I could. I feel so bad not going, not seeing their cousins or uncles, especially their grandparents.

00:41:39.830 - 00:42:00.000

Uh huh, um, um…do… do you have any other like stories or any thoughts you’d like to share? Huh?

00:42:00.960 - 00:42:22.020

Do you have any other stories or thoughts you’d like to share to end this interview? Any stories or thoughts? Mhm. Well, well, I

00:42:24.070 - 00:42:48.550

… you could ask me earlier and I would’ve thought about it . Well um, well, I just turned fifty this year. Uh, you know, when I—I first

00:42:48.730 - 00:43:09.360

come here I was still confused about you know the different culture and then thinking of a better life then having children and then raise them to my best

00:43:09.760 - 00:43:27.570

ability and—and stuff and then I try to, uh, and—and I done my job. Now that it’s kinda, I feel myself a little bit, you know, you know shifting,

00:43:30.530 - 00:43:46.610

and put some effort and energy into myself to develop myself. So, so I am trying to looking, I—I hope I am not too

00:43:46.740 - 00:44:04.850

late to go back to school, and learn some, you know, maybe some vocational skills. Maybe medical area or some area that I am interesting in, in the human body and stuff.

00:44:06.680 - 00:44:21.070

I am thinking about doing something that in the medical field. So, yeah. You think that education is really important than, right? ‘Cause you talked about how in

00:44:21.070 - 00:44:33.640

Korea, it was harder when like, you, were growing up to get an education, but is that part of the reason you are happy you didn’t raise your kids—or— you’re happy you raised you kids in the States?

00:44:34.490 - 00:44:50.070

Is that they had easy access to education? Yeah I don’t really quite understand what your question is, but I put very importance on

00:44:50.550 - 00:45:10.840

education. I think education is, to be on top of that then—then you can, you know, then you go do very well in those areas and go on from there. But I think education is not all about—I don’t

00:45:11.850 - 00:45:32.250

think education is always best. Sometimes whatever your—your passion, your heart, you know, most of what uh you want to do, uh, I—I—I don’t know how to

00:45:32.890 - 00:45:46.180

say. No it sounded good. Um, so do you hope your kids like do well like academically, like is that a focus for you?

00:45:49.070 - 00:46:02.090

Yeah. Of course. My—my son is going to special school in Dallas. We send to math and science school.

00:46:02.220 - 00:46:17.270

That’s cool. So, you talked about other things besides school. Are your kids in other activities? Uh, yes. My kids take piano and other activity but—but school is most important.

00:46:20.630 - 00:46:35.730

Education is best for them, I think. Um hm. Yeah so… thank you for taking the time out to do this interview.

00:46:35.780 - 00:46:37.930

I think we’re good now.