FSI staff and volunteers

We still have four full-time staff members, downsized from 6 shortly before and shortly after the pandemic. However, we have been joined by three volunteers working in the office. The schedules are staggered so different volunteers come in on different days. Most of them were complaining about the photo, but I got everyone to briefly pose for a photo. Next time, I will herd hungry cats instead.

Sharon first joined Freedom Speakers International in March 2015 as a student and speaker. She contacted me on her birthday. So that means I was a wonderful birthday gift for her.

I believe she joined us as a part-time staffer in 2018. She is now working full-time as an accountant with FSI. She has joined every program in FSI history--studying history, public speaking, career development, and she is now our North Korean Refugee Keynote Speaker Network.

I had a special reason to buy her flowers, and it isn't only because she bought me lunch last week when I insisted that she not do so. It also isn't because she calls me "Sir." But those things also help.

Here's her fundraiser for FSI.

* * *

Last week, Hope joined us as a volunteer staffer in the office. She is always ready to help out. Her first couple of days I was throwing all kinds of editing assignments at her, and she was throwing them right back to me without complaint. Her first day at the office, within five minutes, she was joining a (rare) staff meeting that I had called.

* * *

Brooke originally joined FSI as an English language tutor back when we were TNKR. This time around, she returned to South Korea joining us as an intern. She will continue volunteering with us even after her term officially expires.

* * *

We have one more office volunteer, a translator, who so far has somehow evaded taking a photo with me. She is one of my former students at the Seoul University of Foreign Studies, I will be sure to catch her the next time she is in the office.

Plus, Songmi Han wasn't in that day.

Human Resources Manager Daniel Cashmar has a day job.

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Thanks to donors and fundraisers, FSI:

* Has paid staff.

* An office to have volunteers and staff.

* Enough money for a deposit and to pay the rent every month.

Some donors want their money to only go into programming, which is a nice thought, but that would be like a construction company saying they only wanted to pay for shovels, but not the workers to move the shovels.

www.fsi21.org/?donate

Park Jin welcoming remarks to FSI (and Casey Lartigue)

National Assembly member Park Jin makes the welcoming remarks at FSI's conference featuring North Korean diplomats. Park Jin | Greeting message to FSI and Casey Lartigue mention - YouTube

2020-11-26 My basketball story

This photo was uploaded today by my aunt Annette. This was back in the day, when 1) I had a head full of hair and 2) played basketball a lot. That first year of playing organized basketball, I focused on playing defense. It seemed that everyone wanted to shoot the ball, so I passed the ball and played defense. I probably led the league in steals, rebounds and blocked shots. I enjoyed taking on the best player from the other team, I felt like I would get better, quickly. The second year, I was a different player. I will never forget the first game that second year--we lost 29 to 26, I scored 18 points. I probably led the universe in scoring that second year, although we didn't win much. One thing I learned from that experience is that one great player 9 (at least in his own mind) can't beat a team. An eye injury ended my pro career before it began, to this day I still have floaters in my eyes because of the injury. I started wearing glasses, but the problem never went away. On t...

2020-04-26 "May I choose more teachers?" TNKR Matching session #102

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From nothing to something super special (2023-02-10)

FSI has moved into a better institutional neighborhood where we are the poorest in the area. In August 2022, I was elected as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Freedom Speakers International (FSI) and in January 2023 FSI achieved incorporation status in South Korea. This has meant that FSI must upgrade operations and structure and I am the one, as chairman and co-president, who will be blamed if it doesn’t happen. I really should not be the chairman, for a variety of reasons, but anyway I am. Eunkoo and I are not the typical executives of a growing organization. In addition to being mainly responsible for building and fundraising for the organization, we are the hands-on leaders who are constantly in contact with North Korean refugee speakers. We look forward to the day we can afford staff to handle many tasks. Until then we can expect to continue having more days like yesterday, even on Eunkoo’s birthday. 2023-02-10 Meeting #1: planning We started Eunkoo’s birthday with a planning...

Mentoring while Black (Korea Times 2/16/2023)

Mentoring while Black by Casey Lartigue Jr. February 16, 2023 www.patreon.com/caseylartigue

The Casey Lartigue Show!

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