Sunny Lee had never seen the Packers and couldn’t point out Green Bay on a map, but last summer the city was offering her a job opportunity she couldn’t pass up.
Originally from South Korea, Lee relocated from Las Vegas to Green Bay to begin work as an orthodontist for Orthodontic Specialists of Green Bay.
Lee isn’t a stranger to the Midwest, having lived in both Oklahoma and Ohio as a teenager, but it took her nearly a year to cultivate the kind of community that helped her feel rooted.
“I wanted to feel like this is my home, not just some random place I came to for a job,” Lee says. “I wouldn’t say it was so easy to find my own community, but my boss actually played a big role in [helping] that.”
Through her boss’ connections, Lee learned of the newly launched Northeast Wisconsin chapter of Asian Corporate & Entrepreneur Leaders (ACEL), a national Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) professionals’ organization.
“As a young professional, to have a footing and find a solid foundation in this community has allowed me to spread my wings and make myself at home so that I can function better, work better and communicate better,” Lee says. “I don’t think I would be in the same spot I am now if I hadn’t found ACEL.”
This is music to Barbara Koldos’ ears. Koldos, New North, Inc.’s vice president of business development, is one of five founding members of the Northeast Wisconsin ACEL chapter, which launched in March. In its first year, ACEL is hosting 10 gatherings — including networking events, member-only parties and a speaker series.
“ACEL was created because we understand that people stay where they feel connected,” says Koldos, who became acquainted with the organization and its founder Jason Wong while living in Phoenix.
Asian community groups have long offered social outlets for AAPI residents of the region, Koldos says, and professional organizations are an extension of that.
“I think what we are seeing now is the business, corporate and professional side of things,” she says. “It’s that next wave and the next generation of Asian Americans growing up who had the opportunity to participate in Current and Pulse [young professional organizations]. We saw the benefits of building that community of young professionals who are [thinking] what can we do to give back to our communities?”
Koldos says the benefits of a professional organization like ACEL extend beyond those enjoyed by its active members. It impacts the growing number of young AAPI residents as well — roughly 9% of students in the Green Bay Area School District identify as AAPI, she says.
“There’s this surge of young Asian Americans who are emerging, and we want them to see and have visibility that there are Asian leaders in this area,” Koldos says.
ACEL isn’t the only new resource for AAPI professionals in the New North. This spring, the Hmong Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce (HWCC) announced the opening of two new satellite offices in Northeast Wisconsin — one in Appleton and the other in Green Bay — staffed by HWCC Business Development Specialist Peng Sue Moua.
HWCC is a community development financial institution that provides economic development assistance in business planning, market analysis, marketing and business operations to elevate the Asian business community.
Jim Lee, marketing manager for Milwaukee-based HWCC, says the new offices will make it easier for the organization to support the growing number of Hmong and Asian small business owners in the New North.
“What makes us unique is we are like a traditional chamber, but we also are a financial institution because we have our own business loan programs funded by state entities like WEDC,” he says. “There’s not a lot of institutions like us.”
Since HWCC was founded in 2007, the organization has deployed more than 100 loans totaling $2.5 million and supported more than 270 jobs.
According to U.S. Census Bureau data, in 2020 there were 612,194 Asian-owned businesses employing about 5.2 million in the United States — the highest among all minority groups.
Jim Lee says HWCC exists to support and nurture these AAPI entrepreneurs. “The more visibility that we give to our community equals more resources and support to our community overall.”
On the web
- Asian Corporate & Entrepreneur Leaders – ACEL
aceleaders.org - Hmong Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce
hmongchamber.org - NEW Hmong Professionals
newhmongprofessionals.org - North East Wisconsin Chinese Association
Newca.org - NEW APIDA – Asian Pacific Islander Desi American
facebook.com/NEWAPIDA - IndUS of Fox Valley
indusfoxvalley.org - Hmong-American Partnership Fox Valley
hapfv.org - Hmong Mutual Assistance Association
facebook.com/Sheboyganhmaa - United Hmong American Association
uhaa.org
