D i s t i n g u i s h e d I n t e r nat i o na l A lu m n i Awa r d | 2017
THE
NUMBER LANGUAGE S E N T BY H I S FAT H E R TO T H E U N I T E D STAT E S TO E A R N A CO LLEG E DEG REE, CH ANG BIN Y IM DID NOT YE T R E AL IZE TH AT HE WAS LIVING THE FIRST CHAPTER OF HIS AMERICAN DREAM.
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HEN I ARRIVE at Central
Missouri, the first day I attend class, I cannot understand one word the teacher saying and so it wakes me up. I’m in big trouble,” said Yim, honored as the 2017 Distinguished International Alumnus. Until his arrival in Warrensburg, life had come easy to Yim, one of six siblings born into a well-known financially successful family connected to the founder of what is now LG Electronics. He had aspirations to become a doctor but the language barrier led him to pursue math and chemistry. “I said forget the reading courses such as history, but mathematics, chemistry, physics I can do.” He struggled not only with academics but also with finances. While at UCM, the Korean government sent Yim $150 a month until he wrote his father asking the money be donated to the poor.
Vol. 17, No. 3 | ucmo.edu/ucmmagazine
He expected to continue receiving tuition but his father cut off any funding. To get by, Yim worked odd jobs on campus that included cleaning kitchen trash cans, bussing, serving and eventually bartending. “I’m prouder of that than just about anything else I accomplished,” he said. “Back home, because of my name, I would never have had to work those jobs. But here, I proved on my own I’m an example of achieving the American dream.” Yim credits these jobs with shaping his work ethic and attitude. During each summer, he worked in hotels in upstate New York where he met his future wife, Alice. In 1963, he earned degrees in math and chemistry at Central Missouri. He completed a graduate degree at the University of Missouri, an executive course at Harvard and started his career as a chemist with Textile Rubber and Chemical Co.
Yim’s son, Daniel, says his father excelled at chemistry but knew that sales was where he could be financially successful. “At the time, there weren’t a lot of Asian people in Georgia so they gave him all these leads as they came in from Asia. It gave him a great opportunity to open up businesses and offices in Asia.” After 47 years with Textile Rubber, Yim retired as vice president. Along the way, he became a multi-millionaire through more than 25 business ventures he started. He also was honored with the prestigious Ellis Island Medal of Honor. Nasser Kaseminy, chair of the National Ethnic Coalition of Organizations, noted, “What makes him stand out is his genuine love of America. From such humble beginnings, he has not only achieved his own success but dedicated himself to supporting the dreams and aspirations of others.” n