{"id":81872,"date":"2024-11-25T20:11:46","date_gmt":"2024-11-26T04:11:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/press-release\/a-holiday-carnival-to-remember-esthers-story\/"},"modified":"2025-04-16T13:23:42","modified_gmt":"2025-04-16T20:23:42","slug":"a-holiday-carnival-to-remember-esthers-story","status":"publish","type":"press-release","link":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/press-release\/a-holiday-carnival-to-remember-esthers-story\/","title":{"rendered":"A Holiday Carnival to Remember: Esther’s Story"},"content":{"rendered":"

Esther first attended KYCC\u2019s Holiday Carnival when she was seven years old. Growing up with a small family, many holidays were spent with just her and her mom. When her mom heard about KYCC\u2019s Holiday Carnival, they decided to attend so that Esther could take part in the fundamental holiday tradition of receiving a gift. Their first experience at the event was something that Esther still remembers to this day, \u201cit was heartwarming to be able to be among children and families\u2026the whole experience created a sense of community and normalcy during the once dreary holidays.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Following their first experience at the Holiday Carnival, it became a cherished tradition that Esther and her mom could <\/span>experience<\/span> together year after year. Looking back with gratitude, Esther recalls the year where she received a full Barbie kitchen set as a gift through the Carnival, giving her the opportunity to experience a piece of quintessential lifestyle she longed for and \u201cexperience the simple joy of being a child.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For years, the Holiday Carnival became a shared <\/span>tradition<\/span> between Esther and her mom. \u201cThe Carnival helped create core childhood memories filled with precious moments with my mom,\u201d says Esther. \u201cBecause of financial constraints, my mom and I seldom had the opportunity to experience things together, so I always waited in anticipation of KYCC\u2019s Holiday Carnival. The anticipation and the event itself really made some tough periods of life bearable.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Esther looks back fondly on her memories made at KYCC\u2019s Holiday Carnival. \u201c<\/span>It\u2019s amazing to see the Holiday Carnival bring people together from different backgrounds and cultures through shared experiences during the holiday season. <\/span>The event allows families to set everything aside for the night and focus on creating special memories with their loved ones \u2013 an experience they may not otherwise have,\u201d says Esther. \u201cThe holidays can be a challenging time of grief and hardship for some households, so the Holiday Carnival provides a safe and welcoming space for everyone to enjoy without worrying about their usual stressors in life.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

KYCC was a pivotal part of Esther\u2019s childhood and left an imprint on her heart into her adulthood. Esther went on to become an intern with KYCC Clinical Services program and is now a mental health therapist based in Los Angeles with the LA County Department of Mental Health and also owns her own private practice, CogniThrive Collective.<\/span><\/p>\n

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For over 30 years, KYCC\u2019s Holiday Carnival has been a cornerstone of holiday cheer for our community in Koreatown. Each year, we engage over 300 volunteers and host 15 toy drives to create a festive celebration for over 2,000 children and families. This cherished tradition ensures that families in need are able to experience the magic of the season, filled with gifts, festivities, and a sense of community.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Donate today<\/a><\/strong> in the spirit of K-Town <\/span>and make a lasting impact this holiday season! <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Esther first attended KYCC\u2019s Holiday Carnival when she was seven years old. Growing up with a small family, many holidays were spent with just her and her mom. When her …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":80321,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[215,269,271,287],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-81872","press-release","type-press-release","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category--ko","category-news-highlight-ko","category-news-article-ko","category-special-events-ko"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release\/81872","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/press-release"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/press-release\/81872\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80321"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81872"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81872"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kyccla.org\/ko\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81872"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}