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AAPI Heritage Month—Honoring AREAA Member of the Year Alan Louie
In May, we celebrate AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) Heritage Month across the country. At SAMCAR, we take this opportunity to recognize our Realtor member, Alan Louie, who was named Member of the Year at the 2024 AREAA (Asian Real Estate Association of America) National Conference.
"I am very honored by Ann Chang, our 2024 AREAA SF Peninsula chapter President, to nominate me as a recognized leader and professional member for the past 12 years," Louie shared with SAMCAR.
Alan Louie has been a true giver of his time and energy to help our local community as a property manager, providing meaningful solutions to seniors with housing issues, teaching high school and college-bound students the fundamental real estate essentials that prepare them for future home purchasing and investments, along with his team of lenders to teach basic financial literacy. The students are so grateful for the education sessions he has taught.
"We plan to grow our education platform so more students can learn basic money management, credit scores, ways to save, interviewing, resume preparation and more," he added. "Being a part of this education team is very rewarding to me. We all learn from each other. The feedback lets us know our shortcomings and topics to enhance awareness at future events. I invite you to join us in this celebration and contribute to our education platform."
Over the past nine years, Louie has also volunteered at Rebuilding Together Peninsula annually as a participant, then as a Construction Captain overseeing and supervising other local volunteers from AREAA, KARL (Korean American Association of Real Estate & Lenders), local high schools, engineering professionals, tech employees and more.
With the AREAA team at Habitat for Humanity, Louie volunteered to interpret marketing information to the Asian community about Habitat's first-time home buyer program. He brought his property management skills and weekend all-hands-on-deck experience to supervise each volunteer group.
Louie also supports targeting key areas in real estate education toward high school and college students. "Young adults need a basic understanding of finances, such as budgeting, credit, savings, IRAs, insurance policies, and the benefits of renting vs owning real estate," he shared, expanding that early training opportunities in local real estate or mortgage companies can lead to future job prospects as well as potentially help homeless individuals start anew. "Educating both groups on transitioning into the job market is crucial as the economy changes. Despite the federal elimination of DEI (Diversity Equity Inclusion) programs, many local firms continue to include them to ensure fairness for everyone, regardless of gender, sex, age, or religion."
AREAA has over 19,000 members in 45 chapters across North America, providing considerable opportunities to increase awareness and help AAPI communities. To learn more about AREAA, visit https://areaasfpen.org/
SAMCAR thanks Alan Louie for his extensive service and dedication, offering congratulations on this prestigious and well-deserved honor!
About AAPI Heritage Month
An annual celebration of Asians and Pacific Islanders in the United States, the commemoration of the month of May as AAPI Heritage Month originated in Congress in 1977. Starting as 'Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week' in May 1979, the observance was expanded in 1990, followed by an act of Congress in 1992 designating the entire month of May as Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month. The month of May was chosen to commemorate the immigration of the first Japanese to the United States on May 7, 1843, and to mark the anniversary of the completion of the transcontinental railroad on May 10, 1869. The majority of the workers who laid the tracks were Chinese immigrants. Learn more from the Library of Congress at https://asianpacificheritage.gov/
Do you have a story to share?
At SAMCAR, we love to celebrate the notable accomplishments and community involvement of our members. Please feel free to share your stories with SAMCAR Director of Brand & Communications, Dalen Gilbrech.
