Joosoo Kim is the Valley Stream Herald 2023 Person of the Year

Valley Stream is lucky to have Joosoo, and I’m lucky to have her as a friend. She’s family — the family you choose.”

Christina Rendon Central/Memorial PTSA

When it comes to drastic life changes, Joosoo Kim initiated one early on. Before she became a mother of three and a beacon of community positivity and leadership in Valley Stream, she was a 20-year-old who came to the United States alone from South Korea to study English. She decided to leave her homeland behind because she believed this country offered what she wanted: an opportunity to succeed if she worked hard enough.

Kim, 54, has worked hard, and succeeded in more ways than one — not only as a leading real estate agent and an admired local business leader, but also for making a wide range of contributions to the village for decades, enriching its public life in the process. The Herald is proud to name her its 2023 Person of the Year.

“When my number two was born, we needed more space and a safe place for them to run around,” Kim said. “We looked around at different parts, and stumbled on Valley Stream by total accident.”

Joosoo and her husband, K.C. Kilkenny, were both working as schoolteachers at the time, and the ease of access to the schools in the village, the public library, and the parks made quite an impression on them. They have lived here ever since.

As someone with a strong personality, Kim confessed that she struggled early on to discover who she was. She has learned to embrace something of a patchwork of identities that make her who she is, from her immigrant roots and her South Korean heritage to her patriotism for the United States.

She long ago vowed to build her life on a solid foundation of serving others, and she has put her talent and energy to great use in Valley Stream, benefiting scores of causes and organizations with her business acumen and infectious cheer.

“I can’t split myself in fives, but I do involve myself in activities that resonate personally with me,” Kim said.

She has been active in the Valley Stream Civilian Patrol, and the Crochet Club. She has leapt at opportunities to help the village’s Beautification Committee collect litter on local streets.

More recently, Kim has helped David Sabatino, the deputy village treasurer for planning and economic development, review grant applications to support projects aimed at “bringing back the downtown’s economy.” She also counts herself among a handful of Community Fest committee members, who organize the village’s biggest showcase of business and community organizations on Rockaway Avenue each year.

Kim’s sincerity and her delight in others, regardless of where they come from or how they look, is almost palpable. And she shares her abundant passion for education. “She was an integral part of starting the Book Fair in Memorial Junior High School as a member of the Valley Stream Central/Memorial PTSA,” PTSA member Christina Rendon said. “She’s always looking to give back to the kids.

“She’d be there all day and all night, setting up the Book Fair and devoting her time to other PTSA events and fundraisers,” Rendon added. “She just brings so much fun and energy to any venue, and is always thankful for everything.”

And Kim doesn’t shirk from helping others in crisis. When resident Qumyka Howell pulled into her street on February 25, 2019 only to see her house consumed by flames, a distraught Kim joined Dawn Tortora-Morici, a fellow friend and local teacher, to raise funds for the family.

“We lost all of our possessions, our personal belongings,” Howell said. “We lost everything. It means so much to know that my community cares about me. It just reminds me that Valley Stream is one of the best places for families.”

In her commitment to staying plugged into the village scene, Kim wields her personal Facebook page with exuberance, using it to inform her readers about community events, rooting for volunteer groups and giving gleeful shout-outs to other worthwhile causes and businesses.

“Kim is just a light, and she’s always looking for the positive side of things,” Rendon said. “And she doesn’t judge anyone at all, and wants others to be happy. A true good-doer.”

“When people tell me that I’m a ‘community person,’ I tell them that I do what I do for selfish reasons,” Kim says. “I enjoy doing it. It makes me feel better about who I am.”

It’s hard to discern where Kim’s business persona ends and her private life begins. For Kim, they are inextricably linked. By all accounts, she serves her real estate customers the way she serves her community, with integrity and care.

She was a relative novice roughly a decade ago, with little revenue coming in for the first two years, but Kim has become a standout real estate agent. She serves on the board of directors of the Long Island Board of Realtors for 2023-24 and the New York State Board of Realtors for three years, and contributes her expertise to several committees, including the New York State Association of Realtors Fair Housing, Equal Housing and Standard Practices committees.

Her involvement exemplifies her dedication to promoting fair and equitable housing practices. And it has garnered the respect of her local business colleagues, who named her the Chamber of Commerce 2023 Businessperson of the Year.

“Valley Stream is lucky to have Joosoo,” Rendon said. “And I’m lucky to have her as a friend. She’s family — the family you choose.”

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