9,156 kilometers.  Two countries. One nationality.

Although sophomore Alex Kwon moved to America from Korea at age 5, he still maintains his ties with Korean culture through traditional celebrations like Korean New Year and Chu Seok, Korean Thanksgiving. His favorite parts of the holidays are spending time with close family and friends and paying homage to his ancestors.

At these gatherings, Kwon and his family set a framed portrait of their ancestors on a table. Beside the portrait, they burn incense and place Korean food on the table as an offering. This ritual helps connect Kwon with his ancestors and the traditional customs of his heritage.

Despite learning and speaking English at school, Kwon is fluent in Korean and even enjoys singing in his native language. He credits his fluency to the Korean community in Saratoga.

To Kwon, the Korean community is made up of more than just other people who share his ethnic background.

“These are my people, my nation. They can understand my life and I can understand theirs,” Kwon said. “I'm proud to be Korean.”

As president of the Korean Club, Kwon helps unite the members of the community by sharing aspects of Korean culture at club meetings. He stays updated on Korean news by reading websites such as daum.net and naver.com and contacting his relatives in Korea.

According to Kwon, cultural pride is a crucial value to have and promotes diversity in communities.

“[The culture] describes who you are as an individual,” Kwon said. “This way, when something amazing happens to your country, you can say, ‘Hey, that's my country!’”