Chamblee, July 10, 2026 – A room full of diplomats, elected officials, judges, community leaders, and changemakers gathered Friday night as the Georgia Asian Times honored its 25 Most Influential Asian Americans in Georgia.
Master of Ceremony Vince “The Voice” Bailey welcomed a room that included Japanese Consul General Kenichi Matsuda, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office Atlanta Director General Jared Lin, DeKalb County CEO Lorraine Cochran-Johnson, City of Morrow Mayor John Lampl, Chamblee Mayor Brian Mock and Judge Alvin T. Wong.
Major sponsors for the evening gala included Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate (BHGRE) Group, National Association of Chinese Americans NACA and the Good Neighboring Foundation.
In his welcome, Georgia Asian Times CEO and Publisher Li Wong set the tone that the AAPI community was built by persistence. That persistence, he said, forged a unity that was chosen, not given, many languages and histories, one shared future. Georgia’s AAPI community, he reminded the room, are not guests in America’s story; they are its authors.
His charge to the honorees was simple. “To tonight’s honorees, your light shines brightly, but a light that shines only for itself soon burns out. Let yours become a beacon. Bridge communities. Build understanding. Break down the barriers that remain, for only together do we rise beyond the margins and into the mainstream,” said Li Wong, CEO & Publisher of Georgia Asian Times.
Keynote speaker Sunny K. Park, President of Amrican Korean Friendship Society, echoed that call to purpose over prestige, then surprised the room by presenting Wong with the evening’s AKFS’ Lifetime Achievement Award and a $2,500 donation to the Georgia Asian Times, honoring his years of lifting up AAPI voices statewide.
The night’s most stirring moment belonged to Maha Ajarn Dam Phommasan, a Buddhist monk from Wat Buddha Khanti, honored for his 2,300-mile Walk for Peace from Texas to Washington, D.C. Themonk lost a leg in an accident early in the trek. His resilience drew the loudest ovation of the evening.
The remaining honorees reflected the breadth of AAPI influence in Georgia, spanning business leaders, legal, elected legilative leaders, medicine, and nonprofit, community organizations, and grassroots organizing.
Organizers described the class as representative of a community whose contributions extend well beyond any single sector, a point echoed throughout the evening’s remarks, which repeatedly framed the event as a culmination as a call to continued service
Closing out the formal program, the recognition bestowed on Friday night was intended not as an end point, but as a “commission” as an obligation carried forward by each honoree to mentor, to build understanding across communities, and to widen the path for those who will follow.
GAT 25 Awards Gala 2026 Photo Gallery
