Patrick Yim, EPIC Board Member
By Wilma Friesema
“Your name is unusual. What’s the origins of your surname?” Patrick Yim asked at the very beginning of our conversation. Names have always been important to him. Having traced his own Chinese and Hawaiian ancestry back for generations, he knows that names carry not only a legacy, but a link to the essence from where we come. Names articulate our roots and carry the spirit of those who have come before us, who are woven into us.
That respect and acknowledgement of our ancestors, and, in turn, our responsibility or kuleana for the generations that follow, is integral to Patrick’s way of being in the world. It influenced his 24 years of work as a First Circuit and a Family Court Judge, and then his 18 ½ years as a Trustee on the Board of Trustees of the Liliuʻokalani Trust. It also still influences his work on EPIC’s Board, on which he has served for nearly 18 years.
Respect, gratitude, and responsibility are core Hawaiian values, and Patrick sees EPIC’s work as fundamentally grounded in the Hawaiian culture. At EPIC, ʻOhana, or family, is central; we strive to live aloha with people we serve and with each other; we work to help families achieve pono or balance; and we do all this with ha'aha'a or humility. Patrick shared that, even while engaging in the very Western or individualistic oriented system of Child Welfare Services (CWS), EPIC consistently embodies and promotes a sense of respect for the cultures and communities we serve, a deep commitment to empowering and healing families, and a dedication to changing and improving the CWS system. That’s in keeping with the Hawaiian values of having respect and gratitude for the those who came before us, being responsible for the quality of our current community life, and caring about the kind of world we are creating and will leave to the following generations.
Patrick sees his role on EPIC’s board as helping us stay true to those Hawaiian cultural roots. One of EPIC’s key strengths, he shared, is that it has been able to maintain its initiative and forward motion throughout its 25-year history. He likened EPIC’s journey to a voyage of the Hōkūleʻa. As he remembers being told, the navigators aboard the Hōkūleʻa plot their course with the guidance of the stars and groundswells, but, as they approach the anticipated landfall, if necessary, they will traverse back and forth to locate birds, clouds, and other indicators of land to finally reach their destination. Similarly, while the goal of transforming CWS practices may seem elusive at times, Patrick has seen EPIC continuing to hoʻomau, or persevere, and ho'onalu, or ride the wave and go with the flow. Systemic change doesn’t happen in a straight line or overnight, but EPIC has been able to stay steady in its advocacy of that change by continuing to be guided by Hawaiian cultural values.
As a devoted husband, proud parent of three successful adults, and an avid hunter and choral singer, Patrick has also demonstrated hoʻomau and ho'onalu. Over the years, he has served in various capacities, from teaching criminal law, to serving as a volunteer game warden with the Department of Land and Natural Resources, to participating on a number of committees, boards and community service organizations too numerous to list here. (If interested, a list of his contributions is available on the DPR website: https://dprhawaii.com/panel_members/judge-patrick-k-s-l-yim/.) Throughout, Patrick has served our community with intelligence and heart. Always humble and grateful, he attributes his ability to do so to his wife’s Sandy’s support and the happiness he derives from his children and moopuna (grandchildren).
EPIC is so fortunate to have board members like Patrick at our helm, helping us to stay on course. We are so grateful for his wisdom and guidance. His steadying influence continues to help EPIC thrive and, in turn, facilitate the healing and systemic changes that truly benefit our families and community. Mahalo, Patrick, for your important contribution to our mission. We are grateful for all that you do.
