Nancy Songhe Park

Nancy! What a bright, beautiful, generous human. I am so grateful to have been in touch with her in recent years through teaching Oskar and Olympia violin lessons. She had and still has such a powerful presence, showed up for her children, cultivated community and was committed to her children’s musical education. I felt a Korean American connection with her that I could relate with on an unspoken level as well. Nancy gifted me a Korean cat themed shirt and am always so delighted when I wear it. I’ll remember her kindness with a tender part of my heart when I wear it (which I often do!)

One of my most meaningful experiences as a teacher was teaching Oskar and Olympia Con Te Partiro by Andrea bocelli, for their grandpa to be played at a family celebration. I loved that they thought to do this, and Nancy joyfully supported them with the extra effort it took during the holidays to bring them to extra violin lessons so they could have this family experience. She sent me a Christmas bonus, and teacher appreciation gifts as well. I felt so appreciated as their teacher, and their family musical experience is a special moment for me as a teacher that I will always remember.

I could see how Oskar and Olympia had been such calm, collected, interesting, kind people with Nancy as their mother. I really enjoyed working with them.

Oskar and Olympia, please know that you’ve been in my heart, and I’m available if you ever need.

I feel grateful to have been blessed by Nancy’s kindness during her too short a time on this earth.

We followed the suggestion to return the rose petals from Nancy's ceremony back to nature. For me, I immediately thought of our Sunday Outrigger Canoe paddle. It was an honor to perform ceremony for someone who was so involved and loved ceremony. I also felt called to bring in her beautiful writing about the journey of water and spirit. Please see the link below for the video. Blessings

www.icloud.com/sharedalbum/#B1q5CmvASyiDg8

Beginning in January of 2024, Nancy and my paths began to cross through an AAPI Faculty and Staff group, AA library collection endowment, possible donors interested in funding conservation work in Peru. But I, like many faculty at UCSC, had had uneven experiences with development people at the university, so I remained somewhat distant and skeptical.

On Oct 24, 2024, I got an email from Nancy…

“Could we meet up and get to know each other a little better?
You've come up in several conversations I've had as I've been deepening into development here, so it feels like you're important for me to know.
I would like to share with you my motivations for working in development and how I arrived here when I had been practicing my indigenous medicine.
I am hoping we can really partner up, as I think we might see eye to eye on some important things.”

Huh, I thought. That’s not something that development people from UA really ever did. They were distant, inscrutable – rather superficial, polished, curated representatives of the institution rather than 3-dimensional humans. To be honest, I approached the meeting with Nancy with curiosity and a little skepticism. We met in a lounge at Merrill College, and I remember that she wore something colorful, as she always did, black rimmed glasses, red lipstick.

In our first real conversation, she talked about her commitment to and connections with Indigenous people, her focus on supporting social and environmental equity efforts through the university and philanthropy, and her steadfast belief in mobilizing the power of people of color and the challenges she had been through as an AA woman. On this last point, she spoke about her children, being a shining example for them, and how they are the motivating force for her efforts.

OK, I thought, this is someone who I think I could work with and trust. She’s fascinating, complex and multifaceted, interesting and interested in the world, people, culture, and the planet.

In the subsequent eight months or so, Nancy made significant inroads to supporting causes and people near and dear to my heart. She found a couple who donated six figures to start a faculty led seminar in the Peruvian Amazon in partnership with a local organization there called Camino Verde. They propagate seedlings of diverse and important rainforest plants for reforestation and ecosystem restoration, while engaging in microenterprises that show that keeping forests healthy – instead of reducing them to pasture or timber -- can sustain local livelihoods. They make chocolate, raise native bee species for honey and pollination, and distill essential oils from trees like rosewood, which was almost locally extirpated due to the perfume industry.

Two days from now, I will join my Native Amazonian (Shipibo Konibo) co-instructor in Peru with a handful of UCSC students for the pilot of this new program, all made possible because of Nancy. These young people will learn about Indigenous sovereignty, community based conservation, ethnobotany and biology, and relationality with humans and more-than-humans.

In addition, Nancy also helped create an endowment in honor of another Korean Nancy who I also adore, Nancy Kim, the executive director of UCSC’s resource centers, which are the key units on campus that support students of color, queer students, and female-identified students. This endowment will go programs that support students in their efforts to build meaningful connections between diverse communities, advocate for justice, and become leaders who can bring about positive change. Nancy Kim and I were amazed by Nancy Park’s enthusiasm and commitment to this endowment effort, from her drafting case statements and pamphlets, to creating opportunities to share the RC’s work with potential donors. Her process entailed nurturing the capacity of Nancy Kim and her team to share their stories, accomplishments and impacts, because all too often those who transform the lives of others are unsung heroes who don’t get due credit. Nancy Park exemplified what it looks like when someone in development truly is passionate about their job in support of higher education; takes the time to listen and understand what programs, causes and efforts need resources; and acts with care, attentiveness, and commitment in all interactions with the various people involved.”

As Nancy Kim wrote in an email to Nancy Park, “Thank you for being a true partner and advocate for the Resource Centers. Prior to working with you, I had not seen the level of support from UA in the 26 years I have worked at UCSC, and you were critical in creating momentum toward a culture of philanthropy for the RC's. I appreciated that your approach to fundraising is rooted in equity and care, not just dollars.”

The reason why Nancy Kim wrote this email is because Nancy Park was laid off from UCSC. On June 4, 2025, Nancy texted me. She had just heard that her team at UA was being cut, a casualty of institutional restructuring as part of a grim fiscal reality.

Her last day in UA was July 4, 2025—a year ago today. At the time, I thought that was one of the worst things to happen to my friend. I could not fathom what was to come.

While she looked for another job in development, Nancy turned to her acupuncture practice and skill as a healer to help support her family. Nancy learned acupuncture from her parents. Specifically, her father first learned acupuncture at Lincoln Hospital in the Bronx. In the 1960s, Lincoln Hospital was notorious for appalling conditions experienced by of low-income, people of color. It was colloquially known by locals as the “butcher shop” because of the high mortality rate, dangerous conditions, cockroach infestations, and blood spattered floors.

In 1970, the Young Lords, a radical Puerto Rican civil rights group that often worked alongside the Black Panthers, took over Lincoln Hospital to demand better health care for all. Their politics, grounded in revolutionary movements from across the world, advocated for Puerto Rican independence, Latine self determination, women’s liberation, and gay rights. Public health was foundational to their politics, needed to combat “diseases of poverty” that plagued their communities, such as drug addition, asthma, tuberculosis. In the auditorium of Lincoln Hospital, the Young Lords created a drug detox clinic in which political education was integral to the treatments. At first they used methadone, but were concerned about potential risks and that they were swapping one drug for another. In 1971, they learned about an acupuncturist in Thailand whose treatments reduced a patient’s craving for opium. They went Chinatown and came back with needles and charts, learned by practicing on oranges and each other. Soon the clinic was detoxing 600 patients every 10 days. By 1985, the National Acupuncture Detoxification Association (NADA) was founded, which formalized the protocols for addiction detox developed by the Young Lords.

As she shared with me, Nancy’s dad had a patient with cocaine addiction at his family practice and he didn’t have treatment solutions, so he flew to NY and Lincoln Hospital to learn, staying with her in her dorm at Columbia for 3 weeks. He went home and helped his patient, and was inspired to learn more, getting a degree in acupuncture and teaching Nancy’s mom, who got Nancy into acupuncture. For Nancy, her healing practice and her politics were closely aligned.

I know that many of you here have benefited from Nancy’s acupuncture, and are well aware of the skill, expertise, generosity, and attunement that she manifested as a healer. For me, Nancy helped me recover from meniscus surgery on my knee and a car accident in which I sustained neck and shoulder injuries. Last summer, my niece Lucy was in Santa Cruz doing an internship with the puma project at UCSC and she sprained her ankle, and Nancy was her first experience with acupuncture.

I am most grateful to her for her care of my mother, Julie, who is 84 and a survivor of gastric cancer, someone who lives with chronic pain. So last summer, Nancy would make house calls to treat multiple generations of Lu women. She would pack her treatment table, needles, ointments, any herbs etc. in her white pickup truck so that my mom (who Nancy called “delightful sweet”) would not have to do a long drive back from Corralitos after acupuncture.

Nancy was one of the few people who could really address my mom’s pain, and the two of them wouldn’t stop chatting the whole time, sharing stories and histories and wisdom. In one conversation, my mom said that Chinese parents like her don’t tell their children that they love them. But Nancy could not disagree more – she said that she told Oskar and Olympia every day how much she loves them, the boundless depths of her love, which they will always carry in mind and heart as a steadfast companion in their life’s journey.

Nancy’s openness, candor, kindness, and ebullience remain with us, especially my mom, who in her mind’s eye remembers her living room as a space where Nancy brought her relief, respite, and relaxation– she’s burned incense daily for Nancy since her passing, so that her spirit can be at peace and to let her know we are thinking of and praying for her.

While we knew each other for only about 1.5 years, Nancy was a dear friend. The kind to bring over bone broth when you’re sick or injured, play a track of Mamdani rapping at my 55th birthday bash, and be exacting about the right way to make kimchi. She could disagree with you in a way that was disarming because she was so genuine and charming. She was fierce yet vulnerable, kind but never boring, spiritual and grounded, quirky and elegant, brilliant and creative. She could experience hurt and injustice but still find grace and hope. Nancy lived and loved intensely, burned brightly and illuminated the lives of those with the good fortune to have known her. I will miss her deeply.

Rest in power, Nancy.

Oskar and Olympia may not know this but their Mom was a brewer, bringing her maverick energy to that endeavor. In what would consistently be shown as her signature style, she led us on a radical path of indigenous, herbal beer making. Arcane out of print books were brought forth. Laughter and ritual were employed. Caution; partially thrown to the wind.
"Nancy, do we really need to go to Monterey to collect the Cypress pollen? "

The beer resulted in one of three paths. Some batches tasted great, and were very enjoyable to sample and share. Other batches exploded in the cabinets inside their cases. And one in particular caused me to forget the second half of the Super Bowl that day. Dan remembers better than I do.

Nancy operated in a very dynamic fashion, often brewing things that test the containers in which they are held. I can hear her say "yes, they should be tested".

We had the pleasure of hosting Nancy's family when they first relocated to Santa Cruz and were establishing housing . Nancy's disarming immediacy brought people together. Her leading operated as connective tissue in our community, in synergy with Dan, Mara and myself. The byproduct of this was our son Manu's lovely experience of a brother and sister, both beautiful, relationships that continue to this day.

A lot has been said about Nancy's impact on the macro level yet she had a rare gift to go from 30,000 feet down to 2, kneeling to comfort a child, or leaning in intently to talk with a friend. I will remember Nancy as someone who worked her magic close to ground. With her hands, on our hearts, and in our homes.

I posted some pictures of our memorable and foundational time we shared . You don't need to look close to see that she's in everyone.

I met Nancy serendipitously and only knew her for a short time; yet she left an indelible impression….

I was on a Zoom call for a meeting with the Asian American Faculty group at UCSC. Nancy, whom I had not met before, was at this meeting. The group was trying to organize or plan something (I don’t recall what); even though Nancy was new to the group, she stepped right up and volunteered do whatever work needed to be done.

That was my experience of Nancy—someone who stepped up and showed up for others and what she believed in. What made her stand out for me was that she wasn’t just someone who had a vision and felt passionately about issues—she actually showed up with a smile to do the hard work.

Not long after I met Nancy, I fractured my foot and was housebound for several weeks. During that time, Nancy brought me nourishing home-made bone broth. She was laid off from work at the time, but she generously brought me take-out from Gayle’s, a place where I rarely go because it is outrageously expensive even when I am working….

I was privileged that Nancy shared some of her personal struggles with me. I know that Nancy had been through some tough times, but she always persevered, didn’t complain and showed grace to others. She had a kind and generous spirit, even towards people whom I felt had treated her unfairly.

I think one of the things that made Nancy strong was her love for her kids. Nancy didn’t brag but she was so proud of her kids, Oskar and Olympia. I was in awe of how she parented: how she cultivated their interests and talents, showed unfaltering and steadfast love and respected them as their own persons without imposing herself onto them. As a psychologist who works with young adults, these are qualities of an exemplary parent!

I feel so blessed that our paths crossed, albeit briefly. I wish I had had more time with Nancy, but what I knew of her was enough for me to know the most important things about her.

Thanks for all your support, kindness, and generosity. You will be remembered for all the good you did in this world, and for your shining example of empathy and compassion. I will miss you, Nancy, and the way we laughed together.

Nancy lived boldly. Her courage was contagious.

At a time when diversity, equity, and inclusion were increasingly attacked, when many institutions were growing quieter and more cautious, Nancy became bolder. While others wondered whether they should step back, Nancy stepped in. At UCSC, she showed up at our cultural celebrations, graduations, community gatherings, and student events. She knew that if alumni and donors could experience the joy, resilience, and brilliance of our students for themselves, they wouldn't just give to a program. They would become part of a community.

I remember watching her encourage each of our six Resource Centers to embrace Giving Day. Many of us were hesitant. Fundraising wasn't our strong suit, and asking for support felt unfamiliar. She believed our students' stories mattered enough to tell, and that there were people waiting to hear them. She had a way of motivating us. She’d say, “Yeah, we’re gonna do this,” a simple fact. And, we believed her.

Together for Giving Day, we raised more than doubled than the previous year. She secured matching gifts because she inspired generosity. Also that year, when El Centro hoped to raise scholarship money and come up short of their goal, Nancy raised several thousands of dollars in just four days, in order to offer $1000 scholarships each to 30 students for El Centro’s 30th anniversary. She also helped establish an endowment for Student Leadership and Coalition Building from an anonymous donor that will continue supporting students for many years to come, and she mentored me for meetings with potential donors. I learned so much from her about fund development in a few short years than I had learned in twenty-five years prior to working with her.

Although I first got to know Nancy as colleagues at UCSC, we quickly became friends. I always appreciate meeting other Korean American women of my generation who challenge stereotypes. To meet someone who completely busted open boundaries, who also shared a name with me, and lived in the Santa Cruz Watsonville area? So great. I loved learning about her life, her journey, her adventures. And her boldness had a way of giving permission for others to be the same. Every time I met up with Nancy, I left feeling more energized, more courageous.

We will always remember and treasure the time we spent with Nancy ❤️Our AAPI group came together after the Atlanta murders of the Korean women. She participated and shared her healing at her home, hosting a book club “Minor Feelings “, and with the RCNV hosted the Hope for Peace , making and teaching others in making origami cranes, as well as hosting the Celebration of Chinese American Legacy❤️💐. Much love and gratitude to this beautiful soul, rest in peace and power❤️