WHO WE ARE

The Pan-Pacific American Leaders and Mentors® organization is an all-volunteer organization comprised of military and civilian professionals committed to mentoring and promoting professional development, retention and the advancement of Asian American and Pacific Islander leaders—Active, Reserve, National Guard, and DoD civilians.

Asian American and Pacific Islanders have proudly served in the United States Military for over 100 years with a rich history of bravery and loyalty, led by talented and competent leaders.

PPALM OFFERS
Mentorship and Professional Development

The PPALM Mentorship Program connects mentees with experienced professionals who have achieved personal, professional, and career success. Mentors provide advice, encouragement, feedback, performance management, and career guidance towards achieving a mentee’s full potential.

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN

MG Antonio Taguba, U.S. Army (Ret.)
Chairman

Dear PPALM members, sponsors, partners, and friends,

As we celebrate Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander month, lets also acknowledge the upcoming celebration of Armed Forces Day on Sat, May 18^th, and Memorial Day on May 27^th.

It is incredibly important to recognize the immeasurable contributions and achievements AANHPIs who served our country as immigrant laborers and soldiers and made this country a leading power in the world. All this despite the generations replete with racial discrimination, violence, poverty, and prejudice.

They were never to be denied their freedom and rightful place in this country.

This month, PPALM engaged in raising awareness of AANHPI leadership in public service. We joined our partner, the Asian American Government Executive Network (AAGEN) Leadership Workshop event on May 2^nd. I participated as seminar speaker on “Leadership Accountability” and spoke to several participants on the value of Mentorship. MG(Ret) Garrett Yee, a PPALM member, was a distinguished guest speaker at the workshop.

At the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS) Legislative Summit on May 13-15, 2024, I participated in a panel on “A Diverse Military and Meeting the Needs of Veterans.” This three-day event culminated in celebrating the 10^th Annual APAICS – PPALM Military Appreciation Luncheon on May 15^th with over 130 guests comprising of military members, corporate executives, senior members of the federal government, and a member of Congress.

The distinguished speakers delivered powerful messages on why we serve our country – be it in elected office, military, or private sector. U.S Congresswoman Jill Tokuda from Hawaii, Dr Ravi Chaudhary, Assistant Secretary for Energy, Installations, and Environment, and U.S. Army Major Jae Yu inspired the audience on the need for AANHPIs to stand out, to lead, to represent, to stay relevant and contribute to America’s four pillars of power - diplomacy, information, military, and economy.

We can be proud of AANHPIs’ dedication and loyalty to our country!

Antonio M. Taguba
Chairman

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PPALM NEWS

MG Suzanne Puanani Vares-Lum, (U.S. Army, Retired), Incoming Director of DKI APCSS - December 19, 2024

The Pan Pacific American Leaders and Mentors (PPALM) is proud to announce the appointment of Major General Suzzane (Suzy) Puanani Vares – Lum as Director of DKI APCSS (Daniel K. Inouye Center for Security Studies effective) in January 2025.

The Inouye Center is a Dept of Defense organization dedicated to advancing security cooperation in the Asia – Pacific region which encompasses one third of the world’s population.

Major General Vares – Lum retired having serve 34 years in the US Army. Her leadership credentials include joint duty in the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in her role as key advisor to senior executive and military leaders on key global, defense, and strategic issues regarding national security matters.

Following her retirement in the US Army and joint duty at Indo-PACOM, she served as President of the East – West Center in Hawaii.

Of note, Major General Vares – Lum is a member of PPALM and serve as a senior mentor to civilian and military leaders on the membership.

Congratulations General Vares – Lum on your new executive role and position as Director of the Daniel K. Inouye Center for Security Studies.

17th PPALM Annual Meeting and Dinner - October 13, 2024

The 17th PPALM Annual Meeting and Dinner was held this year at the Crystal Gateway Marriott. This year's theme is "Legacy of Valor and Service: Honoring Service and Tradition". Below are some of the many positive comments we received from this year's attendees:

"I didn’t know PPALM existed and I want to sign up."

"I didn’t expect to meet great leaders and young professionals..."

"..great job Tony and congratulations to your awesome team, much better location and great program from the Convention Center"

"I will sign up for your program, I was impressed with PPALM and now I know I can call on you to help me with my leadership plans"

Here are some of the photos from the event.

Military Leadership Appreciation Lunch - May 15, 2024

The APAICS-PPALM Military Leadership Appreciation Luncheon is dedicated to promoting leadership, diversity and AANHPI representation in our troops.

Here are some photos from this year's event.

Congratulations to four outstanding AANHPI leaders and PPALM members:

Army Lieutenant Colonel John Abella on his promotion to Colonel ahead of his peers. He is currently serving at G-4/Logistics at the 25th Infantry Division in Hawaii.
Army Major Jae Yu on receiving his PhD in Public Administration at George Washington University on May 16, 2024.
Thomas Mathews on his selection to attend the U.S. Air Force Officer Training School on July 30, 2024, at Maxwell Air Force Base, Montgomery, AL. He will be commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and assigned as Cyberspace Warfare Operations officer. He is also a PhD candidate in Cyber operations.
Elliot Ji Stanton Nuclear Security Fellow at Rand Corporation working on nuclear related projects. He will soon join the US Air Force Reserve as an officer this summer. He is also a PhD candidate at Princeton University.

The enormous amount of talent and leadership displayed by these gentlemen are testament totheir AANHPI roots – to serve and give back to America.

PPALM STRATEGIC PLAN 2022

PPALM Strategic Plan (JUNE 2022) .pptx