From War In Korea to The American Dream Part I
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A conversation with Dr. Ik-Whan G. Kwon, author of My Story: A Journey from War in Korea to America In Search for A Dream
Hosted by Tony Kalinowski & David Alexander | theretirementinsiders.com
What does it take to survive a war, lose both parents before the age of 18, arrive in a new country with $50 in your pocket and still build a life rich in relationships, purpose, and joy? For Dr. Ik-Whan G. Kwon, the answer is surprisingly simple. Trust people and pursue education.
In Part One of this special two part conversation on The Retirement Insiders, hosts Tony Kalinowski and David Alexander sit down with Dr. Kwon to unpack a remarkable life story, one that weaves together the show's six core themes: faith, family, friendships, fitness, finance and fun.
Survival as a First Job: The Choice That Changed Everything
When David asked Dr. Kwon about his first job, the answer was not a job title, it was a decision. After the Korean War ended in 1953, Kwon found himself orphaned at 17, with no income, no assets and no safety net. He faced a stark fork in the road: enlist in the army for a free meal and lodging, or pursue an education with no idea how to pay for it.
He chose education. Inspired by a quote from Gandhi, "Find the purpose and the means will follow," Kwon enrolled in college while working two jobs. One employer gave him a place to stay; the other helped cover tuition. He walked miles in the freezing cold to save 25 cents and regularly skipped meals to afford books.
"If you saw me, you might think I was a street beggar," he recalls. "My total weight was under 100 pounds. I went to bed hungry. I felt cold. But I never stopped pursuing my education."
He graduated from the second ranked university in Korea, the equivalent of a US ivy league degree. He shocked relatives who had never seen anyone in the family go beyond grade school. The young man who "almost died of starvation" would go on to earn a PhD in the United States.
Coming to America with $50 and a Dream
Dr. Kwon arrived in the United States with virtually nothing except an extraordinary ability to connect with people. One of his friends was his roommate Perry, a gentleman from Savannah, Georgia, who took him everywhere and showed him how American life worked. Their first stop together was a cafeteria, where Kwon spotted fruit cocktail, a food he remembered from C-rations distributed to starving Koreans by US servicemen during the Korean war. "That was heaven," he reflected.
A second pivotal connection came through the mail. While still in Korea, Kwon had been so moved by a book titled Capitalism written by Harvard professor David McCord Wright that he wrote to Wright. A few months later, Wright wrote back and ultimately arranged a Georgia Rotary Club scholarship that brought Kwon to the U.S. to pursue both his master's degree and PhD, mentoring Ik every step of the way.
"He literally took me under his wing," says Kwon. "He is dear to me." The story is a testament to the power of a sincere letter and to the unexpected generosity of strangers willing to invest in young future leaders.
The Secret Ingredient: Radical Trust and Infectious Joy
How does a man who survived war, starvation and grief manage to stay lighthearted? For Dr. Kwon, the answer is trust. "Deep down, I believe everyone has decency," he says. "I got hurt sometimes, but it is a very small minority." His children challenge him for being naive, but Kwon is unapologetic. That default trust, he says, has opened more doors in his career and personal life than any strategy ever could.
Even in the pressured environment of a PhD program at the University of Georgia, Kwon found ways to create community. He gathered a small handful of Korean students on campus, people who barely knew each other yet shared a homeland. Ik organized group trips to Stone Mountain, cooking Korean rice and kimchi together, singing folk songs and simply being present for one another.
"We must sing a Korean folk song," he says, smiling, ".. we cried. But it also gave us joy."
A Teacher Who Changed His Life and Made Him a Better One
One of the most moving stories in this episode involves a microeconomics professor who transformed Kwon's academic trajectory not through lecturing, but through a single act of compassion. When Kwon turned in a blank exam (he knew all the answers but couldn't write them down after studying until 3 a.m. for a 7:30 a.m. test), the professor didn't scold him. Instead, he asked: "What time did you go to bed?"
The professor handed him the same test, left the room and trusted him to complete it alone. Kwon finished in 20 minutes earning an A minus. The grade was changed from a D. But more importantly, the experience planted seeds of humanity and compassion that shaped Dr. Kwon's own teaching philosophy for five decades to serve students within his classroom.
"What he didn't know is that he taught me compassion, humanity, understanding, trusting people," says Kwon. Today, he stays in contact with over 350 former students sending each of them a handwritten card every December. Many write back, telling him they try to mimic his approach to life.
The Best Investment: Five Daughters and $1.2 Million in Education
When asked about his greatest life decision, Dr. Kwon didn't hesitate: sending all five of his daughters to private universities. The total bill, his wife Jackie informed him after the last graduation? $1.2 million. Ironically, they could have all gone to St Louis University ‘tuition-free’.
"I could have made some pretty good life with that money," he laughs. "But the dividend from that investment keeps coming. When I see them mature, married, have kids, living well... that's a dividend that never stops."
His daughters attended the University of Pennsylvania, Boston College and Fordham University. All far from St. Louis. Kwon jokes that they wanted to stay "as far away from daddy as possible." He honored their choices anyway. Now, his grandchildren are following the same path and his daughters have promised to pay it forward.
Retirement Done Right: Golf, 20 Published Articles and Western Movies
Dr. Kwon's approach to retirement is intentional. Two years before he actually retired, he knew it was time. Not because he was tired but because he noticed he'd lost the enthusiasm to prepare for his next class. "My wife said, 'If you lost that enthusiasm, you are cheating your students,'" he recalls. That hit hard. He gave himself two years to prepare for the next chapter.
He joined a professional retirement transition group, took assessments to identify his top strengths, and chose to extend his work not abandon it. Since retiring, he has published 20 academic articles. He also learned to play golf (at Creve Coeur Golf Club), limits television to two hours a day, reads voraciously and remains close to former students and colleagues.
"Retirement is an extension of your life with a different emphasis," he says. "Don't ever sit in front of the television." His advice to fellow retirees: lean into what you've spent 50 years building, find your people and keep moving literally and figuratively.
Korea, Georgia, St. Louis: The Three Pillars of a Rich Life
Perhaps the most profound insight Dr. Kwon shares is how he holds his past including its hardship with genuine fondness. He describes his life in terms of three pillars: Korea gave him his ethical and moral foundation; Georgia gave him intellectual capital and St. Louis gave him family. Each place, each chapter, built on the last.
"My life is simple," he says, "but it is rich not in terms of money, but in terms of relationships. Trusting relationships."
It's a message worth sitting with, especially for those on the threshold of retirement who may be tempted to view the next chapter as a finish line rather than a new beginning.
Purchase Dr. Kwon’s book here.