Building Resilience: Yong Kim ’96 Charts His Own Path
By Kara McDuffee
Yong Kim crossed continents to reach Brewster, bringing little more than a steadfast ambition and the hope of belonging. Years later, he credits those uncertain days with forging the resilience and vision that would fuel his journey from new arrival to CEO, author, and lifelong learner.
When Yong Kim ’96 reflects on his journey from Seoul to Wolfeboro, he remembers the swirling mix of excitement and sharp trepidation—the steep language barrier, the winter chill, and the sense of uncertainty that shadowed his first months at Brewster. He arrived mid-year, far from home, with ample ambition but limited English and no familiar faces.
“All the social groups were already formed when I got there,” Yong recalls. “Everything just felt new. There was a high level of anxiety, and I went into survival mode.” But in that environment of struggle, seeds of transformation quietly took root. The compassion and patience of Brewster faculty and his peers made all the difference. “They gave me the safety net to try different things, fail at them, and realize it would still be okay. That built so much confidence in me,” he says.
Brewster’s influence extended well beyond academics. After an early experience off-campus with racism, Yong poured his emotions on paper. Then, despite being new to public speaking and the language, he stood before the entire school to read his reflections. “With my broken English, I read what I wrote about the experience, what it made me feel, and everyone got up on their feet and clapped. That was the moment I truly felt connected to the Brewster community. Walls came down and friendship blossomed.” That experience, he says, was proof that kindness and belonging were not mere ideals at Brewster, but daily realities.
Forging a Path Guided By Questions
Yong continued to grow at Brewster: “At 15 or 16, it’s hard to know who you are or what you want. Brewster taught me that it’s okay to not have the answers. Instead, keep asking the right questions and keep growing.” At first, he leaned on his fellow international students in the dorm for connections. As his English improved and comfort grew, he became part of a close-knit group in Sargent Dorm. These relationships that would last decades beyond campus.
After Brewster, Yong set off for the University of Chicago, studying economics and mathematics. He considered a future in academia, starting graduate school at Harvard only to realize the academic path was not a good fit. He took a detour into business consulting, then investment banking on Wall Street. It became a world that promised stability and reward, but left him unfulfilled. “I did it for almost 10 years,” he admits, “but every year, I thought, ‘This will be my last.’ The only way out was just to finally say, ‘I’m done.’ So that’s what I did.”
That leap became a pattern of growth: “Big decisions for me were never planned for months or years. If I want to do something, I just do it.” In 2013, with the support of his wife, Linda Kim, Yong left finance and began further soul-searching. Reflecting on the barriers he’d faced as a young immigrant, he saw a persistent mismatch in America’s job market: companies in need of workers, and workers struggling to find opportunities, especially those from diverse or disadvantaged backgrounds. With fellow Brewster alum A.J. Brustein ’98—whom he’d serendipitously discovered shared the same alma mater—they launched Wonolo, a tech platform connecting businesses with skilled and available workers. Ten years later, Yong’s company has helped millions, but the journey has required all the grit and heart he once built at Brewster.
“If I’d known how hard building a company would be, I probably wouldn’t have started,” Yong laughs. “There’s suffering, heartbreak, constant testing of character. But when I hear the stories of people whose lives have changed because of what we’ve built, it wipes away all the heartache. That’s what keeps me going.”
This same drive led Yong to yet another challenge: writing a novel. The process started as a late-night outlet for the pressures of entrepreneurship and turned into a disciplined act of creation. “Finishing a book required just as much discipline as starting a company,” he says, “and you can only do for the love of it.”
After 12 months, he officially published When River Loves Deborah (3M3G Books 2025), a book whose tech entrepreneur protagonist embarks on a journey of love, self-discovery, and second chances. While the story is not an autobiography, Kim said he drew inspiration for storylines that are similar to his life experiences.
The book now sits proudly in Brewster’s Kenison Library.
Advice for Current Students
In 2019, Kim returned to Brewster as the year’s Cooper Series speaker. During his talk, he discussed the importance of failure as a learning tool, and encouraged students to have the courage to fail.
Not surprisingly, his message to students remains consistent. Asked what advice he’d offer today’s Brewster students, especially fellow international students stepping into the unknown, Yong returns to themes of courage, kindness, and self-discovery. “Find your own voice. Block out the noise, ask yourself what you truly want, and have the courage to pursue it, even if it doesn’t fit others’ expectations. And ask for help when you need it. There are always people who want to see you succeed.”
For Yong, the margins of every chapter are filled with reminders not to fear uncertainty, but to embrace it, growing through each challenge. Brewster’s real gift was instilling a lifelong willingness to learn, lead with kindness, and step forward courageously—even when the way isn’t clear.
