​“AUDREY4CARE-Care 4 Animals, Respect 4 the Earth” is a project that I started when I was 6 years old. After reading a book about oil spills, which made a great impact on my understanding of the responsibility in protecting the ocean mammals and environment, I created this initiative that increases public awareness of the importance of “CARE” through communication and taking actions.

In the summer of 2016, I wrote a letter to former President Obama to share my concerns about oil spills’ negative effects on the environment and received an inspiring letter back from him. It encouraged me to start my own fundraising site and have raised over $6,000 thus far.

To bring awareness to my local community regarding “CARE”, I have donated birthdays and made more than 1,000 paper roses and natural soy candles to hand out for free. My story was introduced on television, radio, and national and local newspapers.

​My continued interests in making others aware of “CARE” led to an expansion of the project.  I asked my classmates to join me for beach clean-up activities and raised funds to donate to Pacific Marine Mammal Center as a class project. I have volunteered to display my works that showed “CARE” at a local library.  I also have worked closely to Korean-American community, and spoke to Korean American Business Forum(KABF) regarding “CARE”.  I have been creating weekly videos highlighting endangered animals and current environment news, which have been used as educational videos in different schools in my local community.

The coronavirus couldn’t stop me.  In 2021, I entered the OC Health Care Agency Mask Message Contest to encourage people to wear masks, earning second place honors and $6,000 for my school. In addition, I adapted my AUDREY4CARE Earth Day activities to a virtual format so I could continue to educate local children during the pandemic. I also competed in the Rube Goldberg Machine challenge to encourage hand washing and my work was featured on the Rube Goldberg Machine YouTube channel.

Recently, I am working in collaboration with Dr. Deming to develop and fundraise for a portable x-ray table for ocean mammals at PMMC. To help initiate CARE, I designed a website to illustrate the fundamentals of fundraising and provide helpful resources. I am also creating a video series called “PEOPLE at PMMC”, which depicts the process of rescuing, rehabilitating, and releasing marine mammals.

AUDREY4CARE has not only generated interest among young people about “CARE”, but also inspired grown-ups to get motivated to “CARE”.  The long-term goals of AUDREY4CARE are to promote environmental awareness and encourage appropriate public involvement to treat the earth with respect, ultimately ensuring a healthy planet for future generations.

The beginning of my remarkable journey has only just commenced. From my journey, I have discovered that simple acts of courage can lead to astonishing events.  As I contemplate the opportunities I could attain with determination, dedication, and drive, I am filled with both zeal and expectation for the forthcoming days.