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WHO WE ARE

The Pan-Pacific American Leaders and MentorsĀ® 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,

In light of recent changes in the Department of Defense guidance, below are some guidelines for chapter leaders and members as they conduct business on behalf of PPALM.

- When conducting PPALM business, do not use government resources.

-  Do not use government email accounts to conduct PPALM business.

- Conduct all Chapter-related business at facilities off DoD Installations, unless you have written permission from the Installation Commander and support from the local chain of command.

- Continue activities that help military, civilian, and students and focus on our core competencies (mentorship, leadership, professional and educational development, community involvement and outreach, and networking).

- Retired members of the Total Force may use their ranks, provided the rank is annotated with verbiage indicating their retired status.

- Direct all media inquiries or request for comments to PPALM's VP of Communication, Olivia Nunn at olivia@ppalm.org.

PPALM is here to support you so if you have any concerns, please reach out to any member of the PPALM Board of Directors.

We hope to see you at any or all of the upcoming events listed in our event page.


Sincerely Yours,

Antonio M. Taguba
Chairman

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PPALM NEWS


Where in the World are our members?

PPALM is global.

Aside from our US Chapters, we currently have members in Okinawa (Cliff Chen), South Korea (Renee Lee & Jason Yee), Japan (Jonathan Ung), Greece (Shane Doolan), Ireland (Tina Carroll-Garrison), Italy (Yohei Sakamoto), Germany (Brandon Riddle & Lee Finemma) and Great Britain (Arnel David).


PPALM Launches New Membership Subcommittee

PPALM started the committee to increase, maintain and sustain its membership.

The committee is charged with the following tasks:

1. Assess current program

2. Create a strategy to include non-commissioned officers and equivalent rank/position in the civilian workforce

3. Consider Chapter's value in the development process

4. Develop and integrate a communications plan - on social media, online, in-person, and other mediums to highlight the core value of PPALM.


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


EVENTS

FEATURED MEMBERS

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NOT A MEMBER YET!

BOARD OF DIRECTORS



Chairman

MG Antonio Taguba, 

U.S. Army (Ret.)




Executive Director

Christine V. Enriquez

 



Executive Secretary 

Lida Peterson, CPPM, CDMP, CTA






Vice President of Finance 

LTC Armando Generoso, U.S. Army (Ret.)




Vice President of Membership

LTC Prospero James Gatus, U.S. Army 



 


Vice President of Mentorship

Col Mia L. Walsh, U.S. Space Force 



Vice President of Communication 

LTC Olivia J.M. Nunn, U.S. Army (Ret.)




Vice President of Strategic Planning

LTC Quyen M. Dang, U.S. Army 



Vice President of Information Management 

Mr. Juan P. Rodriguez

PMP, SMC, ITIL v3 



Ex Officio / President of The D.C. Metro Chapter 

COL Eric Flowers, U.S. Army (Ret.)


Board Openings

Want to join us and serve on the PPALM Board of Directors?

For more details, send your resume and a short biography to:

 communication@ppalm.org 


SAVE THE DATE: 12 Oct. 2025

18th Annual General Membership Meeting and Reception


Contact PPALM / PPALM, 7726 Gunston Plz, P.O. Box 69, Lorton, VA 22199

Copyright 2015 - Pan-Pacific American Leaders and Mentors, all rights reserved.  Privacy Policy / Terms of Service

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PPALM Corporate Sustaining Sponsors

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PPALM Corporate Supporting Sponsors

Robert Nakamoto Foundation

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PPALM Corporate Contributing Sponsors


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Friends and Partners


      

    


 
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