Dragon Kim Foundation Announces Seven 2025 Dragon Challenge Finalists Teams

The Dragon Kim Foundation, an Orange County-based nonprofit whose mission is to inspire our youth to impact their communities while discovering and pursuing their passions, has announced the seven Fellowship finalists teams that will compete in the upcoming 2025 Dragon Challenge.

The annual event is set for Saturday, September 13 at Symphony Hall on the campus of the Orange County School of the Arts in Santa Ana, California where the Fellows will present their community service project results to a panel of judges. .

The finalists were selected at the recent CEO Summit after competing in the Fellowship graduation event where 10 teams made up of 22 teens presented their projects to a full house on the UCI campus.

For more information about the Challenge and to obtain tickets, visit https://dragonkimfoundation.org The event’s presenting sponsor is COX.

To learn more about sponsorship levels for the Challenge, contact Dragon Kim Foundation Co-founder and CEO Daniel Kim at daniel@dragonkimfoundation.org

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Foundation, whose Fellowship program empowers high school students of all demographics and social backgrounds to go out into the world and make a difference in the lives of others, especially those who are disadvantaged.

Annually, the Fellowship program awards community service grants of up to $5,000 to the teams that enables them to create and manage a service project that will impact their community. The winner of the Dragon Challenge will receive another $5,000 to continue their project.

The fianlists from California are:

Beyond the Stage empowered disadvantaged youth in California’s underfunded schools through theater workshops that enhanced literacy, creativity, and confidence. Students wrote and performed their own stories, culminating in a final performance and a documentary showcasing their growth. Fellows are Sophie Hsu and Aya Hana of Legacy Magnet Academy.

Glean on Me hosted hands-on workshops where middle and high school student volunteers harvested fruit trees from registered properties in the San Gabriel Valley area, learned about food insecurity, and donated their harvested fruit to local food banks, shelters, and organizations, helping feed those in need. Fellow is Apollo Won of Polytechnic School.

Morality Matters is a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting morally conscious decision-making and empowering the next generation through ethics education. Advocating for legislative change, Morality Matters aimed to integrate values-based instruction into school curriculums and ensure its accessibility for all. Fellow is Asmi Aggarwal of Orange County School of the Arts.

Note by Note's goal was to create strong, lifelong connections by igniting a passion for singing and music in visually impaired students, all the while empowering them to tap into their hearing and voice Fellows are Lubaina Habib and Aleena Khan of Orange County School of the Arts.

TechTies achieved its mission by teaching senior citizens about social media platforms by going to senior centers and daycare centers. As many seniors experience depression and anxiety, the team hoped that along the way to make connections and friendships through technology . Fellows are Raina Kim of Brea Olinda High School, Arah Lee Orange County School of the Arts, and Nathan Lee of Troy High School.

Wise and Wonderful included a four-day camp to connect students with seniors through engaging activities like storytelling, art, and music, culminating in the creation of memory books that celebrate shared experiences. By fostering empathy and understanding, the project combats social isolation and inspires students to make volunteering a meaningful part of their lives. Fellows are Isabella Strickland- Martinez and Kayla Stephanos, both of Mater Dei High School.

The finalist from Arizona is:

Life Savers Phoenix was a free program that equipped under-resourced children aged 8-12 with essential life-saving skills, including CPR, AED use, first aid, choking response, bleeding control, and other emergency preparedness procedures, through hands-on training led by the teens, who are certified instructors. By fostering confidence and readiness, the program empowered youth to prevent avoidable fatalities and serve as leaders for change in their communities. Felloes are Sanath Seetharam, Sahil Bagai, and Suhaan Sharma all of Brophy College Preparatory.

Last year, the project winning the Dragon Challenge was Heart-to-Art developed by Irvine residents Ashima Sharma and Vedant Dayal, both 16 and students at the Orange County School of the Arts that included a two-week summer camp established in partnership with CHOC’s After Cancer Treatment Survivorship Program that exposed ambulatory cancer patients and survivors to integrated art therapy in six art forms, with proceeds benefiting CHOC’s social workers. They were awarded an additional $5,000 to continue their work.

“We’re proud of all of our Fellows who brought imagination and determination to their projects this summer to make a positive difference in their communities,” said Daniel Kim, Dragon Kim Foundation co-founder and CEO.

For more information and to apply for the 2026 Dragon Fellowship, visit http://dragonkimfoundation.org.

The Fellowship was founded in honor of the late Dragon Kim, a talented young musician, athlete, and scholar who wanted to help others, and has become a seedbed for the next generation of creative thinkers and entrepreneurs who want to make a difference in their communities.

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About the Dragon Kim Foundation

The Dragon Kim Foundation was established in 2015 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization by Grace and Daniel Kim to honor the memory of their late son Dragon Kim, who had been attending the Orange County School of the Arts. The mission of the Dragon Kim Foundation is to inspire our youth to impact their communities while discovering and pursuing their passions. Visit the website at http://dragonkimfoundation.org.