The vibrant city of San Francisco played host to an unforgettable weekend as the #TACLfam gathered for our annual fall convention, hosted by TAP-SF. This year, the convention’s theme, “The Multiverse of Identities,” promised a unique exploration of the diverse experiences and backgrounds that make up the Taiwanese American community. Continue reading for a quick recap of highlights from this enlightening weekend!

We kicked off convention weekend with the classic TAPpy Hour as members settled into the city and regrouped at Spark Social – a food truck park, beer & sangria garden, and social venue located in the heart of San Francisco’s Mission Bay neighborhood. Old and new friends mingled and caught up with each other since meeting at the last Denver convention retreat, or perhaps it’s been even longer than that!

Saturday was off to an early start as the lineup was jam-packed with guest speakers, breakout sessions with small groups, and networking opportunities amongst the chapters and programs. As we set the tone for the weekend, the convention’s theme encouraged everyone to explore our identities and the intersectionality that makes us who we are.

Sessions included speakers Eric Tsai from Taiwan Plus, sharing more on the history of Taiwan, Christine Lin (TAP-SF) and TACL’s very own civic engagement directors, Christina Hu and Adam Pier on understanding who we are and where we live based on census data, and last, but not least, Jenny Eu (Three Trees), Kimberly Yang (Formosa Chocolates), Sophia Yen (Pandia Health) – all of whom are Taiwanese and Taiwanese American women entrepreneurs for our panel session on sharing their journey and career path.

We wrapped up the day with some dialogue sessions within each small group before splitting off to explore SF’s various restaurants and sightseeing spots.

For the final day of this convention, we began with a Best Practice sharing from some of our programs before going into a session led by LYF Camp that took a look into how they approach identity with the camp staff and the campers themselves. Additionally, members were treated with Taiwanese foods for both breakfast and lunch, in which the latter came shortly after a lively panel discussion with Angie Lin and Tony Tung (Good to Eat Dumplings) and Jessica Liang (Liang’s Village) on how culture defines food, and thus defining who we are, where we are from, and what we can create. In our last session of convention, artist Felicia Liang shared her experiences as a creative and led an interactive workshop on how to express ourselves and our identities.

Before we knew it, it was the end of our convention programming, and like all other conventions, we followed our tradition to celebrate the weekend of learning, exploration, and connection with a dinner banquet! Fun fact: Fang, the restaurant venue for this last night of gathering, was part of the set for Matrix 4 with Keanu Reeves!

As always, convention weekend flew by in the blink of an eye, but members had the chance to reflect, celebrate, and explore their own identities and each other’s as well. We’ve included a link to a recap video that TAP-SF has put together to summarize the weekend! Convention served as a reminder that our identities are not singular, and each person has their own unique connection to their Taiwanese American heritage and community. 

With that being said, we look forward to seeing the #TACLfam at our next convention retreat in February 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Till then, please take care and stay safe!