Rocky Kim was a legend among Asian Americans. He seemed to have an infinite amount of energy and time for the community and its projects. If you needed help, he would be the first in line to support you with his checkbook, time, energy, creativity, manpower or encouragement. Even if all you needed was a smile, he was there for you.

At his funeral, Kim? friends said again and again that they wanted to continue the work of this great man. If only everyone? heart was as big as his.

But the community can do something even better to honor the memory of Kim never let another Korean American grocer die on the job again.

According to police, Kim died of a gunshot wound in the middle of the night at his West Seattle mini-mart/gas station in late October. Police say they?e investigating the death as a homicide. We have to wonder what security measures were taken to prevent such a tragic murder.

The legacy of Kim should be security awareness among Korean American grocery stores.

Grocers must evaluate their security measures. If there? any doubt in their mind that someone could be killed or seriously hurt inside their store, they should increase their protection. Most small Asian American-owned grocery stores are staffed only by the owners and their family members. Who would want to endanger their family in that way? The risk is simply not worth it.

Like all business owners, Asian American small business owners try to cut costs as much as possible. It? the bottom line they?e most interested in. But that means something needs to be sacrificed. Did Kim sacrifice his security by locating his store in a relatively isolated West Seattle location? Did he sacrifice his security by frequently spending the night at his store because he was responsible for closing and opening it every day? These measures probably cut costs and saved time, but were they worth the ultimate sacrifice? Kim? fellow grocers must think hard about what they?e giving up for the bottom line.

In honor of Kim, the Korean American Grocers Association can lead the evaluation and improvement of security among grocery stores. Questions they should tackle include: What can be done to decrease the vulnerability of grocers? How can owners and employees detect suspicious elements? What is the safest way to handle robberies? Where is the best place to keep undeposited cash? Grocers must work together to find the best solutions to their security issues. Their collaboration will benefit everyone.

It? important to strive to serve our community as selflessly as Kim did, but it? just as important if not more important to find ways to prevent the death of another innocent person. Kim wouldn? want something like that to happen.