Taihi Paik, a longtime resident of Monterey and professionally known for her CPA practice in Carmel until her retirement, passed away of natural causes earlier this month in Irvine, CA. She was 98 years old.

Taihi was blessed with a large family, having 6 brothers and one sister. Although of Korean nationality, Taihi was born in Japan during the brief time that her mother and father lived there, while her father was on business assignment. While Korea was under Japanese occupation, Taihi gained her mastery of the Japanese language through lessons taught in grade school and high school.

While attending her first two years of college at Korea’s Ewha University, Taihi was introduced to her future husband Harkmoon Paik, and they married after a brief courtship. As a married couple, Harkmoon and Taihi embraced a vision of immigrating to the United States to seek opportunity and raise a family. Harkmoon left the Korean Peninsula to study at Florida Southern College under scholarship. Harkmoon then requested the President of the college to grant Taihi a scholarship also.

Supported by a generous contribution of $500 from the Methodist Church in Lakeland Florida, Harkmoon sent for her, mailing her the collected donations to fund her journey to the United States. However, when war broke out between North and South Korea, Taihi found herself needing to flee the advancing North Korean Army. Her eldest brother (Tae Hak) a brewery owner, directed his employee to drive her in a truck along with other refugees, to safety. Once free from danger, Taihi obtained passage on a large barge where she struggled with sea sickness and long sea voyages, first to the Philippines and then to San Pedro, CA, where her husband awaited her arrival. When she arrived at Florida Southern College, Taihi, with transfer credit from Ehwa University, completed the remainder of the coursework in 2 years, earning a Bachelor’s Degree.

Taihi and Harkmoon relocated to the Monterey Peninsula where they set down roots and raised their three sons. It was here that Taihi worked several temporary jobs before being hired by the Accounting firm of Heckenlaible, Apger and Company which underwent several name changes before being acquired over 20 years ago by the prominent Central California firm Hayashi and Wayland. Taihi originally joined the Accounting firm as a secretary. Sensing her promise in the field of business, the managing partners encouraged Taihi to further her education. Taihi returned to school and ultimately earned another Bachelor’s degree, this time in Accounting, from UC Berkeley. In 1968, Taihi had the distinction of being the first Korean born woman in the United States to earn the CPA license. She, along with fellow colleague Ward Jennings, joined the partnership with founding partners Bert Heckenlaible and Harold Apger. Together, they formed the Heckenlaible, Apger, Paik and Jennings Corporation which became the largest CPA firm in the Monterey Peninsula in the decade of the 1970s. Taihi, the only female CPA in the firm at that time, described her partnership with the men in the firm, stating that they were honorable and ethical, and perfect gentlemen. She felt a sense of incredible good fortune to be associated with the other professional partners. While active as a CPA, Taihi completed a Master’s Degree in the field of Taxation.

Taihi maintained lifelong connections with her clients, which included end of life work such as estate planning and Executor/Trustee responsibilities. Taihi was a soft spoken pillar of the local Asian American community, assisting local professionals and business owners succeed in their business plans, investments and tax obligations. Taihi was a community volunteer, involved in the Rotary Club and later the Carmel Music Society, serving as treasurer of the Board of Directors for several years. During her tenure, concert artists such as violinist Itzhak Perlman were recruited and performed for a sell out crowd at Carmel’s Sunset Auditorium. This resurgence breathed new life in the Carmel music scene. Taihi recounted meeting Mr. Perlman and was impressed with his warm, gregarious personality and strong hands.

Despite her achievements and community involvement, Taihi’s vision was ultimately centered around being good wife, sister, mother, and friend. She accompanied her disabled friends to church and visited friends and former clients who were home-bound. As a retiree, Taihi worked part time to provide accounting services to her remaining clients during tax season for the firms new owner Hayashi and Wayland. But when her husband developed dementia, Taihi made the decision to retire completely and to relocate to Irvine, where she was able to maintain a normal home life for her ailing husband with the support of her two sons David and Edmund. Taihi appreciated her new surroundings, a 55 and over community, making friends easily with her very exceptional neighbors. However, she also missed life in Monterey and visited frequently over the years to maintain her strong connection with friends and former neighbors there.

Taihi is preceded in death by her husband as well as her youngest son Benjamin. “Ben,” a devoted son and promising attorney , passed away from pancreatic cancer in 2003. Taihi is survived by her sons, David and his children Nathalie and Tiffany, as well as Edmund, his wife Connie, and their children Erin and William, her brothers Tae Wang Min and Dr. Tae Cheol Min.