Remembering Asaka Park: A life full of passion

Every time we walked into the AIMM journalism room, we were greeted with a friendly face and lively conversation from Asaka Watanabe Park. A senior journalism major, Park was an extraordinarily kind person and a gift to the journalism department at the College. We are heartbroken that Asaka died of natural causes while at her home in Cresskill, New Jersey on Sept. 29.

“Asaka was kind and compassionate to everyone,” said Kathleen Webber, journalism program coordinator and advisor to The Signal. “She attended every event and class with an open mind and a smile on her face, always grateful for the opportunity to learn and be with our community. She taught us kindness and understanding and she will be forever missed by her friends and professors in journalism and communication.”

Park had a deep passion for writing and journalism. She frequently wrote about her disability and her life, as she was a strong advocate for people with disabilities. Her most recent piece was a memoir, titled “#TechnicallyAutistic,” about living with a dual diagnosis of autism and ADHD. She had also published several articles in The Signal during her time at the College.

“Asaka always worried that she wasn’t doing enough,” said Kim Pearson, professor of journalism. “What she did with the short time she had [was] nothing short of amazing. She did more than build a portfolio. She made a difference.”

Pamela Barnett, dean of the School of the Arts and Communication, said she is “heartbroken” by the loss of Park. She described Park as “an engaged student who made the most of college.”

“Just five days ago, we were together for a visiting speaker and afterwards Asaka wrote to me and Professors Webber and Pearson,” Barnett said. “She thanked us for the event and also said how wonderful and supportive the JPW program was [and] that she would miss us when she graduated.”

Park’s hard work and dedication to storytelling were recognized by many, including Emilie Lounsberry, a former professor of journalism and Signal advisor. She detailed her experience having Park in her classes and underscored her enthusiasm for the craft of writing.

“Asaka loved writing and was willing to put in the hard work it takes to get good at it,” Lounsberry said. “She had a kind of thirst for knowledge that we love to see in our students.”

Park recently worked as an intern for The Journalism Salute, a podcast created by Mark Simon ‘97 that highlights journalists and their careers. In her role, Park wrote essays about interviews and provided her own unique perspective for the podcast’s newsletter.

“Asaka had a distinct journalism voice,” Simon said. “She was passionate and courageous and a strong supporter for college students and for people with disabilities. She approached her writing for my newsletter with a high degree of enthusiasm and a strong desire to improve as a writer. I am saddened by her loss but grateful for having had the opportunity to know her and be touched by her writing.”

Gabriel Salazar ‘18 served as a podcasting mentor to Park, and he also noted her dedication to the causes that drove her.

“From our very first conversation, I immediately felt her passion in telling her story of being a person with autism,” Salazar said. “What I really came to admire about Asaka in my short time of knowing her was how she wrote and spoke about her lived experiences with so much candor, vulnerability and passion. I know her writing and her work advocating for people with autism and disabilities will help others who have similar experiences feel seen and heard.”

Jenna Rittman, a senior journalism major and correspondent for The Signal, said her friendship with Park expanded beyond the classroom.

“I met Asaka in my freshman year of college because we were both in Her Campus together,” Rittman said. “We became even closer friends when we took Media Ethics and Magazine Journalism together. I had always looked up to her due to her writing skills. She even inspired me to make a Substack account myself. I will miss her dearly.”

Park also became close with those she met outside of journalism. She connected with Gianna Barone, a senior psychology major, during a Chinese Student Association trip to Chinatown two years ago, where they bonded over learning about Chinese culture.

“She would tell me that she wasn't sure she would make it as a journalist, so I'm really glad that I hopefully was a part of encouraging her to keep going,” Barone said. “She wanted to be a writer for well-known journals one day, and it always inspired me how much work she put into her writing and kept pushing forward to graduate.”

Park was also involved in Breaking Down Barriers, the College’s disability awareness and inclusion club, where she held an executive board position. Park welcomed others into the program and was an advocate for many. 

“Asaka was one of the students that introduced me to Breaking Down Barriers,” said senior public health major Gio Adu-Gyamfi. “She was a really talented writer and journalist who could relate with any student.”

She was an inspiration to many, especially for her strong voice and passion for everything she did. 

“Her and I both listened to the same music,” Rittman said. “We would even do homework together in her dorm room and the journalism room sometimes. She always seemed so accomplished in my eyes.”

Park’s interests lay in arts and culture, humor, creative nonfiction and much more. She loved to share these interests with others and write about them.

“She didn’t want to only be known for her disability advocacy,” Barone said, “rather she wanted people to know ‘Asaka.’ Her disability was a part of her life, but she also wanted to share her beauty advice, hot takes, and be a free spirit when writing. To only know her for her advocacy is great, but it discredits all of the hard work she put in to be seen as a college girl aside from that.”

Growing up, Park was the first daughter of Edward Park and Junko Watanabe. She was raised in Bergen County, along with her younger sister. 

“Asaka’s early years were marked by a love for animals, but it was her growing passion for writing that truly defined her,” her obituary read.

Park will forever be remembered by The Signal’s staff, the journalism department and the College. A visitation will be held on Oct. 2 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Barrett Leber Funeral Home in Tenafly, New Jersey. In addition, the School of the Arts and Communication will be holding a memorial service at 3 p.m. on Oct. 2 in AIMM 102. For more information on how to contribute to the memorial, visit the dedicated page on Legacy.com.